Office Machine Operators, Except Computer in New Mexico
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$29,871
after federal, FICA and New Mexico tax
Tax takes
$5,269
15.0% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$33,049
New Mexico costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in New Mexico — 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
$35,140
Kept after tax
$29,871
Worth in national money
$33,049
State rank
42
of 47 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- New Mexico is among the lower-paying states for this job. The middle earner takes $35,140, ranking 42 of 47 states — about 14.21% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- Measured against other jobs in New Mexico, this one sits low: 443 of 485 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- New Mexico is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $35,140 the take-home is $29,871; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $33,049 would nationally. The average comes to $40,430, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- New Mexico ranks 42 of 47 for office machine operators, except computer, with a median of $35,140 — about 14.21% 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.
- Office machine operators, except computer occupies position 443 of 485 in New Mexico'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.
- Post-tax income for office machine operators, except computer in New Mexico, on $35,140, is $29,871 — equivalent to $33,049 once regional price parity is applied. ⚠️ The adjustment uses a statewide index that describes no particular address; within-state price variation, concentrated in housing, routinely exceeds the difference between two states. At $40,430 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Office Machine Operators, Except Computer
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $29,120 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $35,140 |
| Top tenth earn over | $67,730 |
| This salary | $35,140 |
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 New Mexico | $29,871 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $30,415 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$1,749 |
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 | $34,463 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$2,116 |
| 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 New Mexico earn less than $35,140. The published range is $29,120 up to $67,730, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- That $29,871 take-home in New Mexico comes from $35,140. 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 443 of 485.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $33,049 uses one figure for the whole of New Mexico. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 485 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 443.
- Reported values are medians; for office machine operators, except computer in New Mexico the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $29,120 to $67,730. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Retained pay of $29,871, from $35,140, assumes a single New Mexico 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 443 of 485 locally, and the state ranks 42 of 47 for it.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $33,049, worked from $35,140, 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 New Mexico address, on work sitting at 443 of 485 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 $40,430, pulled upward by the top of the range, which is why the middle is the fairer number to plan against.
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
Because one job title covers very different work. The bottom tenth here earn $29,120 and the top tenth $67,730 — experience, employer and specialism separate them, and a single figure hides all three.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in New Mexico sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $33,049 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
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; New Mexico then takes its own share, leaving $29,871.
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 New Mexico is $40,430. 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 ($29,120) and the ninetieth ($67,730) 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?
New Mexico'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 $33,049 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 $29,871 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and New Mexico 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.