Ophthalmic Medical Technicians in Virginia
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$33,467
after federal, FICA and Virginia tax
Tax takes
$7,453
18.2% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$33,218
Virginia costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Virginia — 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
$40,920
Kept after tax
$33,467
Worth in national money
$33,218
State rank
34
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Virginia sits in the middle of the pack for ophthalmic medical technicians. The median is $40,920, ranking 34 of 51 states with figures. Close enough to the national middle that where you live matters more than the headline suggests.
- Measured against other jobs in Virginia, this one sits low: 409 of 489 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Prices here sit close to the national average, so the adjustment changes little. From $40,920 the take-home is $33,467, which is worth about $33,218 in comparable money. Tax does most of the work here, not cost of living. The average is higher, $42,870, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Virginia occupies the middle band for ophthalmic medical technicians: a median of $40,920, ranking 34 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.
- Ophthalmic medical technicians occupies position 409 of 489 in Virginia'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.
- Virginia's price level is near the national average, so price deflation is close to neutral for ophthalmic medical technicians on its $40,920 median: $33,467 retained after tax becomes $33,218 in national-average terms. Where the price adjustment is small, the tax stack is the dominant determinant of the real outcome. The mean of $42,870 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Ophthalmic Medical Technicians
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $36,170 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $40,920 |
| Top tenth earn over | $52,280 |
| This salary | $40,920 |
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 Virginia | $33,467 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $35,059 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$2,860 |
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 | $38,938 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$3,459 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 101 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Virginia earn less than $40,920. The published range is $36,170 up to $52,280, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In Virginia the take-home figure of $33,467, from $40,920, 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 409 of 489 occupations here.
- Two cautions on $33,218, the adjusted value of that $40,920 median. It levels out prices with a single number for all of Virginia. No actual address matches that. The wage figures and price figures are also from different years. Each is published on its own timetable. This work sits at 409 of 489 locally.
- Reported values are medians; for ophthalmic medical technicians in Virginia the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $36,170 to $52,280. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for Virginia is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $33,467 from $40,920. 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 409 of 489 locally.
- This $33,218 adjusted figure, worked from $40,920, rests on a state-level price parity averaging over within-state dispersion larger than much of the between-state dispersion. Wage and price vintages differ by publication schedule. The result is directionally sound and not address-specific, for work at 409 of 489 in the state. The occupation ranks 409 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $42,870, dragged up by high earners; the middle figure describes a typical worker better.
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $36,170 at the tenth percentile, $52,280 at the ninetieth.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
A larger wage in a dearer place is not automatically more. Adjusted for local prices, this pay behaves like $33,218 of national purchasing power.
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 Virginia's own levy, $33,467 remains.
Can I compare this job across every state?
Yes for this one. Pay is published in all 51 jurisdictions, so a state-to-state comparison here rests on the same survey everywhere rather than on a patchwork.
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 Virginia is $42,870. 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 ($36,170 to $52,280) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Virginia rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
Virginia's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $33,218 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 $33,467 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Virginia 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.