Septic Tank Servicers and Sewer Pipe Cleaners in Michigan
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$40,511
after federal, FICA and Michigan tax
Tax takes
$9,529
19.0% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$43,013
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
$50,040
Kept after tax
$40,511
Worth in national money
$43,013
State rank
24
of 49 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Middling, nationally. Michigan pays this job around $50,040 at the midpoint, 24 of 49 states. The interesting numbers on this page are the two below it.
- Ordinary, locally speaking. This job ranks 298 among 493 occupations Michigan publishes pay for.
- Here is where Michigan does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $50,040 you keep $40,511, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $43,013 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $51,680, because the best-paid pull it up.
- For septic tank servicers and sewer pipe cleaners the Michigan median is $50,040, ranking 24 of 49 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.
- Position 298 of 493 in Michigan places septic tank servicers and sewer pipe cleaners 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.
- After federal, FICA and Michigan income tax, retained pay for septic tank servicers and sewer pipe cleaners on $50,040 is $40,511. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $43,013 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 $51,680 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Septic Tank Servicers and Sewer Pipe Cleaners
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $40,900 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $50,040 |
| Top tenth earn over | $62,460 |
| This salary | $50,040 |
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 Michigan | $40,511 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $42,387 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$607 |
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 | $47,705 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$734 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 94 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Michigan earn less than $50,040. The published range is $40,900 up to $62,460, 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 Michigan's $40,511, worked from $50,040. 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 298 of 493.
- One number stands for prices across all of Michigan, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $43,013, the adjusted value of that $50,040 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 298 of 493 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for septic tank servicers and sewer pipe cleaners in Michigan the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $40,900 to $62,460. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- The Michigan take-home of $40,511, on $50,040 for work ranking 298 of 493 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 298 of 493 in the state.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Michigan, so $43,013 — the adjusted value of that $50,040 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 298 of 493 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $51,680, dragged up by high earners; the middle figure describes a typical worker better.
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $40,900 at the tenth percentile, $62,460 at the ninetieth.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
A smaller wage in a cheaper place is not automatically less. Adjusted for local prices, this is worth $43,013.
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 Michigan's own levy, $40,511 remains.
Why is this job missing from some states?
The survey withholds small samples rather than publish an unreliable number. Pay appears for 49 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 Michigan is $51,680. 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 ($40,900 to $62,460) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to 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 $43,013 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 $40,511 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 49 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.