Communications Equipment Operators, All Other Salary

Yes — at the median salary of $87K, rent takes 19.9% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,097/month. That stays under the 30% guideline most financial planners use.

The 10th-percentile wage — what new communications equipment operators, all others typically earn — is $46K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,786/month. At HUD’s $1,097/month FMR, rent would take 39% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.

Local pay is 59% above the national median — $87K here vs. $55K nationally.

Missouri pays $87K median vs. the U.S. average of $55K — that’s +59%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 88.97), the purchasing-power equivalent is $98K — still ahead of the national median.

The median is $87,030 a year, that works out to about $42 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $46,440, and experienced communications equipment operators, all others can clear $94,640. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.

On that salary, you'd take home roughly $5,521/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,097/month, which eats 19.9% of your paycheck. That's under the 30% guideline most financial planners use, so the numbers work.

Missouri has a Regional Price Parity of 88.97 (100 is the national average). That's below average, your money stretches further here than the raw salary number suggests. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median communications equipment operators, all other salary is worth about $97,819 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.