Nursing Assistants in Missouri
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$31,622
after federal, FICA and Missouri tax
Tax takes
$6,058
16.1% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$34,461
Missouri costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Missouri — 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
$37,680
Kept after tax
$31,622
Worth in national money
$34,461
State rank
42
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Missouri is among the lower-paying states for nursing assistants. The middle earner takes $37,680, ranking 42 of 51 states — about 10.84% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- Measured against other jobs in Missouri, this one sits low: 422 of 488 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Here is where Missouri does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $37,680 you keep $31,622, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $34,461 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $38,410, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Missouri ranks 42 of 51 for nursing assistants, with a median of $37,680 — about 10.84% 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.
- Nursing assistants occupies position 422 of 488 in Missouri'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 Missouri income tax, retained pay for nursing assistants on $37,680 is $31,622. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $34,461 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 $38,410 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Nursing Assistants
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $31,350 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $37,680 |
| Top tenth earn over | $45,260 |
| This salary | $37,680 |
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 Missouri | $31,622 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $32,456 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$1,062 |
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 | $36,643 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$1,284 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 92 |
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 nursing assistants in Missouri earn under $37,680 and half over. The published range runs $31,350 at the tenth percentile to $45,260 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In Missouri the take-home figure of $31,622, from $37,680, 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 422 of 488 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $34,461 uses one figure for the whole of Missouri. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 488 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 422.
- Figures are distribution medians for nursing assistants in Missouri, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $31,350 to $45,260; 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.
- Take-home for Missouri is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $31,622 from $37,680. 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 422 of 488 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $34,461, worked from $37,680, 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 Missouri address, on work sitting at 422 of 488 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $31,350 at the bottom tenth to $45,260 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in Missouri sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $34,461 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
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 Missouri adds its own income tax on top — which is why $31,622 of this wage survives to your account.
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 ($31,350 to $45,260) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Missouri rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Missouri'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 $34,461 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 $31,622 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Missouri 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.