Surveyors in Colorado
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$61,843
after federal, FICA and Colorado tax
Tax takes
$17,467
22.0% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$61,000
Colorado costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Colorado — 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
$79,310
Kept after tax
$61,843
Worth in national money
$61,000
State rank
16
of 50 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- This is a good state for the work. Colorado pays surveyors a middle wage of $79,310, ranking 16 of 50 states and sitting about 5.13% above the national middle.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 491 occupations Colorado reports figures for, this is number 147.
- No great distortion either way. Colorado costs about what the country costs, so from $79,310, take-home of $61,843 is worth roughly $61,000 in national money. The average comes to $82,630, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- Colorado's median for surveyors is $79,310, about 5.13% above the national figure and 16 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.
- In Colorado's occupational distribution, surveyors sits at 147 of 491 — neither quartile. This local position is what a resident compares against, and it is determined by the state's own labor market rather than by national patterns for this occupation.
- Price parity in Colorado is near the national base, so for surveyors, whose median is $79,310, the adjusted figure of $61,000 differs little from $61,843 retained after tax. The state's position for this occupation is therefore set by wage and tax rather than by living costs. At $82,630 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
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Pay band: Surveyors
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $51,220 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $79,310 |
| Top tenth earn over | $115,990 |
| This salary | $79,310 |
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 Colorado | $61,843 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $64,625 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$5,503 |
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 | $75,357 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$7,601 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 101 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Colorado earn less than $79,310. The published range is $51,220 up to $115,990, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In Colorado the take-home figure of $61,843, from $79,310, 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 147 of 491 occupations here.
- Two cautions on $61,000, the adjusted value of that $79,310 median. It levels out prices with a single number for all of Colorado. 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 147 of 491 locally.
- Reported values are medians; for surveyors in Colorado the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $51,220 to $115,990. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for Colorado is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $61,843 from $79,310. 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 147 of 491 locally.
- This $61,000 adjusted figure, worked from $79,310, 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 147 of 491 in the state. The occupation ranks 147 of 491 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $82,630, dragged up by high earners; the middle figure describes a typical worker better.
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
The label is broader than the work. From $51,220 at the bottom tenth to $115,990 at the top, the same title covers roles that share little beyond a name.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
Not on its own. Prices in Colorado run above the national level, so the same dollars buy less here. Adjusted for that, this pay is worth $61,000 — the wage did not change, only what it covers.
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; Colorado then takes its own share, leaving $61,843.
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.
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 Colorado is $82,630. 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 drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($51,220) and the ninetieth ($115,990) exceeds the family median dispersion. SOC codes aggregate roles differing in seniority, industry and specialisation, and BLS does not disaggregate below the detailed occupation level, so within-title variance is not separable from the published series.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
Colorado's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $61,000 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 $61,843 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Colorado 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.