Motor Vehicle Operators, All Other in West Virginia
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$26,939
after federal, FICA and West Virginia tax
Tax takes
$4,851
15.3% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$30,009
West Virginia costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in West 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
$31,790
Kept after tax
$26,939
Worth in national money
$30,009
State rank
43
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- West Virginia is among the lower-paying states for this job. The middle earner takes $31,790, ranking 43 of 51 states — about 14.5% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- Measured against other jobs in West Virginia, this one sits low: 424 of 473 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Here is where West Virginia does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $31,790 you keep $26,939, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $30,009 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $39,480, because the best-paid pull it up.
- West Virginia ranks 43 of 51 for motor vehicle operators, all other, with a median of $31,790 — about 14.5% 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.
- Motor vehicle operators, all other occupies position 424 of 473 in West Virginia'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.
- After federal, FICA and West Virginia income tax, retained pay for motor vehicle operators, all other on $31,790 is $26,939. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $30,009 in national-average terms. ⚠️ That figure is purchasing power, not a wage, and nobody is paid it; it is what the take-home buys. The mean of $39,480 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
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Pay band: Motor Vehicle Operators, All Other
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $28,730 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $31,790 |
| Top tenth earn over | $60,760 |
| This salary | $31,790 |
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 West Virginia | $26,939 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $27,723 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$1,479 |
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 | $30,814 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$1,789 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 90 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in West Virginia earn less than $31,790. The published range is $28,730 up to $60,760, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In West Virginia the take-home figure of $26,939, from $31,790, 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 424 of 473 occupations here.
- Two cautions on $30,009, the adjusted value of that $31,790 median. It levels out prices with a single number for all of West Virginia. 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 424 of 473 locally.
- Reported values are medians; for motor vehicle operators, all other in West Virginia the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $28,730 to $60,760. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for West Virginia is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $26,939 from $31,790. 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 424 of 473 locally.
- This $30,009 adjusted figure, worked from $31,790, 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 424 of 473 in the state. The occupation ranks 424 of 473 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $39,480, dragged up by high earners; the middle figure describes a typical worker better.
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
One title, many jobs. The lowest tenth take $28,730, the highest tenth $60,760, and what separates them is experience, employer and what exactly the role does.
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 $30,009.
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 West Virginia adds its own income tax on top — which is why $26,939 of this wage survives to your account.
Can I compare this job across every state?
This occupation is published everywhere — all 51 of them — so comparing states measures real differences rather than gaps in the data.
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 West Virginia is $39,480. 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 ($28,730) and the ninetieth ($60,760) 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.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
West Virginia'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 $30,009 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 $26,939 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and West 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.
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.