Project Management Specialists in Maryland
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$77,368
after federal, FICA and Maryland tax
Tax takes
$26,672
25.6% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$74,417
Maryland costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Maryland — 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
$104,040
Kept after tax
$77,368
Worth in national money
$74,417
State rank
14
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Maryland is one of the better-paying states for project management specialists. The middle earner takes $104,040, which ranks 14 of 51 states with published figures. That is about 1.68% above the national middle.
- Within Maryland this is well-paid work. Of 489 occupations with published figures in the state, project management specialists ranks 86 — in the top quarter of everything people do there.
- The wage here flatters the reality. From $104,040 the take-home is $77,368. But Maryland costs more than the national average, so that money behaves more like $74,417 would elsewhere. Worth knowing before comparing offers across states. The average is higher, $112,710, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Maryland ranks 14 of 51 states publishing a median for project management specialists, at $104,040 — about 1.68% 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.
- Ranked against every occupation Maryland publishes a median for, project management specialists sits 86 of 489 — 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.
- Retained pay after federal, FICA and Maryland income tax is $77,368 for project management specialists, from $104,040. The state's price level exceeds the national average, so the price-adjusted equivalent is $74,417. ⚠️ 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 $112,710 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Project Management Specialists
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $62,890 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $104,040 |
| Top tenth earn over | $167,040 |
| This salary | $104,040 |
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 Maryland | $77,368 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $82,022 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$9,989 |
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 | $97,424 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$13,798 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 104 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Maryland earn less than $104,040. The published range is $62,890 up to $167,040, 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 Maryland's $77,368, worked from $104,040. 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 86 of 489.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $74,417 uses one figure for the whole of Maryland. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 489 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 86.
- Reported values are medians; for project management specialists in Maryland the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $62,890 to $167,040. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- The Maryland take-home of $77,368, on $104,040 for work ranking 86 of 489 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 86 of 489 in the state.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $74,417, worked from $104,040, 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 Maryland address, on work sitting at 86 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $112,710, dragged up by high earners; the middle figure describes a typical worker better.
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
The label is broader than the work. From $62,890 at the bottom tenth to $167,040 at the top, the same title covers roles that share little beyond a name.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
The number and the value are different things. Maryland costs more than the national average, so this take-home stretches like $74,417 rather than its face figure.
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 Maryland's own levy, $77,368 remains.
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 Maryland is $112,710. 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 ($62,890) and the ninetieth ($167,040) 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.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
Maryland's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $74,417 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 $77,368 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Maryland 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.