Social Scientists and Related Workers, All Other in West Virginia
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$71,885
after federal, FICA and West Virginia tax
Tax takes
$22,635
23.9% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$80,075
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
$94,520
Kept after tax
$71,885
Worth in national money
$80,075
State rank
20
of 49 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. West Virginia is 20 of 49 states for this job, with a middle wage of $94,520. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- This is one of the better-paid jobs in West Virginia. It ranks 47 out of 473 occupations the state publishes figures for, which puts it in the top quarter locally.
- Here is where West Virginia does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $94,520 you keep $71,885, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $80,075 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $95,170, because the best-paid pull it up.
- West Virginia ranks 20 of 49 for social scientists and related workers, all other at $94,520. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Within West Virginia, social scientists and related workers, all other ranks 47 of 473 occupations by median pay, placing it in the top quartile of the local distribution. This is the comparison a resident actually makes — against neighbors rather than against the same job elsewhere.
- After federal, FICA and West Virginia income tax, retained pay for social scientists and related workers, all other on $94,520 is $71,885. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $80,075 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 $95,170 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Social Scientists and Related Workers, All Other
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $73,140 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $94,520 |
| Top tenth earn over | $115,210 |
| This salary | $94,520 |
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 | $71,885 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $75,325 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$2,560 |
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 | $89,630 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$3,537 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 90 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in West Virginia earn less than $94,520. The published range is $73,140 up to $115,210, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In West Virginia the take-home figure of $71,885, from $94,520, 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 47 of 473 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $80,075 uses one figure for the whole of West Virginia. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 473 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 47.
- Reported values are medians; for social scientists and related workers, all other in West Virginia the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $73,140 to $115,210. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for West Virginia is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $71,885 from $94,520. 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 47 of 473 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $80,075, worked from $94,520, 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 West Virginia address, on work sitting at 47 of 473 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $73,140 at the tenth percentile, $115,210 at the ninetieth.
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 $80,075 in national terms.
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; West Virginia then takes its own share, leaving $71,885.
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.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($73,140 to $115,210) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to West Virginia rather than a national figure.
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 $80,075 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 $71,885 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 49 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.