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

After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 90.3 for Nebraska), the real-wage equivalent is $51,037 — what the $46,080 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $42,564 to $53,728.

How many MAs does Nebraska employ?

BLS OES counts 2,560 MAs employed in Nebraska in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.

Why is the BEA RPP for Nebraska 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. Nebraska's overall index of 90.3 reflects rents 74.3, services 79.4, and goods 96.5.

Where does Nebraska rank for MA pay?

On nominal BLS wages alone, Nebraska 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.

What are the limits of these MA 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.

Should I negotiate based on the BLS median for Nebraska?

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 Nebraska.

When does this data update?

BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.

How Much Do Medical Assistants Make in Nebraska? $46K (2026 BLS + BEA)

TL;DR

$46,080 is the BLS median wage for MAs in Nebraska; $51,037 is the BEA-adjusted purchasing-power equivalent.
P25-P75 spread runs $38,430 to $48,510; P10 floor $35,620, P90 ceiling $56,990.
Low BEA RPP (90.3) means the paycheck stretches further than the BLS number suggests; net lift roughly $4,957.
MA ranking: #15 on the BLS table, #2 once cost of living is in.

Wage breakdown — Nebraska

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$35,620	$39,452
P25 (lower quartile)	$38,430	$42,564
P50 (median)	$46,080	$51,037
P75 (upper quartile)	$48,510	$53,728
P90 (top tier)	$56,990	$63,120
Mean	$45,090	$49,940
Employment	2,560 MAs in Nebraska

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Nebraska index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	90.3
Goods	96.5
Services	79.4
Rents	74.3

Nebraska sits below the national baseline (RPP 90.3), so nominal pay translates to a higher real wage than the BLS median suggests — particularly visible in rents at 74.3.

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

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

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (MA)	$46,080	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$3,392	7.4% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$1,562	2.46–5.84% (graduated, 3.99% top by 2027)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$3,525	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$37,602	81.6% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$41,646	÷ (90.3 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

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

Mid-band state-tax burden at 3.4% effective. Combined with federal and FICA, take-home is $37,602 (81.6% of gross). After the 90.3 RPP, real take-home is $41,646.

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. Nebraska sits at #15 on nominal pay and #2 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Nebraska climbs 13 positions — the cost of living is favorable relative to the wage.

Frequently asked questions

What is the real (cost-adjusted) MA salary in Nebraska?: After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 90.3 for Nebraska), the real-wage equivalent is $51,037 — what the $46,080 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $42,564 to $53,728.
How many MAs does Nebraska employ?: BLS OES counts 2,560 MAs employed in Nebraska in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.
Why is the BEA RPP for Nebraska 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. Nebraska's overall index of 90.3 reflects rents 74.3, services 79.4, and goods 96.5.
Where does Nebraska rank for MA pay?: On nominal BLS wages alone, Nebraska 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.
What are the limits of these MA 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.
Should I negotiate based on the BLS median for Nebraska?: 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 Nebraska.
When does this data update?: BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.

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 Nebraska 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.