Social Scientists and Related Workers, All Other in North Dakota
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$62,347
after federal, FICA and North Dakota tax
Tax takes
$14,053
18.4% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$70,391
North Dakota costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in North Dakota — 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
$76,400
Kept after tax
$62,347
Worth in national money
$70,391
State rank
48
of 49 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- North Dakota is among the lower-paying states for this job. The middle earner takes $76,400, ranking 48 of 49 states — about 24.44% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- Ordinary, locally speaking. This job ranks 126 among 460 occupations North Dakota publishes pay for.
- Here is where North Dakota does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $76,400 you keep $62,347, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $70,391 would elsewhere. The average is lower, $74,020, so pay clusters nearer the top than usual.
- North Dakota ranks 48 of 49 for social scientists and related workers, all other, with a median of $76,400 — about 24.44% 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.
- Position 126 of 460 in North Dakota places social scientists and related workers, all other 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 North Dakota income tax, retained pay for social scientists and related workers, all other on $76,400 is $62,347. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $70,391 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 $74,020 falls below the median, a left skew that is uncommon in wage data.
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Pay band: Social Scientists and Related Workers, All Other
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $42,630 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $76,400 |
| Top tenth earn over | $103,380 |
| This salary | $76,400 |
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 North Dakota | $62,347 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $62,577 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$5,995 |
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 | $76,072 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$8,280 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 89 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $76,400 as a midpoint for North Dakota, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $42,630 and the ninetieth is $103,380 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- That $62,347 take-home in North Dakota comes from $76,400. It is the no-frills case: single filer, standard deduction, nothing set aside before tax. Real circumstances almost always reduce the tax. City and school-district taxes are not counted at all. Locally the work ranks 126 of 460.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $70,391 uses one figure for the whole of North Dakota. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 460 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 126.
- The North Dakota median of $76,400 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $42,630 to $103,380. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- Retained pay of $62,347, from $76,400, assumes a single North Dakota filer with the standard deduction and no elective deferrals. Pre-tax retirement or HSA contributions, dependants and itemized deductions all reduce it further; local income taxes, excluded here, would increase it in the states that levy them. This occupation ranks 126 of 460 locally, and the state ranks 48 of 49 for it.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $70,391, worked from $76,400, 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 North Dakota address, on work sitting at 126 of 460 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
No — it is the middle. Half of these workers earn more and half earn less. The average is $74,020, pulled upward by the top of the range, which is why the middle is the fairer number to plan against.
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
Because one job title covers very different work. The bottom tenth here earn $42,630 and the top tenth $103,380 — experience, employer and specialism separate them, and a single figure hides all three.
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 $70,391.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Four deductions, stacked. The federal layer and the two payroll taxes apply wherever you work; North Dakota then takes its own share, leaving $62,347.
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 49 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 North Dakota is $74,020. 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 ($42,630) and the ninetieth ($103,380) 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?
North Dakota'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 $70,391 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 $62,347 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and North Dakota 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.