Order Clerks Salary
Order Clerks in Madison, WI make a median of $43,380 a year, or about $20.86 an hour. The range runs from $35K at the entry level to $60K for experienced workers. Adjusted for local prices (RPP 97.29), that's roughly $44,588 in purchasing power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $1,168/month, about 39.5% of take-home, which is tight.
So what does $43K get you in Madison?
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by Madison’s Regional Price Parity (97.29). 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 order clerks
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What this looks like in Madison
Order clerks pay in Madison tracks closely to the national median, $43K locally vs. $46K nationwide, a 6% difference. The catch: housing math doesn't keep up. A 2-bedroom at the HUD median rents for $1,168/month, which is 39.3% of the median worker's take-home, past the 30% guideline most planners use. Cost of living (RPP 97.29) is near the national average, so spending patterns here track the typical American budget fairly closely. Use the affordability calculator above to model your specific situation.
Compared to nearby metros
Median pay for order clerks in metros near Madison, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Milwaukee-Waukesha | $47K | $49K |
| Green Bay | $38K | $41K |
| Appleton | $48K | $52K |
| Janesville-Beloit | $40K | $43K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Madison, WI
Entry-level order clerks (10th percentile) start around $35K. Mid-career wages sit at $43K. Top earners bring in $60K or more, a $25K spread from bottom to top.
Order Clerks pay across states
Median income ranked highest to lowest, compared to the national figure
View Order Clerks salary in all states
| State | Median salary | vs. national | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Massachusetts | $55K | +19% | 1,350 |
| Oregon | $50K | +9% | 790 |
| Vermont | $50K | +8% | N/A |
| Colorado | $50K | +7% | 1,970 |
| Rhode Island | $49K | +7% | 170 |
| District of Columbia | $49K | +6% | 170 |
| Alabama | $49K | +6% | 80 |
| Arizona | $49K | +5% | 760 |
| New Hampshire | $49K | +5% | 390 |
| Minnesota | $48K | +5% | 1,150 |
| New York | $48K | +5% | 3,530 |
| South Dakota | $48K | +4% | 330 |
| Washington | $48K | +4% | 4,300 |
| Maine | $48K | +3% | 300 |
| Wisconsin | $48K | +3% | 1,540 |
| Maryland | $48K | +3% | 850 |
| Illinois | $48K | +3% | 3,540 |
| Connecticut | $48K | +3% | 710 |
| California | $47K | +2% | 12,390 |
| Pennsylvania | $47K | +1% | 2,570 |
| Hawaii | $47K | +1% | 210 |
| New Jersey | $46K | +0% | 2,640 |
| Ohio | $46K | -0% | 3,810 |
| North Carolina | $46K | -0% | 2,990 |
| Oklahoma | $46K | -1% | 2,210 |
| West Virginia | $45K | -2% | 100 |
| Kansas | $45K | -2% | 310 |
| Iowa | $45K | -3% | 680 |
| Florida | $44K | -4% | 3,270 |
| Indiana | $44K | -4% | 1,800 |
| Texas | $44K | -4% | 5,180 |
| Michigan | $44K | -4% | 2,290 |
| Nebraska | $44K | -5% | 440 |
| Mississippi | $43K | -7% | 470 |
| Virginia | $43K | -8% | 1,690 |
| Montana | $42K | -9% | 60 |
| Arkansas | $42K | -10% | 290 |
| South Carolina | $42K | -10% | 740 |
| Georgia | $42K | -10% | 1,750 |
| Delaware | $41K | -10% | 170 |
| New Mexico | $41K | -11% | 310 |
| Kentucky | $41K | -12% | 930 |
| Nevada | $41K | -12% | 740 |
| Utah | $40K | -13% | 880 |
| Idaho | $40K | -13% | 90 |
| Tennessee | $39K | -15% | 2,260 |
| Alaska | $38K | -19% | 70 |
| Louisiana | $38K | -19% | 660 |
Showing 1–10 of 48 states with published data
BLS does not publish data for every state when sample sizes are too small
Track order clerks salary changes
BLS updates this data quarterly. We'll email you when Madison numbers change.
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Frequently asked questions
Can a order clerk afford a 2BR apartment alone in Madison?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $43K, rent takes 39.3% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,168/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $900/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.
What’s the entry-level salary for order clerks in Madison?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new order clerks typically earn — is $35K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,122/month. At HUD’s $1,168/month FMR, rent would take 55% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.
Is order clerk a high-paying job in Madison?
Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $43K locally vs. $46K nationally, a 6% difference.
How does Madison compare to the national average for order clerks?
Madison pays $43K median vs. the U.S. average of $46K — that’s -6%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 97.29), the purchasing-power equivalent is $45K — below the national median.
How much do order clerks make in Madison, WI?
The median is $43,380 a year, that works out to about $21 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $35,360, and experienced order clerks can clear $60,110. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $43K enough to live in Madison?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $2,970/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,168/month, which eats 39.3% 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 order clerks salary go in Madison?
Madison has a Regional Price Parity of 97.29 (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 order clerks salary is worth about $44,588 in national-average purchasing power.
Where do order 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.