Sewing Machine Operators in West Virginia
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$25,033
after federal, FICA and West Virginia tax
Tax takes
$4,287
14.6% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$27,885
West Virginia costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in West Virginia — 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
$29,320
Kept after tax
$25,033
Worth in national money
$27,885
State rank
50
of 50 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- West Virginia is among the lower-paying states for sewing machine operators. The middle earner takes $29,320, ranking 50 of 50 states — about 20.04% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- Measured against other jobs in West Virginia, this one sits low: 445 of 473 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Here is where West Virginia does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $29,320 you keep $25,033, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $27,885 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $31,260, because the best-paid pull it up.
- West Virginia ranks 50 of 50 for sewing machine operators, with a median of $29,320 — about 20.04% 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.
- Sewing machine operators occupies position 445 of 473 in West Virginia's occupational wage distribution, in the bottom quartile. National ranking and local ranking answer different questions and frequently disagree; this is the one a resident experiences.
- After federal, FICA and West Virginia income tax, retained pay for sewing machine operators on $29,320 is $25,033. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $27,885 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 $31,260 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
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Pay band: Sewing Machine Operators
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $21,960 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $29,320 |
| Top tenth earn over | $44,780 |
| This salary | $29,320 |
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 West Virginia | $25,033 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $25,739 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$1,398 |
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 | $28,443 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$1,691 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 90 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- A median is the middle, not an offer. Half of sewing machine operators in West Virginia earn under $29,320 and half over. The published range runs $21,960 at the tenth percentile to $44,780 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In West Virginia the take-home figure of $25,033, from $29,320, 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 445 of 473 occupations here.
- One number stands for prices across all of West Virginia, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $27,885, the adjusted value of that $29,320 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 445 of 473 in the state.
- Figures are distribution medians for sewing machine operators in West Virginia, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $21,960 to $44,780; within-state dispersion of that width routinely exceeds the dispersion between states, so tenure, employer and metropolitan area predict an individual's pay better than geography does.
- Take-home for West Virginia is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $25,033 from $29,320. 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 445 of 473 locally.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for West Virginia, so $27,885 — the adjusted value of that $29,320 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 445 of 473 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
Half earn more than this and half earn less. The average sits at $31,260 because a long tail of high pay lifts it, so the two answer different questions.
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
The label is broader than the work. From $21,960 at the bottom tenth to $44,780 at the top, the same title covers roles that share little beyond a name.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. West Virginia is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $27,885 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 West Virginia's own levy, $25,033 remains.
Why is this job missing from some states?
Because the survey suppresses a figure when too few employers report it. This occupation has published pay in 50 states — the rest are withheld to protect confidentiality, which is not the same as nobody doing the work there.
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 West Virginia is $31,260. 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 ($21,960) and the ninetieth ($44,780) 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.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
West Virginia'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 $27,885 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 $25,033 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and West Virginia 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.