Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists in Virginia
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$70,069
after federal, FICA and Virginia tax
Tax takes
$23,551
25.2% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$69,548
Virginia costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Virginia — 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
$93,620
Kept after tax
$70,069
Worth in national money
$69,548
State rank
22
of 46 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Middling, nationally. Virginia pays this job around $93,620 at the midpoint, 22 of 46 states. The interesting numbers on this page are the two below it.
- Locally, this pays well. Among 489 occupations Virginia reports, this job comes in at 98 — comfortably in the upper quarter.
- No great distortion either way. Virginia costs about what the country costs, so from $93,620, take-home of $70,069 is worth roughly $69,548 in national money. The average comes to $127,300, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- For medical scientists, except epidemiologists the Virginia median is $93,620, ranking 22 of 46 states reporting. Mid-band nominal positions are the ones most frequently reordered by the adjustments, because no large wage premium exists to absorb a state's tax or price level.
- Medical scientists, except epidemiologists ranks 98 of 489 occupations by median in Virginia, in the top quartile. Within-state position is largely independent of national position, so this holds regardless of how the state compares to others for the same work.
- Price parity in Virginia is near the national base, so for medical scientists, except epidemiologists, whose median is $93,620, the adjusted figure of $69,548 differs little from $70,069 retained after tax. The state's position for this occupation is therefore set by wage and tax rather than by living costs. At $127,300 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
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Pay band: Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $65,540 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $93,620 |
| Top tenth earn over | $186,810 |
| This salary | $93,620 |
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 Virginia | $70,069 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $74,692 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$7,315 |
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 | $87,049 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$10,104 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 101 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Virginia earn less than $93,620. The published range is $65,540 up to $186,810, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In Virginia the take-home figure of $70,069, from $93,620, assumes one filer, no dependants, and nothing paid into a pension before tax. Each of those lowers the bill, so treat it as the plain case. City and school-district income taxes are not included either, and in a few states those are real money. It ranks 98 of 489 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $69,548 uses one figure for the whole of Virginia. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 489 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 98.
- Reported values are medians; for medical scientists, except epidemiologists in Virginia the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $65,540 to $186,810. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for Virginia is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $70,069 from $93,620. Each omitted item reduces taxable income, so the figure is a lower bound on retained pay for this household shape. Municipal and school-district income taxes are excluded, which understates the burden materially in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Maryland. The occupation ranks 98 of 489 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $69,548, worked from $93,620, deflates by a statewide parity that conceals substantial intra-state variation, concentrated in housing — so it supports comparison between states rather than the pricing of a move to a particular Virginia address, on work sitting at 98 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
No — it is the middle. Half of these workers earn more and half earn less. The average is $127,300, pulled upward by the top of the range, which is why the middle is the fairer number to plan against.
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
The label is broader than the work. From $65,540 at the bottom tenth to $186,810 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. Virginia costs more than the national average, so this take-home stretches like $69,548 rather than its face figure.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Into four separate taxes, not one. Federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare apply everywhere, and Virginia adds its own income tax on top — which is why $70,069 of this wage survives to your account.
Why is this job missing from some states?
Because the survey suppresses a figure when too few employers report it. This occupation has published pay in 46 states — the rest are withheld to protect confidentiality, which is not the same as nobody doing the work there.
How does the published median differ from the mean for this occupation?
The median is the midpoint of the distribution; the mean for this occupation in Virginia is $127,300. Wage distributions are right-skewed, so the mean exceeds the median wherever a minority earn substantially more. BLS publishes both because substituting one for the other misstates a typical worker's pay.
What drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($65,540) and the ninetieth ($186,810) 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?
Virginia's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $69,548 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 $70,069 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Virginia 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.
Why does this occupation lack published estimates in every state?
BLS suppresses estimates failing disclosure or reliability criteria. This occupation has published state-level estimates in 46 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.