File Clerks Salary
File Clerks in Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA make a median of $49,810 a year, or about $23.95 an hour. The range runs from $30K at the entry level to $66K for experienced workers. Cost of living is below average (RPP 91.7), which stretches that salary to about $54,318 in buying power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $1,318/month, about 38.8% of take-home, which is tight.
So what does $50K get you in Des Moines-West Des Moines?
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by Des Moines-West Des Moines’s Regional Price Parity (91.7). Rent from HUD Fair Market Rents. Taxes estimated for single filer, standard deduction. * Healthcare is the employee-paid share only (premiums + out-of-pocket). Actual costs vary by coverage type: employer-sponsored, ACA marketplace, or uninsured.
About file clerks
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What this looks like in Des Moines-West Des Moines
Des Moines-West Des Moines sits well above the national pay line for file clerks, local pay runs about 14% higher than the U.S. median of $44K. The catch: housing math doesn't keep up. A 2-bedroom at the HUD median rents for $1,318/month, which is 39.9% of the median worker's take-home, past the 30% guideline most planners use. Regional Price Parity sits at 91.7 (national = 100), meaning everyday costs run about 8% cheaper here. Your dollar stretches further than the headline salary suggests. The pay premium is real, but so are the offsets.
Compared to nearby metros
Median pay for file clerks in metros near Des Moines-West Des Moines, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Cedar Rapids | $49K | $56K |
| Waterloo-Cedar Falls | $48K | $56K |
| Davenport-Moline-Rock Island | $41K | $46K |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin | $58K | $56K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA
Entry-level file clerks (10th percentile) start around $30K. Mid-career wages sit at $50K. Top earners bring in $66K or more, a $36K spread from bottom to top.
File Clerks pay across states
Median income ranked highest to lowest, compared to the national figure
View File Clerks salary in all states
| State | Median salary | vs. national | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oregon | $51K | +16% | 970 |
| Hawaii | $51K | +16% | 100 |
| Illinois | $50K | +14% | 3,780 |
| Alaska | $50K | +14% | 150 |
| California | $49K | +12% | 9,520 |
| Massachusetts | $48K | +11% | 600 |
| Vermont | $48K | +9% | 70 |
| Minnesota | $47K | +7% | 760 |
| Iowa | $47K | +7% | 430 |
| Colorado | $46K | +7% | 1,130 |
| Idaho | $46K | +5% | 540 |
| Washington | $46K | +5% | 520 |
| Wisconsin | $45K | +4% | 1,550 |
| Maryland | $45K | +3% | 880 |
| Connecticut | $45K | +3% | 350 |
| New Jersey | $44K | +2% | 2,310 |
| New Hampshire | $44K | +2% | 300 |
| New York | $44K | +2% | 2,590 |
| Nevada | $44K | +1% | 1,110 |
| Michigan | $44K | +1% | 1,820 |
| Maine | $44K | +1% | 210 |
| Arizona | $44K | +0% | 2,190 |
| North Carolina | $43K | -1% | 1,970 |
| Tennessee | $43K | -1% | 2,060 |
| Pennsylvania | $43K | -2% | 2,830 |
| North Dakota | $43K | -2% | 60 |
| Kansas | $42K | -3% | 570 |
| Florida | $42K | -4% | 6,180 |
| Utah | $41K | -5% | 510 |
| Georgia | $41K | -6% | 2,570 |
| Ohio | $41K | -7% | 1,820 |
| Nebraska | $41K | -7% | 750 |
| Delaware | $40K | -8% | N/A |
| Virginia | $40K | -8% | 2,110 |
| Indiana | $40K | -9% | 1,430 |
| Texas | $39K | -9% | 11,340 |
| South Carolina | $39K | -10% | 1,210 |
| Kentucky | $39K | -10% | 250 |
| Oklahoma | $39K | -10% | 1,440 |
| Arkansas | $38K | -12% | 310 |
| Missouri | $38K | -12% | 1,000 |
| Montana | $38K | -12% | 410 |
| Alabama | $38K | -12% | 110 |
| New Mexico | $38K | -14% | 340 |
| South Dakota | $37K | -16% | N/A |
| Rhode Island | $36K | -17% | N/A |
| Louisiana | $32K | -26% | 680 |
| West Virginia | $32K | -28% | 260 |
| Mississippi | $31K | -28% | N/A |
Showing 1–10 of 49 states with published data
BLS does not publish data for every state when sample sizes are too small
Track file clerks salary changes
BLS updates this data quarterly. We'll email you when Des Moines-West Des Moines numbers change.
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Frequently asked questions
Can a file clerk afford a 2BR apartment alone in Des Moines-West Des Moines?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $50K, rent takes 39.9% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,318/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $1,000/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.
What’s the entry-level salary for file clerks in Des Moines-West Des Moines?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new file clerks typically earn — is $30K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $1,795/month. At HUD’s $1,318/month FMR, rent would take 73% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.
Is file clerk a high-paying job in Des Moines-West Des Moines?
Local pay is 14% above the national median — $50K here vs. $44K nationally.
How does Des Moines-West Des Moines compare to the national average for file clerks?
Des Moines-West Des Moines pays $50K median vs. the U.S. average of $44K — that’s +14%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 91.7), the purchasing-power equivalent is $54K — still ahead of the national median.
How much do file clerks make in Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA?
The median is $49,810 a year, that works out to about $24 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $29,920, and experienced file clerks can clear $65,700. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $50K enough to live in Des Moines-West Des Moines?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $3,304/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,318/month, which eats 39.9% of your paycheck. That's above the 30% rule of thumb, housing will be a stretch at the median salary, though you can manage with roommates or a smaller place.
How far does a file clerks salary go in Des Moines-West Des Moines?
Des Moines-West Des Moines has a Regional Price Parity of 91.7 (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 file clerks salary is worth about $54,318 in national-average purchasing power.
Where do file clerks get paid the most?
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.