Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators in District of Columbia
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$67,754
after federal, FICA and District of Columbia tax
Tax takes
$22,716
25.1% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$61,148
District of Columbia costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in District of Columbia — 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
$90,470
Kept after tax
$67,754
Worth in national money
$61,148
State rank
8
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- This is a good state for the work. District of Columbia pays this job a middle wage of $90,470, ranking 8 of 51 states and sitting about 15.07% above the national middle.
- Against other work in District of Columbia, this sits in the middle: 153 of 390 occupations with published pay. Solidly ordinary for the state, which is not the same as ordinary nationally.
- The wage here flatters the reality. From $90,470 the take-home is $67,754. But District of Columbia costs more than the national average, so that money behaves more like $61,148 would elsewhere. Worth knowing before comparing offers across states. The average is lower, $89,400, so pay clusters nearer the top than usual.
- District of Columbia's median for stationary engineers and boiler operators is $90,470, about 15.07% above the national figure and 8 of 51 states reporting. Whether that premium reaches the worker depends on the two adjustments below, which is the part a wage table cannot tell you.
- Stationary engineers and boiler operators ranks 153 of 390 occupations in District of Columbia by median pay, in the middle bands. Within-state and national positions are separate measurements and a job commonly sits in different quartiles on each.
- Retained pay after federal, FICA and District of Columbia income tax is $67,754 for stationary engineers and boiler operators, from $90,470. The state's price level exceeds the national average, so the price-adjusted equivalent is $61,148. ⚠️ 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 $89,400 falls below the median, a left skew that is uncommon in wage data.
Compare this career across states
Choose your filing status and local taxes, compare pay, and keep a shortlist.Compare wage and personal-pay outcomes by state, with selected resident local taxes and saved career choices.
Pay band: Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $62,710 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $90,470 |
| Top tenth earn over | $108,600 |
| This salary | $90,470 |
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 District of Columbia | $67,754 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $72,476 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$13,435 |
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 | $83,759 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$18,558 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 111 |
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 stationary engineers and boiler operators in District of Columbia earn under $90,470 and half over. The published range runs $62,710 at the tenth percentile to $108,600 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In District of Columbia the take-home figure of $67,754, from $90,470, 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 153 of 390 occupations here.
- Two cautions on $61,148, the adjusted value of that $90,470 median. It levels out prices with a single number for all of District of Columbia. No actual address matches that. The wage figures and price figures are also from different years. Each is published on its own timetable. This work sits at 153 of 390 locally.
- Figures are distribution medians for stationary engineers and boiler operators in District of Columbia, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $62,710 to $108,600; 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.
- Take-home for District of Columbia is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $67,754 from $90,470. 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 153 of 390 locally.
- This $61,148 adjusted figure, worked from $90,470, rests on a state-level price parity averaging over within-state dispersion larger than much of the between-state dispersion. Wage and price vintages differ by publication schedule. The result is directionally sound and not address-specific, for work at 153 of 390 in the state. The occupation ranks 153 of 390 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $62,710 and the top tenth $108,600, so most people doing this work in District of Columbia sit within a fairly tight band.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
A larger wage in a dearer place is not automatically more. Adjusted for local prices, this pay behaves like $61,148 of national purchasing power.
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; District of Columbia then takes its own share, leaving $67,754.
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.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($62,710 to $108,600) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to District of Columbia rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
District of Columbia's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $61,148 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 $67,754 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and District of Columbia 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.