What is the real (cost-adjusted) MA salary in Kansas?

After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 89.9 for Kansas), the real-wage equivalent is $43,478 — what the $39,090 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $40,630 to $50,096.

How many MAs does Kansas employ?

BLS OES counts 4,920 MAs employed in Kansas in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.

Where does Kansas rank for MA pay?

On nominal BLS wages alone, Kansas ranks among the 51 states and DC by median pay. After the BEA cost-of-living adjustment the ordering changes — high-cost states fall, low-cost states rise. Both rankings are shown in the data table on this page.

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

Yes — the BEA RPP of 89.9 is below the national 100 baseline, so nominal $39,090 stretches to a real-wage equivalent of $43,478. The take-home advantage versus a higher-RPP state is meaningful for MAs comparing offers across regions.

Should I negotiate based on the BLS median for Kansas?

The BLS median is a calibration anchor, not a ceiling. Use it to validate that an offer is in-band — anything well below the P25 in this state is a flag, anything above the P75 typically requires demonstrable specialty depth, niche credentials, or a high-COL metro within Kansas.

Specialty MA pay (cardiology / dermatology / ortho) vs primary care in Kansas?

BLS aggregates all medical assistants under one SOC. In Kansas, specialty practice MAs — particularly in dermatology, cardiology, orthopedics, and ophthalmology — typically earn 10-20% above primary-care MA pay, reflecting tighter procedural support requirements and longer training ramps. Surgical specialty MAs assisting in office-based procedures (skin biopsies, in-office injections, vascular ultrasound assist) sit at the top of the BLS band in Kansas. Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) and community-health clinics in Kansas typically pay below BLS median but offer PSLF eligibility and stronger benefits.

Is the medical assistant role still a viable RN-bridge path in Kansas?

MA → RN remains a common pathway in Kansas. The financial logic: an MA earning at the Kansas BLS median while completing an associate-degree RN program (typically 2 years post-prerequisites, $5K-$25K tuition at community college) sees an average BLS-reported wage roughly 2-2.5× higher post-licensure. BSN-direct programs ($40K-$120K) extend payback timeline but open hospital and management tracks. Many Kansas health systems offer tuition support or ladder programs that effectively eliminate program cost — making the MA-to-RN economic transition substantially more favorable than the headline tuition implies.

How Much Do Medical Assistants Make in Kansas? $39K (2026 BLS + BEA)

TL;DR

$39,090 is the BLS median wage for MAs in Kansas; $43,478 is the BEA-adjusted purchasing-power equivalent.
Wage envelope: $33,030 (P10) to $47,920 (P90), with quartiles at $36,530 and $45,040.
Low BEA RPP (89.9) means the paycheck stretches further than the BLS number suggests; net lift roughly $4,388.
Nominal: #38/51 · Real: #29/51 — ranking shifts by 9 positions after RPP.

Wage breakdown — Kansas

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$33,030	$36,738
P25 (lower quartile)	$36,530	$40,630
P50 (median)	$39,090	$43,478
P75 (upper quartile)	$45,040	$50,096
P90 (top tier)	$47,920	$53,299
Mean	$40,700	$45,268
Employment	4,920 MAs 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 (MA)	$39,090	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$2,553	6.5% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$1,571	3.1–5.7% (graduated)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$2,990	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$31,976	81.8% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$35,565	÷ (89.9 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

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

Mid-band state-tax burden at 4.0% effective. Combined with federal and FICA, take-home is $31,976 (81.8% of gross). After the 89.9 RPP, real take-home is $35,565.

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 $44,200 for MAs with mean pay of $44,720 and total employment of 793,460. Kansas sits at #38 on nominal pay and #29 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Kansas climbs 9 positions — the cost of living is favorable relative to the wage.

Frequently asked questions

What is the real (cost-adjusted) MA salary in Kansas?: After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 89.9 for Kansas), the real-wage equivalent is $43,478 — what the $39,090 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $40,630 to $50,096.
How many MAs does Kansas employ?: BLS OES counts 4,920 MAs employed in Kansas in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.
Where does Kansas rank for MA pay?: On nominal BLS wages alone, Kansas ranks among the 51 states and DC by median pay. After the BEA cost-of-living adjustment the ordering changes — high-cost states fall, low-cost states rise. Both rankings are shown in the data table on this page.
Is Kansas a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for MAs?: Yes — the BEA RPP of 89.9 is below the national 100 baseline, so nominal $39,090 stretches to a real-wage equivalent of $43,478. The take-home advantage versus a higher-RPP state is meaningful for MAs comparing offers across regions.
Should I negotiate based on the BLS median for Kansas?: The BLS median is a calibration anchor, not a ceiling. Use it to validate that an offer is in-band — anything well below the P25 in this state is a flag, anything above the P75 typically requires demonstrable specialty depth, niche credentials, or a high-COL metro within Kansas.
Specialty MA pay (cardiology / dermatology / ortho) vs primary care in Kansas?: BLS aggregates all medical assistants under one SOC. In Kansas, specialty practice MAs — particularly in dermatology, cardiology, orthopedics, and ophthalmology — typically earn 10-20% above primary-care MA pay, reflecting tighter procedural support requirements and longer training ramps. Surgical specialty MAs assisting in office-based procedures (skin biopsies, in-office injections, vascular ultrasound assist) sit at the top of the BLS band in Kansas. Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) and community-health clinics in Kansas typically pay below BLS median but offer PSLF eligibility and stronger benefits.
Is the medical assistant role still a viable RN-bridge path in Kansas?: MA → RN remains a common pathway in Kansas. The financial logic: an MA earning at the Kansas BLS median while completing an associate-degree RN program (typically 2 years post-prerequisites, $5K-$25K tuition at community college) sees an average BLS-reported wage roughly 2-2.5× higher post-licensure. BSN-direct programs ($40K-$120K) extend payback timeline but open hospital and management tracks. Many Kansas health systems offer tuition support or ladder programs that effectively eliminate program cost — making the MA-to-RN economic transition substantially more favorable than the headline tuition implies.

Sources & methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), SOC 31-9092, 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 2026-05-07.

Cross-comparison: see how Kansas MA 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.