Museum Technicians and Conservators in Oregon
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$35,537
after federal, FICA and Oregon tax
Tax takes
$10,283
22.4% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$33,935
Oregon costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Oregon — 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
$45,820
Kept after tax
$35,537
Worth in national money
$33,935
State rank
30
of 45 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. Oregon is 30 of 45 states for this job, with a middle wage of $45,820. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Within Oregon this is lower-paid work. Of 489 occupations the state publishes figures for, this job ranks 413. That is the bottom quarter locally, whatever the national comparison says.
- The wage here flatters the reality. From $45,820 the take-home is $35,537. But Oregon costs more than the national average, so that money behaves more like $33,935 would elsewhere. Worth knowing before comparing offers across states. The average is higher, $50,320, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Oregon ranks 30 of 45 for museum technicians and conservators at $45,820. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Against every occupation Oregon reports, museum technicians and conservators ranks 413 of 489, in the lowest quartile of the state's distribution. That position is set by the local labor market and is independent of how the state compares nationally for this work.
- Retained pay after federal, FICA and Oregon income tax is $35,537 for museum technicians and conservators, from $45,820. The state's price level exceeds the national average, so the price-adjusted equivalent is $33,935. ⚠️ 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 $50,320 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Museum Technicians and Conservators
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $34,720 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $45,820 |
| Top tenth earn over | $69,320 |
| This salary | $45,820 |
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 Oregon | $35,537 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $38,996 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$6,195 |
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 | $41,515 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$7,492 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 105 |
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 museum technicians and conservators in Oregon earn under $45,820 and half over. The published range runs $34,720 at the tenth percentile to $69,320 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- That $35,537 take-home in Oregon comes from $45,820. It is the no-frills case: single filer, standard deduction, nothing set aside before tax. Real circumstances almost always reduce the tax. City and school-district taxes are not counted at all. Locally the work ranks 413 of 489.
- One number stands for prices across all of Oregon, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $33,935, the adjusted value of that $45,820 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 413 of 489 in the state.
- Figures are distribution medians for museum technicians and conservators in Oregon, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $34,720 to $69,320; 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.
- Retained pay of $35,537, from $45,820, assumes a single Oregon filer with the standard deduction and no elective deferrals. Pre-tax retirement or HSA contributions, dependants and itemized deductions all reduce it further; local income taxes, excluded here, would increase it in the states that levy them. This occupation ranks 413 of 489 locally, and the state ranks 30 of 45 for it.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Oregon, so $33,935 — the adjusted value of that $45,820 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 413 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $50,320, dragged up by high earners; the middle figure describes a typical worker better.
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
The label is broader than the work. From $34,720 at the bottom tenth to $69,320 at the top, the same title covers roles that share little beyond a name.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
A larger wage in a dearer place is not automatically more. Adjusted for local prices, this pay behaves like $33,935 of national purchasing power.
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 Oregon adds its own income tax on top — which is why $35,537 of this wage survives to your account.
Why is this job missing from some states?
The survey withholds small samples rather than publish an unreliable number. Pay appears for 45 states here, and a missing state means too few reports, not no jobs.
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 Oregon is $50,320. 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 ($34,720) and the ninetieth ($69,320) 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?
Oregon's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $33,935 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 $35,537 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Oregon 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 45 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.