Recreational Therapists in Michigan
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$49,384
after federal, FICA and Michigan tax
Tax takes
$12,316
20.0% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$52,434
Michigan costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Michigan — 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
$61,700
Kept after tax
$49,384
Worth in national money
$52,434
State rank
18
of 48 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Middling, nationally. Michigan pays recreational therapists around $61,700 at the midpoint, 18 of 48 states. The interesting numbers on this page are the two below it.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 493 occupations Michigan reports figures for, this is number 217.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $61,700 you keep $49,384 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $52,434 at national prices. Here the average runs under the middle, at $60,860.
- For recreational therapists the Michigan median is $61,700, ranking 18 of 48 states reporting. Mid-band nominal positions are the ones most frequently reordered by the adjustments, because no large wage premium exists to absorb a state's tax or price level.
- In Michigan's occupational distribution, recreational therapists sits at 217 of 493 — neither quartile. This local position is what a resident compares against, and it is determined by the state's own labor market rather than by national patterns for this occupation.
- Retained pay in Michigan is $49,384 after the full tax stack, from $61,700. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $52,434 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $60,860 sits under the median, so the lower tail is the longer one.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Recreational Therapists
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $42,270 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $61,700 |
| Top tenth earn over | $73,690 |
| This salary | $61,700 |
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 Michigan | $49,384 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $51,756 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$827 |
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 | $58,749 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$1,000 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 94 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $61,700 as a midpoint for Michigan, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $42,270 and the ninetieth is $73,690 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- In Michigan the take-home figure of $49,384, from $61,700, 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 217 of 493 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $52,434 uses one figure for the whole of Michigan. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 493 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 217.
- The Michigan median of $61,700 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $42,270 to $73,690. 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 Michigan is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $49,384 from $61,700. 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 217 of 493 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $52,434, worked from $61,700, 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 Michigan address, on work sitting at 217 of 493 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $42,270 at the tenth percentile, $73,690 at the ninetieth.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. Michigan is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $52,434 in national terms.
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 Michigan adds its own income tax on top — which is why $49,384 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 48 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 ($42,270 to $73,690) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Michigan rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Michigan'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 $52,434 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 $49,384 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Michigan 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 48 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.