Zoologists and Wildlife Biologists in North Dakota
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$65,719
after federal, FICA and North Dakota tax
Tax takes
$15,611
19.2% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$74,198
North Dakota costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in North Dakota — 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
$81,330
Kept after tax
$65,719
Worth in national money
$74,198
State rank
15
of 47 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- This is a good state for the work. North Dakota pays zoologists and wildlife biologists a middle wage of $81,330, ranking 15 of 47 states and sitting about 5.93% above the national middle.
- This is one of the better-paid jobs in North Dakota. It ranks 95 out of 460 occupations the state publishes figures for, which puts it in the top quarter locally.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $81,330 you keep $65,719 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $74,198 at national prices. Here the average runs under the middle, at $79,930.
- North Dakota's median for zoologists and wildlife biologists is $81,330, about 5.93% above the national figure and 15 of 47 states reporting. Whether that premium reaches the worker depends on the two adjustments below, which is the part a wage table cannot tell you.
- Within North Dakota, zoologists and wildlife biologists ranks 95 of 460 occupations by median pay, placing it in the top quartile of the local distribution. This is the comparison a resident actually makes — against neighbors rather than against the same job elsewhere.
- Retained pay in North Dakota is $65,719 after the full tax stack, from $81,330. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $74,198 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $79,930 sits under the median, so the lower tail is the longer one.
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Pay band: Zoologists and Wildlife Biologists
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $55,700 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $81,330 |
| Top tenth earn over | $103,500 |
| This salary | $81,330 |
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 North Dakota | $65,719 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $66,046 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$6,233 |
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 | $80,866 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$8,609 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 89 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $81,330 as a midpoint for North Dakota, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $55,700 and the ninetieth is $103,500 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- In North Dakota the take-home figure of $65,719, from $81,330, 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 95 of 460 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $74,198 uses one figure for the whole of North Dakota. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 460 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 95.
- The North Dakota median of $81,330 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $55,700 to $103,500. 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 North Dakota is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $65,719 from $81,330. 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 95 of 460 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $74,198, worked from $81,330, 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 North Dakota address, on work sitting at 95 of 460 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $55,700 at the bottom tenth to $103,500 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 North Dakota sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $74,198 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; North Dakota then takes its own share, leaving $65,719.
Why is this job missing from some states?
The survey withholds small samples rather than publish an unreliable number. Pay appears for 47 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 ($55,700 to $103,500) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to North Dakota rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
North Dakota'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 $74,198 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 $65,719 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and North Dakota 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.