Office Machine Operators, Except Computer in California
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$39,043
after federal, FICA and California tax
Tax takes
$8,107
17.2% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$34,680
California costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in California — 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
$47,150
Kept after tax
$39,043
Worth in national money
$34,680
State rank
4
of 47 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- This is a good state for the work. California pays this job a middle wage of $47,150, ranking 4 of 47 states and sitting about 15.11% above the national middle.
- Within California this is lower-paid work. Of 492 occupations the state publishes figures for, this job ranks 397. That is the bottom quarter locally, whatever the national comparison says.
- The wage here flatters the reality. From $47,150 the take-home is $39,043. But California costs more than the national average, so that money behaves more like $34,680 would elsewhere. Worth knowing before comparing offers across states. The average is higher, $50,030, because the best-paid pull it up.
- California's median for office machine operators, except computer is $47,150, about 15.11% above the national figure and 4 of 47 states reporting. Whether that premium reaches the worker depends on the two adjustments below, which is the part a wage table cannot tell you.
- Against every occupation California reports, office machine operators, except computer ranks 397 of 492, 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 California income tax is $39,043 for office machine operators, except computer, from $47,150. The state's price level exceeds the national average, so the price-adjusted equivalent is $34,680. ⚠️ 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 $50,030 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
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: Office Machine Operators, Except Computer
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $36,870 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $47,150 |
| Top tenth earn over | $70,540 |
| This salary | $47,150 |
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 California | $39,043 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $40,065 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$6,550 |
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 | $45,878 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$7,921 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 113 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $47,150 as a midpoint for California, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $36,870 and the ninetieth is $70,540 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- In California the take-home figure of $39,043, from $47,150, 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 397 of 492 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $34,680 uses one figure for the whole of California. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 492 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 397.
- The California median of $47,150 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $36,870 to $70,540. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- Take-home for California is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $39,043 from $47,150. 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 397 of 492 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $34,680, worked from $47,150, 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 California address, on work sitting at 397 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
No — it is the middle. Half of these workers earn more and half earn less. The average is $50,030, pulled upward by the top of the range, which is why the middle is the fairer number to plan against.
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $36,870 and the top tenth $70,540, so most people doing this work in California sit within a fairly tight band.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
The number and the value are different things. California costs more than the national average, so this take-home stretches like $34,680 rather than its face figure.
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; California then takes its own share, leaving $39,043.
Why is this job missing from some states?
Because the survey suppresses a figure when too few employers report it. This occupation has published pay in 47 states — the rest are withheld to protect confidentiality, which is not the same as nobody doing the work there.
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 California is $50,030. 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 is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($36,870 to $70,540) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to California rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
California's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $34,680 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 $39,043 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and California 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 47 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.