Postmasters and Mail Superintendents in Montana
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$67,722
after federal, FICA and Montana tax
Tax takes
$21,198
23.8% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$75,043
Montana costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Montana — 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
$88,920
Kept after tax
$67,722
Worth in national money
$75,043
State rank
48
of 50 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Montana is among the lower-paying states for this job. The middle earner takes $88,920, ranking 48 of 50 states — about 8.01% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- This is one of the better-paid jobs in Montana. It ranks 71 out of 475 occupations the state publishes figures for, which puts it in the top quarter locally.
- Here is where Montana does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $88,920 you keep $67,722, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $75,043 would elsewhere. The average is lower, $82,090, so pay clusters nearer the top than usual.
- Montana ranks 48 of 50 for postmasters and mail superintendents, with a median of $88,920 — about 8.01% 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.
- Within Montana, postmasters and mail superintendents ranks 71 of 475 occupations by median pay, placing it in the top quartile of the local distribution. This is the comparison a resident actually makes — against neighbors rather than against the same job elsewhere.
- After federal, FICA and Montana income tax, retained pay for postmasters and mail superintendents on $88,920 is $67,722. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $75,043 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 $82,090 falls below the median, a left skew that is uncommon in wage data.
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Pay band: Postmasters and Mail Superintendents
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $51,360 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $88,920 |
| Top tenth earn over | $102,960 |
| This salary | $88,920 |
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 Montana | $67,722 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $71,385 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$1,583 |
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 | $83,713 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$2,186 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 90 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Montana earn less than $88,920. The published range is $51,360 up to $102,960, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind Montana's $67,722, worked from $88,920. 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 71 of 475.
- One number stands for prices across all of Montana, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $75,043, the adjusted value of that $88,920 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 71 of 475 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for postmasters and mail superintendents in Montana the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $51,360 to $102,960. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- The Montana take-home of $67,722, on $88,920 for work ranking 71 of 475 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 71 of 475 in the state.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Montana, so $75,043 — the adjusted value of that $88,920 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 71 of 475 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
No — it is the middle. Half of these workers earn more and half earn less. The average is $82,090, pulled upward by the top of the range, which is why the middle is the fairer number to plan against.
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $51,360 at the bottom tenth to $102,960 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. Montana is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $75,043 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 Montana's own levy, $67,722 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.
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 Montana is $82,090. 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 ($51,360 to $102,960) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Montana rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Montana'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 $75,043 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 $67,722 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Montana 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.