Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators in District of Columbia
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$52,896
after federal, FICA and District of Columbia tax
Tax takes
$13,854
20.8% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$47,739
District of Columbia costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in District of Columbia — 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
$66,750
Kept after tax
$52,896
Worth in national money
$47,739
State rank
1
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- District of Columbia is one of the better-paying states for this job. The middle earner takes $66,750, which ranks 1 of 51 states with published figures. That is about 14.16% above the national middle.
- Ordinary, locally speaking. This job ranks 241 among 390 occupations District of Columbia publishes pay for.
- The wage here flatters the reality. From $66,750 the take-home is $52,896. But District of Columbia costs more than the national average, so that money behaves more like $47,739 would elsewhere. Worth knowing before comparing offers across states. The average is lower, $63,580, so pay clusters nearer the top than usual.
- District of Columbia ranks 1 of 51 states publishing a median for postal service mail sorters, processors, and processing machine operators, at $66,750 — about 14.16% 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.
- Position 241 of 390 in District of Columbia places postal service mail sorters, processors, and processing machine operators 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.
- Retained pay after federal, FICA and District of Columbia income tax is $52,896 for postal service mail sorters, processors, and processing machine operators, from $66,750. The state's price level exceeds the national average, so the price-adjusted equivalent is $47,739. ⚠️ This is purchasing power and not a wage; cross-state offer comparisons that stop at the nominal figure systematically overvalue high-cost states. The mean of $63,580 falls below the median, a left skew that is uncommon in wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $43,660 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $66,750 |
| Top tenth earn over | $76,460 |
| This salary | $66,750 |
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 District of Columbia | $52,896 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $55,789 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$9,672 |
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 | $63,119 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$11,728 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 111 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $66,750 as a midpoint for District of Columbia, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $43,660 and the ninetieth is $76,460 — 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 District of Columbia's $52,896, worked from $66,750. 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 241 of 390.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $47,739 uses one figure for the whole of District of Columbia. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 390 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 241.
- The District of Columbia median of $66,750 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $43,660 to $76,460. 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 District of Columbia take-home of $52,896, on $66,750 for work ranking 241 of 390 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 241 of 390 in the state.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $47,739, worked from $66,750, 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 District of Columbia address, on work sitting at 241 of 390 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $63,580, 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 $43,660 and the top tenth $76,460, so most people doing this work in District of Columbia sit within a fairly tight band.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
The number and the value are different things. District of Columbia costs more than the national average, so this take-home stretches like $47,739 rather than its face figure.
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; District of Columbia then takes its own share, leaving $52,896.
Can I compare this job across every state?
All 51 jurisdictions report this work, which makes the ranking a like-for-like 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 District of Columbia is $63,580. 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 ($43,660 to $76,460) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to District of Columbia rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
District of Columbia's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $47,739 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 $52,896 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and District of Columbia 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.
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.