Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers in Michigan
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$31,318
after federal, FICA and Michigan tax
Tax takes
$6,642
17.5% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$33,252
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
$37,960
Kept after tax
$31,318
Worth in national money
$33,252
State rank
18
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Michigan sits in the middle of the pack for this job. The median is $37,960, ranking 18 of 51 states with figures. Close enough to the national middle that where you live matters more than the headline suggests.
- Measured against other jobs in Michigan, this one sits low: 427 of 493 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Michigan is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $37,960 the take-home is $31,318; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $33,252 would nationally. The average comes to $39,060, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- Michigan occupies the middle band for veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers: a median of $37,960, ranking 18 of 51. Where nominal pay is close to the national figure, the tax and price adjustments below carry proportionally more weight in determining the real outcome.
- Veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers occupies position 427 of 493 in Michigan's occupational wage distribution, in the bottom quartile. National ranking and local ranking answer different questions and frequently disagree; this is the one a resident experiences.
- Post-tax income for veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers in Michigan, on $37,960, is $31,318 — equivalent to $33,252 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 $39,060 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $30,410 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $37,960 |
| Top tenth earn over | $46,730 |
| This salary | $37,960 |
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 | $31,318 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $32,681 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$379 |
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 | $36,264 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$458 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 94 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $37,960 as a midpoint for Michigan, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $30,410 and the ninetieth is $46,730 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind Michigan's $31,318, worked from $37,960. That is on purpose. It lets states be compared with each other, not with each other's family circumstances. Local city taxes are left out. Locally this work ranks 427 of 493.
- One number stands for prices across all of Michigan, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $33,252, the adjusted value of that $37,960 median, as a way to compare states fairly, not as a quote for any particular place. The two datasets are also from different years. This job sits at 427 of 493 in the state.
- The Michigan median of $37,960 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $30,410 to $46,730. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- The Michigan take-home of $31,318, on $37,960 for work ranking 427 of 493 locally, models the simplest household deliberately: holding it constant is what makes the interstate comparison meaningful. It also means the absolute figure overstates liability for most real filers, and municipal income taxes are outside the model entirely. The occupation ranks 427 of 493 in the state.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Michigan, so $33,252 — the adjusted value of that $37,960 median — establishes comparability between states rather than accuracy within one. The wage and parity series are dated independently, each following its own publication cycle, and neither is projected forward. This occupation sits at 427 of 493 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $30,410 and the top tenth $46,730, so most people doing this work in Michigan sit within a fairly tight band.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. Michigan is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $33,252 in national terms.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Three of them are federal and one is not. After income tax, Social Security, Medicare and Michigan's own levy, $31,318 remains.
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 ($30,410 to $46,730) 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 $33,252 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 $31,318 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.
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.