Surveying and Mapping Technicians in Pennsylvania
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$47,211
after federal, FICA and Pennsylvania tax
Tax takes
$11,059
19.0% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$48,422
Pennsylvania costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Pennsylvania — 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
$58,270
Kept after tax
$47,211
Worth in national money
$48,422
State rank
17
of 50 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Pennsylvania sits in the middle of the pack for surveying and mapping technicians. The median is $58,270, ranking 17 of 50 states with figures. Close enough to the national middle that where you live matters more than the headline suggests.
- Ordinary, locally speaking. Surveying and mapping technicians ranks 254 among 492 occupations Pennsylvania publishes pay for.
- Prices here sit close to the national average, so the adjustment changes little. From $58,270 the take-home is $47,211, which is worth about $48,422 in comparable money. Tax does most of the work here, not cost of living. The average is higher, $58,840, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Pennsylvania occupies the middle band for surveying and mapping technicians: a median of $58,270, ranking 17 of 50. Where nominal pay is close to the national figure, the tax and price adjustments below carry proportionally more weight in determining the real outcome.
- Position 254 of 492 in Pennsylvania places surveying and mapping technicians 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.
- Pennsylvania's price level is near the national average, so price deflation is close to neutral for surveying and mapping technicians on its $58,270 median: $47,211 retained after tax becomes $48,422 in national-average terms. Where the price adjustment is small, the tax stack is the dominant determinant of the real outcome. The mean of $58,840 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Surveying and Mapping Technicians
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $39,580 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $58,270 |
| Top tenth earn over | $79,660 |
| This salary | $58,270 |
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 Pennsylvania | $47,211 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $49,000 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$2,003 |
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 | $56,044 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$2,422 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 98 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Pennsylvania earn less than $58,270. The published range is $39,580 up to $79,660, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In Pennsylvania the take-home figure of $47,211, from $58,270, 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 254 of 492 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $48,422 uses one figure for the whole of Pennsylvania. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 492 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 254.
- Reported values are medians; for surveying and mapping technicians in Pennsylvania the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $39,580 to $79,660. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for Pennsylvania is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $47,211 from $58,270. 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 254 of 492 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $48,422, worked from $58,270, 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 Pennsylvania address, on work sitting at 254 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $39,580 and the top tenth $79,660, so most people doing this work in Pennsylvania sit within a fairly tight band.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in Pennsylvania sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $48,422 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Into four separate taxes, not one. Federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare apply everywhere, and Pennsylvania adds its own income tax on top — which is why $47,211 of this wage survives to your account.
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 50 states — the rest are withheld to protect confidentiality, which is not the same as nobody doing the work there.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($39,580 to $79,660) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Pennsylvania rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Pennsylvania'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 $48,422 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 $47,211 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Pennsylvania 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.