Packaging and Filling Machine Operators and Tenders in West Virginia
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$38,178
after federal, FICA and West Virginia tax
Tax takes
$8,232
17.7% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$42,528
West Virginia costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in West 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
$46,410
Kept after tax
$38,178
Worth in national money
$42,528
State rank
8
of 50 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- West Virginia is one of the better-paying states for this job. The middle earner takes $46,410, which ranks 8 of 50 states with published figures. That is about 7.38% above the national middle.
- Against other work in West Virginia, this sits in the middle: 281 of 473 occupations with published pay. Solidly ordinary for the state, which is not the same as ordinary nationally.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $46,410 you keep $38,178 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $42,528 at national prices. Here the average runs under the middle, at $46,280.
- West Virginia ranks 8 of 50 states publishing a median for packaging and filling machine operators and tenders, at $46,410 — about 7.38% above the national median. A state's position on nominal pay is the figure wage tables report and the least informative of the three on this page, because it survives neither the tax adjustment nor the price adjustment intact for most occupations.
- Packaging and filling machine operators and tenders ranks 281 of 473 occupations in West Virginia by median pay, in the middle bands. Within-state and national positions are separate measurements and a job commonly sits in different quartiles on each.
- Retained pay in West Virginia is $38,178 after the full tax stack, from $46,410. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $42,528 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $46,280 sits under the median, so the lower tail is the longer one.
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Pay band: Packaging and Filling Machine Operators and Tenders
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $35,830 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $46,410 |
| Top tenth earn over | $58,120 |
| This salary | $46,410 |
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 West Virginia | $38,178 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $39,470 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$1,910 |
The raise and the real gain point in opposite directions here.
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 | $44,801 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$2,310 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 90 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $46,410 as a midpoint for West Virginia, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $35,830 and the ninetieth is $58,120 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind West Virginia's $38,178, worked from $46,410. That is on purpose. It lets states be compared with each other, not with each other's family circumstances. Local city taxes are left out. Locally this work ranks 281 of 473.
- One number stands for prices across all of West Virginia, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $42,528, the adjusted value of that $46,410 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 281 of 473 in the state.
- The West Virginia median of $46,410 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $35,830 to $58,120. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- The West Virginia take-home of $38,178, on $46,410 for work ranking 281 of 473 locally, models the simplest household deliberately: holding it constant is what makes the interstate comparison meaningful. It also means the absolute figure overstates liability for most real filers, and municipal income taxes are outside the model entirely. The occupation ranks 281 of 473 in the state.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for West Virginia, so $42,528 — the adjusted value of that $46,410 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 281 of 473 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $35,830 at the bottom tenth to $58,120 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in West Virginia sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $42,528 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
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 West Virginia's own levy, $38,178 remains.
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 ($35,830 to $58,120) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to West Virginia rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
West Virginia'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 $42,528 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 $38,178 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and West 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 50 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.