Ophthalmic Medical Technicians in Illinois
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$37,838
after federal, FICA and Illinois tax
Tax takes
$9,262
19.7% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$38,276
Illinois costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Illinois — 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
$47,100
Kept after tax
$37,838
Worth in national money
$38,276
State rank
18
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Illinois sits in the middle of the pack for ophthalmic medical technicians. The median is $47,100, ranking 18 of 51 states with figures. Close enough to the national middle that where you live matters more than the headline suggests.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 494 occupations Illinois reports figures for, this is number 367.
- Prices here sit close to the national average, so the adjustment changes little. From $47,100 the take-home is $37,838, which is worth about $38,276 in comparable money. Tax does most of the work here, not cost of living. The average is lower, $46,500, so pay clusters nearer the top than usual.
- Illinois occupies the middle band for ophthalmic medical technicians: a median of $47,100, ranking 18 of 51. Where nominal pay is close to the national figure, the tax and price adjustments below carry proportionally more weight in determining the real outcome.
- In Illinois's occupational distribution, ophthalmic medical technicians sits at 367 of 494 — neither quartile. This local position is what a resident compares against, and it is determined by the state's own labor market rather than by national patterns for this occupation.
- Illinois's price level is near the national average, so price deflation is close to neutral for ophthalmic medical technicians on its $47,100 median: $37,838 retained after tax becomes $38,276 in national-average terms. Where the price adjustment is small, the tax stack is the dominant determinant of the real outcome. The mean of $46,500 falls below the median, a left skew that is uncommon in 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: Ophthalmic Medical Technicians
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $36,190 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $47,100 |
| Top tenth earn over | $60,490 |
| This salary | $47,100 |
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 Illinois | $37,838 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $40,025 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$2,912 |
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 | $44,379 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$3,522 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 99 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $47,100 as a midpoint for Illinois, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $36,190 and the ninetieth is $60,490 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- That $37,838 take-home in Illinois comes from $47,100. 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 367 of 494.
- One number stands for prices across all of Illinois, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $38,276, the adjusted value of that $47,100 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 367 of 494 in the state.
- The Illinois median of $47,100 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $36,190 to $60,490. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- Retained pay of $37,838, from $47,100, assumes a single Illinois 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 367 of 494 locally, and the state ranks 18 of 51 for it.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Illinois, so $38,276 — the adjusted value of that $47,100 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 367 of 494 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $36,190 at the bottom tenth to $60,490 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. Illinois is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $38,276 in national terms.
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; Illinois then takes its own share, leaving $37,838.
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 ($36,190 to $60,490) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Illinois rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Illinois'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 $38,276 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 $37,838 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Illinois 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.