Water and Wastewater Treatment Plant and System Operators in New Jersey
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$61,411
after federal, FICA and New Jersey tax
Tax takes
$17,349
22.0% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$56,401
New Jersey costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in New Jersey — 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
$78,760
Kept after tax
$61,411
Worth in national money
$56,401
State rank
5
of 50 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- New Jersey is one of the better-paying states for this job. The middle earner takes $78,760, which ranks 5 of 50 states with published figures. That is about 31.22% above the national middle.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 490 occupations New Jersey reports figures for, this is number 188.
- New Jersey is an expensive state, and the adjusted figure shows it. From $78,760 the take-home is $61,411; in national-average money that behaves like $56,401. The average lands at $77,530, below the middle of the range.
- New Jersey ranks 5 of 50 states publishing a median for water and wastewater treatment plant and system operators, at $78,760 — about 31.22% above the national median. A state's position on nominal pay is the figure wage tables report and the least informative of the three on this page, because it survives neither the tax adjustment nor the price adjustment intact for most occupations.
- In New Jersey's occupational distribution, water and wastewater treatment plant and system operators sits at 188 of 490 — 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.
- Take-home for water and wastewater treatment plant and system operators in New Jersey, on $78,760, is $61,411; deflated by the state's price level, $56,401. ⚠️ The deflator is statewide, so it understates the erosion in the state's metropolitan areas and overstates it outside them. At $77,530 the mean undershoots the median, an inversion of the usual skew.
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: Water and Wastewater Treatment Plant and System Operators
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $51,050 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $78,760 |
| Top tenth earn over | $99,240 |
| This salary | $78,760 |
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 Jersey | $61,411 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $64,238 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$9,705 |
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 | $74,741 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$13,263 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 109 |
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 Jersey earn less than $78,760. The published range is $51,050 up to $99,240, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In New Jersey the take-home figure of $61,411, from $78,760, 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 188 of 490 occupations here.
- One number stands for prices across all of New Jersey, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $56,401, the adjusted value of that $78,760 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 188 of 490 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for water and wastewater treatment plant and system operators in New Jersey the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $51,050 to $99,240. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for New Jersey is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $61,411 from $78,760. 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 188 of 490 locally.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for New Jersey, so $56,401 — the adjusted value of that $78,760 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 188 of 490 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $51,050 at the tenth percentile, $99,240 at the ninetieth.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
Not on its own. Prices in New Jersey run above the national level, so the same dollars buy less here. Adjusted for that, this pay is worth $56,401 — the wage did not change, only what it covers.
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 Jersey's own levy, $61,411 remains.
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.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($51,050 to $99,240) 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 Jersey rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
New Jersey's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $56,401 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 $61,411 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and New Jersey 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.