Slaughterers and Meat Packers in Montana
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$38,265
after federal, FICA and Montana tax
Tax takes
$8,435
18.1% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$42,402
Montana costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Montana — 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
$46,700
Kept after tax
$38,265
Worth in national money
$42,402
State rank
5
of 47 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- This is a good state for the work. Montana pays slaughterers and meat packers a middle wage of $46,700, ranking 5 of 47 states and sitting about 16.37% above the national middle.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 475 occupations Montana reports figures for, this is number 338.
- Montana is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $46,700 the take-home is $38,265; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $42,402 would nationally. The average lands at $46,130, below the middle of the range.
- Montana's median for slaughterers and meat packers is $46,700, about 16.37% above the national figure and 5 of 47 states reporting. Whether that premium reaches the worker depends on the two adjustments below, which is the part a wage table cannot tell you.
- In Montana's occupational distribution, slaughterers and meat packers sits at 338 of 475 — 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.
- Post-tax income for slaughterers and meat packers in Montana, on $46,700, is $38,265 — equivalent to $42,402 once regional price parity is applied. ⚠️ The adjustment uses a statewide index that describes no particular address; within-state price variation, concentrated in housing, routinely exceeds the difference between two states. At $46,130 the mean undershoots the median, an inversion of the usual skew.
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Pay band: Slaughterers and Meat Packers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $37,450 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $46,700 |
| Top tenth earn over | $53,680 |
| This salary | $46,700 |
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 Montana | $38,265 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $39,703 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$1,544 |
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 | $44,910 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$1,868 |
| 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 slaughterers and meat packers in Montana earn under $46,700 and half over. The published range runs $37,450 at the tenth percentile to $53,680 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind Montana's $38,265, worked from $46,700. 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 338 of 475.
- One number stands for prices across all of Montana, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $42,402, the adjusted value of that $46,700 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 338 of 475 in the state.
- Figures are distribution medians for slaughterers and meat packers in Montana, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $37,450 to $53,680; 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.
- The Montana take-home of $38,265, on $46,700 for work ranking 338 of 475 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 338 of 475 in the state.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Montana, so $42,402 — the adjusted value of that $46,700 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 338 of 475 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $37,450 and the top tenth $53,680, so most people doing this work in Montana sit within a fairly tight band.
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 $42,402.
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 Montana's own levy, $38,265 remains.
Why is this job missing from some states?
The survey withholds small samples rather than publish an unreliable number. Pay appears for 47 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 ($37,450 to $53,680) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Montana rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Montana'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 $42,402 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 $38,265 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Montana 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 47 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.