Waiters and Waitresses in Pennsylvania
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$28,988
after federal, FICA and Pennsylvania tax
Tax takes
$5,702
16.4% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$29,732
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
$34,690
Kept after tax
$28,988
Worth in national money
$29,732
State rank
25
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Pennsylvania sits in the middle of the pack for waiters and waitresses. The median is $34,690, ranking 25 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 Pennsylvania, this one sits low: 460 of 492 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Prices here sit close to the national average, so the adjustment changes little. From $34,690 the take-home is $28,988, which is worth about $29,732 in comparable money. Tax does most of the work here, not cost of living. The average is higher, $38,110, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Pennsylvania occupies the middle band for waiters and waitresses: a median of $34,690, ranking 25 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.
- Waiters and waitresses occupies position 460 of 492 in Pennsylvania'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.
- Pennsylvania's price level is near the national average, so price deflation is close to neutral for waiters and waitresses on its $34,690 median: $28,988 retained after tax becomes $29,732 in national-average terms. Where the price adjustment is small, the tax stack is the dominant determinant of the real outcome. The mean of $38,110 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
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Pay band: Waiters and Waitresses
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $18,400 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $34,690 |
| Top tenth earn over | $61,780 |
| This salary | $34,690 |
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 | $28,988 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $30,053 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$1,195 |
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 | $33,365 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$1,446 |
| 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 $34,690. The published range is $18,400 up to $61,780, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In Pennsylvania the take-home figure of $28,988, from $34,690, 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 460 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 $29,732 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 460.
- Reported values are medians; for waiters and waitresses in Pennsylvania the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $18,400 to $61,780. 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 $28,988 from $34,690. 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 460 of 492 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $29,732, worked from $34,690, 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 460 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $38,110, 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 $18,400 at the bottom tenth to $61,780 at the top, the same title covers roles that share little beyond a name.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. Pennsylvania is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $29,732 in national terms.
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 $28,988 of this wage survives to your account.
Can I compare this job across every state?
All 51 jurisdictions report this work, which makes the ranking a like-for-like 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 Pennsylvania is $38,110. 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 ($18,400) and the ninetieth ($61,780) 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.
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 $29,732 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 $28,988 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.
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.