Postmasters and Mail Superintendents in Pennsylvania
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$74,448
after federal, FICA and Pennsylvania tax
Tax takes
$23,082
23.7% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$76,357
Pennsylvania costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Pennsylvania — 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
$97,530
Kept after tax
$74,448
Worth in national money
$76,357
State rank
19
of 50 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. Pennsylvania is 19 of 50 states for this job, with a middle wage of $97,530. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Within Pennsylvania this is well-paid work. Of 492 occupations with published figures in the state, this job ranks 72 — in the top quarter of everything people do there.
- No great distortion either way. Pennsylvania costs about what the country costs, so from $97,530, take-home of $74,448 is worth roughly $76,357 in national money. The average comes to $98,160, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- Pennsylvania ranks 19 of 50 for postmasters and mail superintendents at $97,530. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Ranked against every occupation Pennsylvania publishes a median for, postmasters and mail superintendents sits 72 of 492 — the upper quartile of the state's wage distribution. National standing and within-state standing are separate questions, and a job can occupy very different positions on each.
- Price parity in Pennsylvania is near the national base, so for postmasters and mail superintendents, whose median is $97,530, the adjusted figure of $76,357 differs little from $74,448 retained after tax. The state's position for this occupation is therefore set by wage and tax rather than by living costs. At $98,160 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Postmasters and Mail Superintendents
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $85,970 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $97,530 |
| Top tenth earn over | $111,740 |
| This salary | $97,530 |
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 Pennsylvania | $74,448 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $77,442 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$3,337 |
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 | $93,274 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$4,609 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 98 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Pennsylvania earn less than $97,530. The published range is $85,970 up to $111,740, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In Pennsylvania the take-home figure of $74,448, from $97,530, 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 72 of 492 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $76,357 uses one figure for the whole of Pennsylvania. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 492 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 72.
- Reported values are medians; for postmasters and mail superintendents in Pennsylvania the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $85,970 to $111,740. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for Pennsylvania is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $74,448 from $97,530. 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 72 of 492 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $76,357, worked from $97,530, 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 Pennsylvania address, on work sitting at 72 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $85,970 at the bottom tenth to $111,740 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 Pennsylvania sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $76,357 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Into four separate taxes, not one. Federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare apply everywhere, and Pennsylvania adds its own income tax on top — which is why $74,448 of this wage survives to your account.
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 ($85,970 to $111,740) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Pennsylvania rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Pennsylvania'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 $76,357 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 $74,448 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Pennsylvania 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.