Mechanical Engineers in Maryland
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$89,654
after federal, FICA and Maryland tax
Tax takes
$33,216
27.0% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$86,235
Maryland costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Maryland — roughly, since only five points along the band are published.
One filer, standard deduction, no dependants and nothing paid in before tax — the same household the rest of this page uses, so the comparison holds. City and school-district income taxes are not included.
Median here
$122,870
Kept after tax
$89,654
Worth in national money
$86,235
State rank
7
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Pay for mechanical engineers is strong here. Maryland's middle earner gets $122,870, putting the state 7 of 51 — about 18.02% ahead of the national figure.
- Within Maryland this is well-paid work. Of 489 occupations with published figures in the state, mechanical engineers ranks 49 — in the top quarter of everything people do there.
- The wage here flatters the reality. From $122,870 the take-home is $89,654. But Maryland costs more than the national average, so that money behaves more like $86,235 would elsewhere. Worth knowing before comparing offers across states. The average is higher, $125,850, because the best-paid pull it up.
- For mechanical engineers, Maryland sits in the upper band nationally: a median of $122,870, ranking 7 of 51 and running about 18.02% above the national midpoint. Nominal advantage of this size is usually, though not always, large enough to survive the state's own tax and price levels.
- Ranked against every occupation Maryland publishes a median for, mechanical engineers sits 49 of 489 — the upper quartile of the state's wage distribution. National standing and within-state standing are separate questions, and a job can occupy very different positions on each.
- Retained pay after federal, FICA and Maryland income tax is $89,654 for mechanical engineers, from $122,870. The state's price level exceeds the national average, so the price-adjusted equivalent is $86,235. ⚠️ This is purchasing power and not a wage; cross-state offer comparisons that stop at the nominal figure systematically overvalue high-cost states. The mean of $125,850 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Mechanical Engineers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $79,670 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $122,870 |
| Top tenth earn over | $176,680 |
| This salary | $122,870 |
Positions between the published tenth, quarter, half, three-quarter and ninetieth points are estimated by straight line.
The same pay, somewhere else
The state median for this job
| Take-home in Maryland | $89,654 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $95,248 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$11,782 |
State income tax and state price levels only. No city income tax, and no housing market.
What you would need there
The state median for this job
| To match take-home only | $114,889 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$16,305 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 104 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- A median is the middle, not an offer. Half of mechanical engineers in Maryland earn under $122,870 and half over. The published range runs $79,670 at the tenth percentile to $176,680 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind Maryland's $89,654, worked from $122,870. That is on purpose. It lets states be compared with each other, not with each other's family circumstances. Local city taxes are left out. Locally this work ranks 49 of 489.
- One number stands for prices across all of Maryland, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $86,235, the adjusted value of that $122,870 median, as a way to compare states fairly, not as a quote for any particular place. The two datasets are also from different years. This job sits at 49 of 489 in the state.
- Figures are distribution medians for mechanical engineers in Maryland, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $79,670 to $176,680; within-state dispersion of that width routinely exceeds the dispersion between states, so tenure, employer and metropolitan area predict an individual's pay better than geography does.
- The Maryland take-home of $89,654, on $122,870 for work ranking 49 of 489 locally, models the simplest household deliberately: holding it constant is what makes the interstate comparison meaningful. It also means the absolute figure overstates liability for most real filers, and municipal income taxes are outside the model entirely. The occupation ranks 49 of 489 in the state.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Maryland, so $86,235 — the adjusted value of that $122,870 median — establishes comparability between states rather than accuracy within one. The wage and parity series are dated independently, each following its own publication cycle, and neither is projected forward. This occupation sits at 49 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
The label is broader than the work. From $79,670 at the bottom tenth to $176,680 at the top, the same title covers roles that share little beyond a name.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
The number and the value are different things. Maryland costs more than the national average, so this take-home stretches like $86,235 rather than its face figure.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Four deductions, stacked. The federal layer and the two payroll taxes apply wherever you work; Maryland then takes its own share, leaving $89,654.
Can I compare this job across every state?
All 51 jurisdictions report this work, which makes the ranking a like-for-like one.
What drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($79,670) and the ninetieth ($176,680) exceeds the family median dispersion. SOC codes aggregate roles differing in seniority, industry and specialisation, and BLS does not disaggregate below the detailed occupation level, so within-title variance is not separable from the published series.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
Maryland's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $86,235 in national-average terms. ⚠️ RPPs are an all-items index; housing parities vary far more widely than the headline figure.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $89,654 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Maryland income tax for a single filer with no adjustments. The state layer is levied in addition to the federal one; only its rate and base differ between states.
Is this occupation's state coverage complete?
State-level estimates are published for all 51 jurisdictions for this occupation, so cross-state comparison is not confounded by suppression. ⚠️ Estimates remain survey-based and carry sampling error; small differences between adjacent states should not be over-read.