Photographers in Alabama
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$29,677
after federal, FICA and Alabama tax
Tax takes
$6,453
17.9% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$32,985
Alabama costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Alabama — 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
$36,130
Kept after tax
$29,677
Worth in national money
$32,985
State rank
45
of 49 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Alabama is among the lower-paying states for photographers. The middle earner takes $36,130, ranking 45 of 49 states — about 19.1% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- Measured against other jobs in Alabama, this one sits low: 406 of 482 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Here is where Alabama does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $36,130 you keep $29,677, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $32,985 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $43,480, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Alabama ranks 45 of 49 for photographers, with a median of $36,130 — about 19.1% below the national figure. A nominal shortfall is not by itself a real one: lower-paying states frequently carry lower tax and lower price levels, and the adjusted figures below are where that is settled rather than assumed.
- Photographers occupies position 406 of 482 in Alabama's occupational wage distribution, in the bottom quartile. National ranking and local ranking answer different questions and frequently disagree; this is the one a resident experiences.
- After federal, FICA and Alabama income tax, retained pay for photographers on $36,130 is $29,677. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $32,985 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 $43,480 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Photographers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $24,590 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $36,130 |
| Top tenth earn over | $72,550 |
| This salary | $36,130 |
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 Alabama | $29,677 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $31,210 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$867 |
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 | $34,221 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$1,049 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 90 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $36,130 as a midpoint for Alabama, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $24,590 and the ninetieth is $72,550 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- In Alabama the take-home figure of $29,677, from $36,130, 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 406 of 482 occupations here.
- One number stands for prices across all of Alabama, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $32,985, the adjusted value of that $36,130 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 406 of 482 in the state.
- The Alabama median of $36,130 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $24,590 to $72,550. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- Take-home for Alabama is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $29,677 from $36,130. 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 406 of 482 locally.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Alabama, so $32,985 — the adjusted value of that $36,130 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 406 of 482 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $43,480, dragged up by high earners; the middle figure describes a typical worker better.
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
Because one job title covers very different work. The bottom tenth here earn $24,590 and the top tenth $72,550 — experience, employer and specialism separate them, and a single figure hides all three.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. Alabama is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $32,985 in national terms.
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 Alabama's own levy, $29,677 remains.
Why is this job missing from some states?
A blank is a suppression, not a zero. 49 states have a published figure for this work; the others had too few responses to release one.
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 Alabama is $43,480. 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 drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($24,590) and the ninetieth ($72,550) exceeds the family median dispersion. SOC codes aggregate roles differing in seniority, industry and specialisation, and BLS does not disaggregate below the detailed occupation level, so within-title variance is not separable from the published series.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Alabama'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 $32,985 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 $29,677 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Alabama 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.