Zoologists and Wildlife Biologists in Iowa
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$64,678
after federal, FICA and Iowa tax
Tax takes
$18,322
22.1% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$72,863
Iowa costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Iowa — 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
$83,000
Kept after tax
$64,678
Worth in national money
$72,863
State rank
13
of 47 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Iowa is one of the better-paying states for zoologists and wildlife biologists. The middle earner takes $83,000, which ranks 13 of 47 states with published figures. That is about 8.1% above the national middle.
- Within Iowa this is well-paid work. Of 493 occupations with published figures in the state, zoologists and wildlife biologists ranks 88 — in the top quarter of everything people do there.
- Here is where Iowa does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $83,000 you keep $64,678, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $72,863 would elsewhere. The average is lower, $80,120, so pay clusters nearer the top than usual.
- Iowa ranks 13 of 47 states publishing a median for zoologists and wildlife biologists, at $83,000 — about 8.1% 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.
- Ranked against every occupation Iowa publishes a median for, zoologists and wildlife biologists sits 88 of 493 — the upper quartile of the state's wage distribution. National standing and within-state standing are separate questions, and a job can occupy very different positions on each.
- After federal, FICA and Iowa income tax, retained pay for zoologists and wildlife biologists on $83,000 is $64,678. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $72,863 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 $80,120 falls below the median, a left skew that is uncommon in wage data.
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Pay band: Zoologists and Wildlife Biologists
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $59,850 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $83,000 |
| Top tenth earn over | $90,420 |
| This salary | $83,000 |
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 Iowa | $64,678 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $67,221 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$3,688 |
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 | $79,386 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$5,095 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 89 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $83,000 as a midpoint for Iowa, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $59,850 and the ninetieth is $90,420 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- In Iowa the take-home figure of $64,678, from $83,000, 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 88 of 493 occupations here.
- One number stands for prices across all of Iowa, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $72,863, the adjusted value of that $83,000 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 88 of 493 in the state.
- The Iowa median of $83,000 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $59,850 to $90,420. 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 Iowa is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $64,678 from $83,000. 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 88 of 493 locally.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Iowa, so $72,863 — the adjusted value of that $83,000 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 88 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 $80,120, 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?
The range here is narrow. From $59,850 at the bottom tenth to $90,420 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in Iowa sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $72,863 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
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; Iowa then takes its own share, leaving $64,678.
Why is this job missing from some states?
Because the survey suppresses a figure when too few employers report it. This occupation has published pay in 47 states — the rest are withheld to protect confidentiality, which is not the same as nobody doing the work there.
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 Iowa is $80,120. 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 ($59,850 to $90,420) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Iowa rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Iowa'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 $72,863 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 $64,678 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Iowa 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 47 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.