Phlebotomists in Tennessee
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$33,155
after federal, FICA and Tennessee tax
Tax takes
$5,395
14.0% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$35,837
Tennessee costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Tennessee — 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
$38,550
Kept after tax
$33,155
Worth in national money
$35,837
State rank
45
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- The nominal figure here is modest. Tennessee pays phlebotomists a middle wage of $38,550, 45 of 51 states and about 14.77% below the national middle. Hold that thought until the adjusted numbers.
- Within Tennessee this is lower-paid work. Of 491 occupations the state publishes figures for, phlebotomists ranks 408. That is the bottom quarter locally, whatever the national comparison says.
- Here is where Tennessee does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $38,550 you keep $33,155, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $35,837 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $40,880, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Tennessee's $38,550 median for phlebotomists places it 45 of 51 states, about 14.77% below national. Because both the tax and price adjustments tend to favor lower-nominal states, this ranking is the least stable of the three reported here.
- Against every occupation Tennessee reports, phlebotomists ranks 408 of 491, 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.
- After federal, FICA and Tennessee income tax, retained pay for phlebotomists on $38,550 is $33,155. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $35,837 in national-average terms. ⚠️ That figure is purchasing power, not a wage, and nobody is paid it; it is what the take-home buys. The mean of $40,880 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
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Pay band: Phlebotomists
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $35,010 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $38,550 |
| Top tenth earn over | $47,630 |
| This salary | $38,550 |
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 Tennessee | $33,155 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $33,155 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$1,719 |
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 | $38,550 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$2,078 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 93 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Tennessee earn less than $38,550. The published range is $35,010 up to $47,630, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In Tennessee the take-home figure of $33,155, from $38,550, 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 408 of 491 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $35,837 uses one figure for the whole of Tennessee. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 491 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 408.
- Reported values are medians; for phlebotomists in Tennessee the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $35,010 to $47,630. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for Tennessee is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $33,155 from $38,550. 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 408 of 491 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $35,837, worked from $38,550, 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 Tennessee address, on work sitting at 408 of 491 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $40,880, 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 $35,010 and the top tenth $47,630, so most people doing this work in Tennessee sit within a fairly tight band.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. Tennessee is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $35,837 in national terms.
Is most of this wage taxed away?
No. $33,155 survives, because Tennessee levies no wage income tax. The federal share does not change with the state you work in.
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 Tennessee is $40,880. 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 ($35,010 to $47,630) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Tennessee rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Tennessee'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 $35,837 in national-average terms. The adjustment uses an all-items index and does not isolate housing.
Why is the take-home ratio comparatively high in this state?
Tennessee levies no personal income tax on wages, so take-home of $33,155 reflects the federal layer and FICA alone. Federal income tax and FICA are unchanged; states without a wage income tax generally recover revenue through consumption and property bases instead.
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.