Outdoor Power Equipment and Other Small Engine Mechanics in Virginia
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$38,361
after federal, FICA and Virginia tax
Tax takes
$9,119
19.2% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$38,076
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
$47,480
Kept after tax
$38,361
Worth in national money
$38,076
State rank
27
of 49 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Virginia sits in the middle of the pack for this job. The median is $47,480, ranking 27 of 49 states with figures. Close enough to the national middle that where you live matters more than the headline suggests.
- Ordinary, locally speaking. This job ranks 342 among 489 occupations Virginia publishes pay for.
- Prices here sit close to the national average, so the adjustment changes little. From $47,480 the take-home is $38,361, which is worth about $38,076 in comparable money. Tax does most of the work here, not cost of living. The average is higher, $51,020, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Virginia occupies the middle band for outdoor power equipment and other small engine mechanics: a median of $47,480, ranking 27 of 49. Where nominal pay is close to the national figure, the tax and price adjustments below carry proportionally more weight in determining the real outcome.
- Position 342 of 489 in Virginia places outdoor power equipment and other small engine mechanics in the middle of the state's wage distribution. Because within-state and cross-state rankings measure different things, this figure and the national one above should be read together rather than as a single verdict.
- Virginia's price level is near the national average, so price deflation is close to neutral for outdoor power equipment and other small engine mechanics on its $47,480 median: $38,361 retained after tax becomes $38,076 in national-average terms. Where the price adjustment is small, the tax stack is the dominant determinant of the real outcome. The mean of $51,020 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
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Pay band: Outdoor Power Equipment and Other Small Engine Mechanics
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $36,840 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $47,480 |
| Top tenth earn over | $68,460 |
| This salary | $47,480 |
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 | $38,361 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $40,330 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$3,427 |
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 | $45,029 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$4,145 |
| 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 $47,480. The published range is $36,840 up to $68,460, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- That $38,361 take-home in Virginia comes from $47,480. 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 342 of 489.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $38,076 uses one figure for the whole of Virginia. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 489 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 342.
- Reported values are medians; for outdoor power equipment and other small engine mechanics in Virginia the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $36,840 to $68,460. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Retained pay of $38,361, from $47,480, assumes a single Virginia 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 342 of 489 locally, and the state ranks 27 of 49 for it.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $38,076, worked from $47,480, 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 Virginia address, on work sitting at 342 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 $51,020, 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 — $36,840 at the tenth percentile, $68,460 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 $38,076 of national purchasing power.
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; Virginia then takes its own share, leaving $38,361.
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 49 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 Virginia is $51,020. 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 ($36,840 to $68,460) 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 $38,076 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 $38,361 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.
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 49 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.