Tool and Die Makers in Michigan
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$52,345
after federal, FICA and Michigan tax
Tax takes
$13,245
20.2% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$55,577
Michigan costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Michigan — 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
$65,590
Kept after tax
$52,345
Worth in national money
$55,577
State rank
19
of 45 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Middling, nationally. Michigan pays tool and die makers around $65,590 at the midpoint, 19 of 45 states. The interesting numbers on this page are the two below it.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 493 occupations Michigan reports figures for, this is number 186.
- Here is where Michigan does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $65,590 you keep $52,345, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $55,577 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $68,670, because the best-paid pull it up.
- For tool and die makers the Michigan median is $65,590, ranking 19 of 45 states reporting. Mid-band nominal positions are the ones most frequently reordered by the adjustments, because no large wage premium exists to absorb a state's tax or price level.
- In Michigan's occupational distribution, tool and die makers sits at 186 of 493 — 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.
- After federal, FICA and Michigan income tax, retained pay for tool and die makers on $65,590 is $52,345. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $55,577 in national-average terms. ⚠️ That figure is purchasing power, not a wage, and nobody is paid it; it is what the take-home buys. The mean of $68,670 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
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Pay band: Tool and Die Makers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $46,930 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $65,590 |
| Top tenth earn over | $92,910 |
| This salary | $65,590 |
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 Michigan | $52,345 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $54,882 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$900 |
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 | $62,433 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$1,088 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 94 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $65,590 as a midpoint for Michigan, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $46,930 and the ninetieth is $92,910 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- In Michigan the take-home figure of $52,345, from $65,590, 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 186 of 493 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $55,577 uses one figure for the whole of Michigan. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 493 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 186.
- The Michigan median of $65,590 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $46,930 to $92,910. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- Take-home for Michigan is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $52,345 from $65,590. 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 186 of 493 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $55,577, worked from $65,590, 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 Michigan address, on work sitting at 186 of 493 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
No — it is the middle. Half of these workers earn more and half earn less. The average is $68,670, pulled upward by the top of the range, which is why the middle is the fairer number to plan against.
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $46,930 at the tenth percentile, $92,910 at the ninetieth.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
A smaller wage in a cheaper place is not automatically less. Adjusted for local prices, this is worth $55,577.
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; Michigan then takes its own share, leaving $52,345.
Why is this job missing from some states?
A blank is a suppression, not a zero. 45 states have a published figure for this work; the others had too few responses to release one.
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 Michigan is $68,670. 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 ($46,930 to $92,910) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Michigan rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Michigan'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 $55,577 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 $52,345 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Michigan 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 45 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.