Occupational Therapy Assistants in Iowa
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$51,891
after federal, FICA and Iowa tax
Tax takes
$12,249
19.1% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$58,458
Iowa costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Iowa — 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
$64,140
Kept after tax
$51,891
Worth in national money
$58,458
State rank
37
of 50 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Pay for this job is on the low side in Iowa. The middle earner gets $64,140. That is 37 of 50 states, and about 11.29% under the national figure. Whether that matters depends on what things cost here.
- Ordinary, locally speaking. This job ranks 183 among 493 occupations Iowa publishes pay for.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $64,140 you keep $51,891 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $58,458 at national prices. Here the average runs under the middle, at $63,970.
- For occupational therapy assistants, Iowa sits in the lower band at $64,140, ranking 37 of 50 and trailing the national median by about 11.29%. Nominal rankings routinely invert once tax and regional price level are applied, so this position should not be read as the conclusion.
- Position 183 of 493 in Iowa places occupational therapy assistants in the middle of the state's wage distribution. Because within-state and cross-state rankings measure different things, this figure and the national one above should be read together rather than as a single verdict.
- Retained pay in Iowa is $51,891 after the full tax stack, from $64,140. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $58,458 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $63,970 sits under the median, so the lower tail is the longer one.
Compare this career across states
Choose your filing status and local taxes, compare pay, and keep a shortlist.Compare wage and personal-pay outcomes by state, with selected resident local taxes and saved career choices.
Pay band: Occupational Therapy Assistants
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $47,670 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $64,140 |
| Top tenth earn over | $79,800 |
| This salary | $64,140 |
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 Iowa | $51,891 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $53,716 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$3,179 |
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 | $61,868 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$4,056 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 89 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Iowa earn less than $64,140. The published range is $47,670 up to $79,800, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In Iowa the take-home figure of $51,891, from $64,140, 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 183 of 493 occupations here.
- One number stands for prices across all of Iowa, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $58,458, the adjusted value of that $64,140 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 183 of 493 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for occupational therapy assistants in Iowa the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $47,670 to $79,800. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for Iowa is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $51,891 from $64,140. 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 183 of 493 locally.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Iowa, so $58,458 — the adjusted value of that $64,140 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 183 of 493 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $47,670 and the top tenth $79,800, so most people doing this work in Iowa sit within a fairly tight band.
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 $58,458.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Three of them are federal and one is not. After income tax, Social Security, Medicare and Iowa's own levy, $51,891 remains.
Why is this job missing from some states?
The survey withholds small samples rather than publish an unreliable number. Pay appears for 50 states here, and a missing state means too few reports, not no jobs.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($47,670 to $79,800) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Iowa rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Iowa'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 $58,458 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 $51,891 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Iowa 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 50 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.