Packaging and Filling Machine Operators and Tenders in Pennsylvania
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$36,554
after federal, FICA and Pennsylvania tax
Tax takes
$7,926
17.8% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$37,491
Pennsylvania costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Pennsylvania — 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
$44,480
Kept after tax
$36,554
Worth in national money
$37,491
State rank
18
of 50 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. Pennsylvania is 18 of 50 states for this job, with a middle wage of $44,480. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Within Pennsylvania this is lower-paid work. Of 492 occupations the state publishes figures for, this job ranks 385. That is the bottom quarter locally, whatever the national comparison says.
- Prices here sit close to the national average, so the adjustment changes little. From $44,480 the take-home is $36,554, which is worth about $37,491 in comparable money. Tax does most of the work here, not cost of living. The average is higher, $45,360, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Pennsylvania ranks 18 of 50 for packaging and filling machine operators and tenders at $44,480. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Against every occupation Pennsylvania reports, packaging and filling machine operators and tenders ranks 385 of 492, in the lowest quartile of the state's distribution. That position is set by the local labor market and is independent of how the state compares nationally for this work.
- Pennsylvania's price level is near the national average, so price deflation is close to neutral for packaging and filling machine operators and tenders on its $44,480 median: $36,554 retained after tax becomes $37,491 in national-average terms. Where the price adjustment is small, the tax stack is the dominant determinant of the real outcome. The mean of $45,360 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Packaging and Filling Machine Operators and Tenders
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $31,780 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $44,480 |
| Top tenth earn over | $62,050 |
| This salary | $44,480 |
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 Pennsylvania | $36,554 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $37,920 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$1,531 |
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 | $42,781 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$1,851 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 98 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- A median is the middle, not an offer. Half of packaging and filling machine operators and tenders in Pennsylvania earn under $44,480 and half over. The published range runs $31,780 at the tenth percentile to $62,050 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In Pennsylvania the take-home figure of $36,554, from $44,480, 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 385 of 492 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $37,491 uses one figure for the whole of Pennsylvania. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 492 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 385.
- Figures are distribution medians for packaging and filling machine operators and tenders in Pennsylvania, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $31,780 to $62,050; within-state dispersion of that width routinely exceeds the dispersion between states, so tenure, employer and metropolitan area predict an individual's pay better than geography does.
- Take-home for Pennsylvania is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $36,554 from $44,480. 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 385 of 492 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $37,491, worked from $44,480, 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 Pennsylvania address, on work sitting at 385 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $31,780 at the bottom tenth to $62,050 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
A smaller wage in a cheaper place is not automatically less. Adjusted for local prices, this is worth $37,491.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Into four separate taxes, not one. Federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare apply everywhere, and Pennsylvania adds its own income tax on top — which is why $36,554 of this wage survives to your account.
Why is this job missing from some states?
The survey withholds small samples rather than publish an unreliable number. Pay appears for 50 states here, and a missing state means too few reports, not no jobs.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($31,780 to $62,050) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Pennsylvania rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Pennsylvania'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 $37,491 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 $36,554 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Pennsylvania 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 50 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.