How are Texas MA salaries calculated on this page?

Nominal wages come from BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES) — annual employer surveys, May 2026 reference period. Real-wage figures use BEA Regional Price Parities (2023 vintage) to adjust for state-level cost of living. No self-report or jobs-board data is mixed in.

What does the top of the MA pay scale look like in Texas?

The 90th percentile lands at $48,350. 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 $45,840.

Why is the BEA RPP for Texas 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. Texas's overall index of 97.1 reflects rents 97.5, services 92.4, and goods 98.1.

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

No — Texas's RPP is close to the national 100 baseline, so nominal and real wages move roughly together. Neither an arbitrage nor a penalty state.

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.

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.

Does CMA / RMA certification raise medical assistant pay in Texas?

BLS does not split certified from uncertified medical assistants under SOC 31-9092. In Texas, AAMA-certified Medical Assistant (CMA) and AMT Registered Medical Assistant (RMA) credentials typically command a 5-15% pay premium versus uncertified MAs at comparable experience. The premium is concentrated in larger health systems and specialty clinics with formal MA tier structures; smaller primary-care practices in Texas often pay similarly regardless of certification. Phlebotomy, EKG, and limited-X-ray endorsements add additional 3-8% premiums where state scope permits.

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

TL;DR

Headline MA pay in Texas is $38,930. Real take-home, after the state's cost-of-living index, lands at $40,076.
P25-P75 spread runs $35,980 to $45,840; P10 floor $30,160, P90 ceiling $48,350.
BEA RPP near 100 means nominal pay translates almost 1:1 into real take-home.
Nominal: #41/51 · Real: #48/51 — ranking shifts by 7 positions after RPP.

Wage breakdown — Texas

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$30,160	$31,048
P25 (lower quartile)	$35,980	$37,039
P50 (median)	$38,930	$40,076
P75 (upper quartile)	$45,840	$47,190
P90 (top tier)	$48,350	$49,774
Mean	$40,470	$41,662
Employment	72,280 MAs in Texas

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Texas index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	97.1
Goods	98.1
Services	92.4
Rents	97.5

Texas's overall RPP (97.1) is close to the national 100 baseline; nominal and real wage move roughly together.

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

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

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (MA)	$38,930	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$2,534	6.5% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	$0	no state income tax
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$2,978	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$33,418	85.8% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$34,402	÷ (97.1 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

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

Texas levies no state income tax on wages, which is worth roughly $1,947 a year for a MA at the BLS median compared with the national-average state burden (≈5%). After the favorable cost of living, real take-home is $34,402 — higher than the nominal after-tax figure because RPP is below 100.

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. Texas sits at #41 on nominal pay and #48 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Texas falls 7 positions — the cost premium eats into the headline wage.

Frequently asked questions

How are Texas MA salaries calculated on this page?: Nominal wages come from BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES) — annual employer surveys, May 2026 reference period. Real-wage figures use BEA Regional Price Parities (2023 vintage) to adjust for state-level cost of living. No self-report or jobs-board data is mixed in.
What does the top of the MA pay scale look like in Texas?: The 90th percentile lands at $48,350. 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 $45,840.
Why is the BEA RPP for Texas 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. Texas's overall index of 97.1 reflects rents 97.5, services 92.4, and goods 98.1.
Is Texas a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for MAs?: No — Texas's RPP is close to the national 100 baseline, so nominal and real wages move roughly together. Neither an arbitrage nor a penalty state.
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.
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.
Does CMA / RMA certification raise medical assistant pay in Texas?: BLS does not split certified from uncertified medical assistants under SOC 31-9092. In Texas, AAMA-certified Medical Assistant (CMA) and AMT Registered Medical Assistant (RMA) credentials typically command a 5-15% pay premium versus uncertified MAs at comparable experience. The premium is concentrated in larger health systems and specialty clinics with formal MA tier structures; smaller primary-care practices in Texas often pay similarly regardless of certification. Phlebotomy, EKG, and limited-X-ray endorsements add additional 3-8% premiums where state scope permits.

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 Texas 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.