Special Education Teachers, Middle School in Mississippi
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$41,020
after federal, FICA and Mississippi tax
Tax takes
$9,730
19.2% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$46,991
Mississippi costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Mississippi — 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
$50,750
Kept after tax
$41,020
Worth in national money
$46,991
State rank
49
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Pay for this job is on the low side in Mississippi. The middle earner gets $50,750. That is 49 of 51 states, and about 24.04% under the national figure. Whether that matters depends on what things cost here.
- Ordinary, locally speaking. This job ranks 216 among 486 occupations Mississippi publishes pay for.
- Mississippi is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $50,750 the take-home is $41,020; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $46,991 would nationally. The average comes to $53,070, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- For special education teachers, middle school, Mississippi sits in the lower band at $50,750, ranking 49 of 51 and trailing the national median by about 24.04%. Nominal rankings routinely invert once tax and regional price level are applied, so this position should not be read as the conclusion.
- Position 216 of 486 in Mississippi places special education teachers, middle school 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.
- Post-tax income for special education teachers, middle school in Mississippi, on $50,750, is $41,020 — equivalent to $46,991 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 $53,070 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
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Pay band: Special Education Teachers, Middle School
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $45,830 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $50,750 |
| Top tenth earn over | $62,120 |
| This salary | $50,750 |
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 Mississippi | $41,020 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $42,958 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$2,785 |
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 | $48,338 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$3,368 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 87 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Mississippi earn less than $50,750. The published range is $45,830 up to $62,120, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In Mississippi the take-home figure of $41,020, from $50,750, 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 216 of 486 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $46,991 uses one figure for the whole of Mississippi. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 486 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 216.
- Reported values are medians; for special education teachers, middle school in Mississippi the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $45,830 to $62,120. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for Mississippi is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $41,020 from $50,750. 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 216 of 486 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $46,991, worked from $50,750, 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 Mississippi address, on work sitting at 216 of 486 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 $53,070 because a long tail of high pay lifts it, so the two answer different questions.
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $45,830 at the bottom tenth to $62,120 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. Mississippi is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $46,991 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; Mississippi then takes its own share, leaving $41,020.
Can I compare this job across every state?
Yes for this one. Pay is published in all 51 jurisdictions, so a state-to-state comparison here rests on the same survey everywhere rather than on a patchwork.
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 Mississippi is $53,070. 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 is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($45,830 to $62,120) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Mississippi rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Mississippi'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 $46,991 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 $41,020 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Mississippi 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.
Is this occupation's state coverage complete?
State-level estimates are published for all 51 jurisdictions for this occupation, so cross-state comparison is not confounded by suppression. ⚠️ Estimates remain survey-based and carry sampling error; small differences between adjacent states should not be over-read.