Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers Salary

Yes — at the median salary of $87K, rent takes 18.5% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,021/month. That stays under the 30% guideline most financial planners use.

The 10th-percentile wage — what new petroleum pump system operators, refinery operators, and gaugers typically earn — is $57K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $3,395/month. At HUD’s $1,021/month FMR, rent would take 30% of that take-home — manageable on an entry-level income.

Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $87K locally vs. $97K nationally, a 10% difference.

Arkansas pays $87K median vs. the U.S. average of $97K — that’s -10%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 87.64), the purchasing-power equivalent is $99K — still ahead of the national median.

The median is $86,580 a year, that works out to about $42 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $56,580, and experienced petroleum pump system operators, refinery operators, and gaugers can clear $96,770. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.

On that salary, you'd take home roughly $5,507/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,021/month, which eats 18.5% of your paycheck. That's under the 30% guideline most financial planners use, so the numbers work.

Arkansas has a Regional Price Parity of 87.64 (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 petroleum pump system operators, refinery operators, and gaugers salary is worth about $98,791 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.