Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers in New Mexico
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$31,666
after federal, FICA and New Mexico tax
Tax takes
$5,834
15.6% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$35,034
New Mexico costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in New Mexico — 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
$37,500
Kept after tax
$31,666
Worth in national money
$35,034
State rank
23
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- New Mexico sits in the middle of the pack for this job. The median is $37,500, ranking 23 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 New Mexico, this one sits low: 398 of 485 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $37,500 you keep $31,666 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $35,034 at national prices. Averages run higher here, $37,990, since top earners drag the number up.
- New Mexico occupies the middle band for veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers: a median of $37,500, ranking 23 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 398 of 485 in New Mexico'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.
- Retained pay in New Mexico is $31,666 after the full tax stack, from $37,500. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $35,034 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $37,990 exceeds the median, so the upper tail is doing the work.
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: Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $29,870 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $37,500 |
| Top tenth earn over | $48,310 |
| This salary | $37,500 |
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 New Mexico | $31,666 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $32,311 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$1,784 |
The raise and the real gain point in opposite directions here.
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 | $36,697 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$2,157 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 90 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in New Mexico earn less than $37,500. The published range is $29,870 up to $48,310, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind New Mexico's $31,666, worked from $37,500. 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 398 of 485.
- One number stands for prices across all of New Mexico, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $35,034, the adjusted value of that $37,500 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 398 of 485 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers in New Mexico the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $29,870 to $48,310. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- The New Mexico take-home of $31,666, on $37,500 for work ranking 398 of 485 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 398 of 485 in the state.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for New Mexico, so $35,034 — the adjusted value of that $37,500 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 398 of 485 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $29,870 and the top tenth $48,310, so most people doing this work in New Mexico sit within a fairly tight band.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. New Mexico is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $35,034 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 New Mexico's own levy, $31,666 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 ($29,870 to $48,310) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to New Mexico rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
New Mexico'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 $35,034 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 $31,666 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and New Mexico 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.