What is the real (cost-adjusted) Plumber salary in North Dakota?

After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 88.2 for North Dakota), the real-wage equivalent is $71,075 — what the $62,670 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $55,356 to $88,019.

What does the top of the Plumber pay scale look like in North Dakota?

The 90th percentile lands at $89,630. 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 $77,610.

How many Plumbers does North Dakota employ?

BLS OES counts 1,650 Plumbers employed in North Dakota 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 North Dakota 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. North Dakota's overall index of 88.2 reflects rents 69.3, services 75.0, and goods 97.0.

Where does North Dakota rank for Plumber pay?

On nominal BLS wages alone, North Dakota 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.

How wide is the wage spread in North Dakota?

P10 to P90 spans $44,940 to $89,630. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.

What are the limits of these Plumber 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.

North Dakota Plumber Salary: BLS $63K Median, Real $71K (2026)

TL;DR

BLS reports North Dakota Plumber median pay at $62,670. Adjusted for state cost of living, real purchasing power equals $71,075.
Bottom quartile $48,810, top quartile $77,610. The P90 ($89,630) is roughly 2.0× the P10 ($44,940).
Cost of living below the national index lifts real wage by $8,405 over the nominal — a take-home arbitrage that nominal-ranking tables miss.
Nominal: #25/51 · Real: #14/51 — ranking shifts by 11 positions after RPP.

Wage breakdown — North Dakota

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$44,940	$50,967
P25 (lower quartile)	$48,810	$55,356
P50 (median)	$62,670	$71,075
P75 (upper quartile)	$77,610	$88,019
P90 (top tier)	$89,630	$101,651
Mean	$65,760	$74,580
Employment	1,650 Plumbers in North Dakota

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	North Dakota index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	88.2
Goods	97.0
Services	75.0
Rents	69.3

North Dakota sits below the national baseline (RPP 88.2), so nominal pay translates to a higher real wage than the BLS median suggests — particularly visible in rents at 69.3.

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

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

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (Plumber)	$62,670	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$5,382	8.6% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	$0	0–2.5% (graduated, 2026)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$4,794	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$52,493	83.8% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$59,534	÷ (88.2 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

What the North Dakota state-tax burden means for Plumber take-home

North Dakota's state tax is light at this income tier (~0.0% effective). The bigger compensation lever is the below-baseline cost of living (RPP 88.2), which lifts real take-home above nominal after-tax — net real after-tax $59,534.

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 $62,970 for Plumbers with mean pay of $69,940 and total employment of 455,940. North Dakota sits at #25 on nominal pay and #14 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, North Dakota climbs 11 positions — the cost of living is favorable relative to the wage.

Frequently asked questions

What is the real (cost-adjusted) Plumber salary in North Dakota?: After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 88.2 for North Dakota), the real-wage equivalent is $71,075 — what the $62,670 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $55,356 to $88,019.
What does the top of the Plumber pay scale look like in North Dakota?: The 90th percentile lands at $89,630. 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 $77,610.
How many Plumbers does North Dakota employ?: BLS OES counts 1,650 Plumbers employed in North Dakota 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 North Dakota 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. North Dakota's overall index of 88.2 reflects rents 69.3, services 75.0, and goods 97.0.
Where does North Dakota rank for Plumber pay?: On nominal BLS wages alone, North Dakota 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.
How wide is the wage spread in North Dakota?: P10 to P90 spans $44,940 to $89,630. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.
What are the limits of these Plumber 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.

Sources & methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), SOC 47-2152, 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 North Dakota Plumber 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.