What does the top of the Firefighter pay scale look like in Kansas?

The 90th percentile lands at $76,390. That tier typically reflects senior roles, specialty certifications, high-cost-of-living metros within the state, or union-negotiated rate cards. Below that, the P75 quartile is $57,350.

Why is the BEA RPP for Kansas different from a single CPI number?

BEA splits regional price parity into three components — goods, services, and rents — reweighted to the BEA's national consumption basket. Kansas's overall index of 89.9 reflects rents 68.6, services 90.8, and goods 96.5.

How wide is the wage spread in Kansas?

P10 to P90 spans $31,030 to $76,390. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.

Is Kansas a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for Firefighters?

Yes — the BEA RPP of 89.9 is below the national 100 baseline, so nominal $44,060 stretches to a real-wage equivalent of $49,006. The take-home advantage versus a higher-RPP state is meaningful for Firefighters comparing offers across regions.

What are the limits of these Firefighter salary numbers?

BLS OES is an employer survey of W-2 wages — it excludes contractor pay, bonuses outside the base wage definition, equity compensation, and tip income. Self-employed practitioners and gig workers are not represented. For occupations with significant non-W-2 income, the BLS figure is a floor, not a complete picture.

Paramedic dual-certification premium for Kansas firefighters?

Most Kansas fire departments respond to far more EMS calls than fire calls — roughly 70-80% medical response is typical. Departments add a paramedic-cert premium of 5-15% above firefighter base, reflecting the labor-market scarcity of cross-trained personnel. BLS aggregates all firefighters under SOC 33-2011 regardless of EMT/paramedic status; the actual Kansas median for paramedic-certified firefighters runs above the BLS figure shown on this page, while EMT-only firefighters cluster at or below it.

Volunteer / paid-on-call vs career firefighter pay in Kansas?

BLS captures career (full-time) firefighters under 33-2011; volunteer departments and paid-on-call firefighters are not represented in the OEWS wage figures. Roughly two-thirds of US fire departments are still volunteer or combination, concentrated in rural and suburban Kansas jurisdictions — those firefighters earn small per-call stipends, attendance pay, or LOSAP retirement credits rather than a wage. The BLS Kansas median therefore reflects only career departments and dramatically overstates 'firefighter pay' if interpreted as the population average.

Kansas Firefighter Salary: BLS $44K Median, Real $49K (2026)

TL;DR

$44,060 is the BLS median wage for Firefighters in Kansas; $49,006 is the BEA-adjusted purchasing-power equivalent.
Low BEA RPP (89.9) means the paycheck stretches further than the BLS number suggests; net lift roughly $4,946.
BLS percentile breakdown: P10 $31,030 · P25 $38,110 · P75 $57,350 · P90 $76,390.
Nominal: #42/51 · Real: #38/51 — ranking shifts by 4 positions after RPP.

Wage breakdown — Kansas

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$31,030	$34,513
P25 (lower quartile)	$38,110	$42,388
P50 (median)	$44,060	$49,006
P75 (upper quartile)	$57,350	$63,787
P90 (top tier)	$76,390	$84,965
Mean	$48,410	$53,844
Employment	3,630 Firefighters in Kansas

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Kansas index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	89.9
Goods	96.5
Services	90.8
Rents	68.6

Kansas sits below the national baseline (RPP 89.9), so nominal pay translates to a higher real wage than the BLS median suggests — particularly visible in rents at 68.6.

After-tax take-home — Kansas (2024 BLS · 2024 tax year, single filer)

Layer-by-layer take-home math at the BLS median

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (Firefighter)	$44,060	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$3,149	7.1% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$1,854	3.1–5.7% (graduated)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$3,371	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$35,686	81.0% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$39,691	÷ (89.9 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

What the Kansas state-tax burden means for Firefighter take-home

Mid-band state-tax burden at 4.2% effective. Combined with federal and FICA, take-home is $35,686 (81.0% of gross). After the 89.9 RPP, real take-home is $39,691.

Computed from 2026 IRS federal brackets (Rev. Proc. 2025-32), 2026 state DOR brackets, and 2026 FICA rates. Single filer, standard deduction, no other adjustments. See methodology · tax for limitations (married filers, ITM/SALT itemizers, retirement deferrals, HSA, dependent credits, etc.).

National context

Across the United States, BLS reports a national median of $59,530 for Firefighters with mean pay of $63,890 and total employment of 332,240. Kansas sits at #42 on nominal pay and #38 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Kansas climbs 4 positions — the cost of living is favorable relative to the wage.

Frequently asked questions

What does the top of the Firefighter pay scale look like in Kansas?: The 90th percentile lands at $76,390. That tier typically reflects senior roles, specialty certifications, high-cost-of-living metros within the state, or union-negotiated rate cards. Below that, the P75 quartile is $57,350.
Why is the BEA RPP for Kansas different from a single CPI number?: BEA splits regional price parity into three components — goods, services, and rents — reweighted to the BEA's national consumption basket. Kansas's overall index of 89.9 reflects rents 68.6, services 90.8, and goods 96.5.
How wide is the wage spread in Kansas?: P10 to P90 spans $31,030 to $76,390. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.
Is Kansas a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for Firefighters?: Yes — the BEA RPP of 89.9 is below the national 100 baseline, so nominal $44,060 stretches to a real-wage equivalent of $49,006. The take-home advantage versus a higher-RPP state is meaningful for Firefighters comparing offers across regions.
What are the limits of these Firefighter salary numbers?: BLS OES is an employer survey of W-2 wages — it excludes contractor pay, bonuses outside the base wage definition, equity compensation, and tip income. Self-employed practitioners and gig workers are not represented. For occupations with significant non-W-2 income, the BLS figure is a floor, not a complete picture.
Paramedic dual-certification premium for Kansas firefighters?: Most Kansas fire departments respond to far more EMS calls than fire calls — roughly 70-80% medical response is typical. Departments add a paramedic-cert premium of 5-15% above firefighter base, reflecting the labor-market scarcity of cross-trained personnel. BLS aggregates all firefighters under SOC 33-2011 regardless of EMT/paramedic status; the actual Kansas median for paramedic-certified firefighters runs above the BLS figure shown on this page, while EMT-only firefighters cluster at or below it.
Volunteer / paid-on-call vs career firefighter pay in Kansas?: BLS captures career (full-time) firefighters under 33-2011; volunteer departments and paid-on-call firefighters are not represented in the OEWS wage figures. Roughly two-thirds of US fire departments are still volunteer or combination, concentrated in rural and suburban Kansas jurisdictions — those firefighters earn small per-call stipends, attendance pay, or LOSAP retirement credits rather than a wage. The BLS Kansas median therefore reflects only career departments and dramatically overstates 'firefighter pay' if interpreted as the population average.

Sources & methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), SOC 33-2011, 2024 reference period.
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis — Regional Price Parities, 2023 vintage (all-items, goods, services, rents).
Real-wage figures = nominal BLS wage ÷ (state RPP / 100).
See the methodology page for full computation details and limitations.

By Marcus Liang · Founder & Editor · Last synced 2026-05-05.

Cross-comparison: see how Kansas Firefighter pay ranks against the other 254 state × occupation pages on the Real Wage Atlas → — four-way ranking by real wage, after-tax take-home, state-tax savings, and cost-of-living arbitrage.