Air Traffic Controllers Salary

Yes — at the median salary of $175K, rent takes 23% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $2,501/month. That stays under the 30% guideline most financial planners use.

The 10th-percentile wage — what new air traffic controllers typically earn — is $97K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $5,798/month. At HUD’s $2,501/month FMR, rent would take 43% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.

Local pay is 18% above the national median — $175K here vs. $148K nationally. Keep in mind cost of living here is 11% above the national average, which offsets some of that premium.

Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue pays $175K median vs. the U.S. average of $148K — that’s +18%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 111.13), the purchasing-power equivalent is $158K — still ahead of the national median.

The median is $175,280 a year, that works out to about $84 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $96,640, and experienced air traffic controllers can clear $215,840. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.

On that salary, you'd take home roughly $10,880/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $2,501/month, which eats 23% of your paycheck. That's under the 30% guideline most financial planners use, so the numbers work.

Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue has a Regional Price Parity of 111.13 (100 is the national average). Prices are above average here, so your dollar buys less than the same salary would in a cheaper metro. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median air traffic controllers salary is worth about $157,725 in national-average purchasing power.

The table above ranks every state by median pay for this role. Keep in mind that the highest-paying states tend to have the highest costs of living, so the top salary doesn't always mean the most money in your pocket.