Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants in Montana
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$36,026
after federal, FICA and Montana tax
Tax takes
$7,714
17.6% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$39,921
Montana costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Montana — 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
$43,740
Kept after tax
$36,026
Worth in national money
$39,921
State rank
36
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Montana is among the lower-paying states for this job. The middle earner takes $43,740, ranking 36 of 51 states — about 4.77% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- Measured against other jobs in Montana, this one sits low: 372 of 475 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $43,740 you keep $36,026 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $39,921 at national prices. Here the average runs under the middle, at $43,710.
- Montana ranks 36 of 51 for medical secretaries and administrative assistants, with a median of $43,740 — about 4.77% below the national figure. A nominal shortfall is not by itself a real one: lower-paying states frequently carry lower tax and lower price levels, and the adjusted figures below are where that is settled rather than assumed.
- Medical secretaries and administrative assistants occupies position 372 of 475 in Montana's occupational wage distribution, in the bottom quartile. National ranking and local ranking answer different questions and frequently disagree; this is the one a resident experiences.
- Retained pay in Montana is $36,026 after the full tax stack, from $43,740. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $39,921 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $43,710 sits under the median, so the lower tail is the longer one.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $35,990 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $43,740 |
| Top tenth earn over | $51,690 |
| This salary | $43,740 |
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 Montana | $36,026 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $37,325 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$1,510 |
The raise and the real gain point in opposite directions here.
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 | $42,123 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$1,827 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 90 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $43,740 as a midpoint for Montana, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $35,990 and the ninetieth is $51,690 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind Montana's $36,026, worked from $43,740. 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 372 of 475.
- Two cautions on $39,921, the adjusted value of that $43,740 median. It levels out prices with a single number for all of Montana. No actual address matches that. The wage figures and price figures are also from different years. Each is published on its own timetable. This work sits at 372 of 475 locally.
- The Montana median of $43,740 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $35,990 to $51,690. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- The Montana take-home of $36,026, on $43,740 for work ranking 372 of 475 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 372 of 475 in the state.
- This $39,921 adjusted figure, worked from $43,740, rests on a state-level price parity averaging over within-state dispersion larger than much of the between-state dispersion. Wage and price vintages differ by publication schedule. The result is directionally sound and not address-specific, for work at 372 of 475 in the state. The occupation ranks 372 of 475 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $35,990 at the bottom tenth to $51,690 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
A smaller wage in a cheaper place is not automatically less. Adjusted for local prices, this is worth $39,921.
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; Montana then takes its own share, leaving $36,026.
Can I compare this job across every state?
All 51 jurisdictions report this work, which makes the ranking a like-for-like one.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($35,990 to $51,690) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Montana rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Montana's regional price parity is at or below the national average, so nominal wages understate purchasing power. Take-home deflated by the state price level is $39,921 in national-average terms. The adjustment uses an all-items index and does not isolate housing.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $36,026 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Montana 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.