Software Developers in Massachusetts
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$116,247
after federal, FICA and Massachusetts tax
Tax takes
$48,963
29.6% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$107,399
Massachusetts costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Massachusetts — 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
$165,210
Kept after tax
$116,247
Worth in national money
$107,399
State rank
4
of 50 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- This is a good state for the work. Massachusetts pays software developers a middle wage of $165,210, ranking 4 of 50 states and sitting about 21.5% above the national middle.
- Within Massachusetts this is well-paid work. Of 485 occupations with published figures in the state, software developers ranks 17 — in the top quarter of everything people do there.
- The wage here flatters the reality. From $165,210 the take-home is $116,247. But Massachusetts costs more than the national average, so that money behaves more like $107,399 would elsewhere. Worth knowing before comparing offers across states. The average is lower, $161,730, so pay clusters nearer the top than usual.
- Massachusetts's median for software developers is $165,210, about 21.5% above the national figure and 4 of 50 states reporting. Whether that premium reaches the worker depends on the two adjustments below, which is the part a wage table cannot tell you.
- Ranked against every occupation Massachusetts publishes a median for, software developers sits 17 of 485 — the upper quartile of the state's wage distribution. National standing and within-state standing are separate questions, and a job can occupy very different positions on each.
- Retained pay after federal, FICA and Massachusetts income tax is $116,247 for software developers, from $165,210. The state's price level exceeds the national average, so the price-adjusted equivalent is $107,399. ⚠️ This is purchasing power and not a wage; cross-state offer comparisons that stop at the nominal figure systematically overvalue high-cost states. The mean of $161,730 falls below the median, a left skew that is uncommon in wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Software Developers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $102,810 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $165,210 |
| Top tenth earn over | $213,970 |
| This salary | $165,210 |
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 Massachusetts | $116,247 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $124,187 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$20,398 |
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 | $153,593 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$29,001 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 108 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Massachusetts earn less than $165,210. The published range is $102,810 up to $213,970, 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 Massachusetts's $116,247, worked from $165,210. 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 17 of 485.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $107,399 uses one figure for the whole of Massachusetts. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 485 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 17.
- Reported values are medians; for software developers in Massachusetts the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $102,810 to $213,970. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- The Massachusetts take-home of $116,247, on $165,210 for work ranking 17 of 485 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 17 of 485 in the state.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $107,399, worked from $165,210, 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 Massachusetts address, on work sitting at 17 of 485 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $102,810 and the top tenth $213,970, so most people doing this work in Massachusetts sit within a fairly tight band.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
The number and the value are different things. Massachusetts costs more than the national average, so this take-home stretches like $107,399 rather than its face figure.
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; Massachusetts then takes its own share, leaving $116,247.
Why is this job missing from some states?
The survey withholds small samples rather than publish an unreliable number. Pay appears for 50 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 ($102,810 to $213,970) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Massachusetts rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
Massachusetts's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $107,399 in national-average terms. ⚠️ RPPs are an all-items index; housing parities vary far more widely than the headline figure.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $116,247 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Massachusetts 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.