How much does a Vet make in North Dakota?

BLS reports a median annual wage of $99,490 for Vets in North Dakota as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $94,490 and the 75th-percentile is $115,840.

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

After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 88.2 for North Dakota), the real-wage equivalent is $112,834 — what the $99,490 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $107,163 to $131,377.

How many Vets does North Dakota employ?

BLS OES counts 300 Vets 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.

Where does North Dakota rank for Vet 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 $82,340 to $138,440. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.

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.

Has corporate consolidation (Mars/VCA/Banfield) changed vet pay in North Dakota?

Substantially. The roll-up of independent veterinary practices by Mars Petcare (Banfield, BluePearl, VCA), Patterson Companies, and PE-backed groups has shifted North Dakota vet employment toward corporate-employed associate roles with structured pay grids and away from owner-operator economics. BLS captures W-2 wages, so corporate associate pay is fully represented; what's UNDERSTATED is the historical small-practice owner income (K-1 distributions excluded from BLS). Net effect in North Dakota: the BLS median has compressed slightly relative to a decade ago as associate pay has stabilized but practice-owner equity returns shrink.

How Much Do Veterinarians Make in North Dakota? $99K (2026 BLS + BEA)

TL;DR

Veterinarians in North Dakota earn a BLS median of $99,490, with real take-home of $112,834 after BEA RPP adjustment.
State ranks #41 nationally on nominal wage, #38 on real (RPP-adjusted) wage.
Below-100 RPP flips this state above its nominal rank in real-wage terms; the gap is about $13,344.
Bottom quartile $94,490, top quartile $115,840. The P90 ($138,440) is roughly 1.7× the P10 ($82,340).

Wage breakdown — North Dakota

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$82,340	$93,384
P25 (lower quartile)	$94,490	$107,163
P50 (median)	$99,490	$112,834
P75 (upper quartile)	$115,840	$131,377
P90 (top tier)	$138,440	$157,008
Mean	$107,060	$121,419
Employment	300 Vets 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 (Vet)	$99,490	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$13,135	13.2% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$714	0–2.5% (graduated, 2026)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$7,611	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$78,031	78.4% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$88,496	÷ (88.2 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

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

North Dakota's state tax is light at this income tier (~0.7% 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 $88,496.

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 $125,510 for Vets with mean pay of $140,270 and total employment of 80,630. North Dakota sits at #41 on nominal pay and #38 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, North Dakota climbs 3 positions — the cost of living is favorable relative to the wage.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a Vet make in North Dakota?: BLS reports a median annual wage of $99,490 for Vets in North Dakota as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $94,490 and the 75th-percentile is $115,840.
What is the real (cost-adjusted) Vet salary in North Dakota?: After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 88.2 for North Dakota), the real-wage equivalent is $112,834 — what the $99,490 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $107,163 to $131,377.
How many Vets does North Dakota employ?: BLS OES counts 300 Vets 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.
Where does North Dakota rank for Vet 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 $82,340 to $138,440. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.
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.
Has corporate consolidation (Mars/VCA/Banfield) changed vet pay in North Dakota?: Substantially. The roll-up of independent veterinary practices by Mars Petcare (Banfield, BluePearl, VCA), Patterson Companies, and PE-backed groups has shifted North Dakota vet employment toward corporate-employed associate roles with structured pay grids and away from owner-operator economics. BLS captures W-2 wages, so corporate associate pay is fully represented; what's UNDERSTATED is the historical small-practice owner income (K-1 distributions excluded from BLS). Net effect in North Dakota: the BLS median has compressed slightly relative to a decade ago as associate pay has stabilized but practice-owner equity returns shrink.

Sources & methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), SOC 29-1131, 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 Vet 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.