Opticians, Dispensing in Maryland
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$39,361
after federal, FICA and Maryland tax
Tax takes
$9,339
19.2% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$37,860
Maryland costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Maryland — 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
$48,700
Kept after tax
$39,361
Worth in national money
$37,860
State rank
18
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Maryland sits in the middle of the pack for opticians, dispensing. The median is $48,700, 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 489 occupations Maryland reports figures for, this is number 347.
- The wage here flatters the reality. From $48,700 the take-home is $39,361. But Maryland costs more than the national average, so that money behaves more like $37,860 would elsewhere. Worth knowing before comparing offers across states. The average is higher, $51,270, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Maryland occupies the middle band for opticians, dispensing: a median of $48,700, 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 Maryland's occupational distribution, opticians, dispensing sits at 347 of 489 — 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.
- Retained pay after federal, FICA and Maryland income tax is $39,361 for opticians, dispensing, from $48,700. The state's price level exceeds the national average, so the price-adjusted equivalent is $37,860. ⚠️ 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 $51,270 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Opticians, Dispensing
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $37,100 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $48,700 |
| Top tenth earn over | $64,830 |
| This salary | $48,700 |
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 Maryland | $39,361 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $41,310 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$4,652 |
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 | $46,274 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$5,626 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 104 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Maryland earn less than $48,700. The published range is $37,100 up to $64,830, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- That $39,361 take-home in Maryland comes from $48,700. 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 347 of 489.
- One number stands for prices across all of Maryland, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $37,860, the adjusted value of that $48,700 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 347 of 489 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for opticians, dispensing in Maryland the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $37,100 to $64,830. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Retained pay of $39,361, from $48,700, assumes a single Maryland 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 347 of 489 locally, and the state ranks 18 of 51 for it.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Maryland, so $37,860 — the adjusted value of that $48,700 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 347 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 $51,270, dragged up by high earners; the middle figure describes a typical worker better.
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $37,100 and the top tenth $64,830, so most people doing this work in Maryland sit within a fairly tight band.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
The number and the value are different things. Maryland costs more than the national average, so this take-home stretches like $37,860 rather than its face figure.
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 Maryland's own levy, $39,361 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 Maryland is $51,270. 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 ($37,100 to $64,830) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Maryland rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
Maryland's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $37,860 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 $39,361 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Maryland 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.