Transportation Security Screeners Salary
In St. Louis, MO-IL, transportation security screeners earn $62,650 at the median, or about $30.12 an hour. The range runs from $41K at the entry level to $69K for experienced workers. Adjusted for local prices (RPP 95.09), that's roughly $65,885 in purchasing power. Rent on a 2-bedroom averages $1,218/month, or 29.6% of estimated take-home pay.
So what does $63K get you in St. Louis?
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by St. Louis’s Regional Price Parity (95.09). 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 transportation security screeners
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What this looks like in St. Louis
Transportation security screeners pay in St. Louis tracks closely to the national median, $63K locally vs. $67K nationwide, a 6% difference. Rent runs $1,218/month for a 2-bedroom (HUD FMR), taking 29.1% of the median take-home. That's within the 30% rule, though not by much. Cost of living (RPP 95.09) is near the national average, so spending patterns here track the typical American budget fairly closely. Pay and costs are both near average, leaving limited margin for savings at the median wage.
Compared to nearby metros
Median pay for transportation security screeners in metros near St. Louis, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Springfield | $63K | $71K |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin | $71K | $68K |
| Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin | $61K | $63K |
| Omaha | $62K | $67K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, St. Louis, MO-IL
Entry-level transportation security screeners (10th percentile) start around $41K. Mid-career wages sit at $63K. Top earners bring in $69K or more, a $28K spread from bottom to top.
Transportation Security Screeners pay across states
Median income ranked highest to lowest, compared to the national figure
View Transportation Security Screeners salary in all states
| State | Median salary | vs. national | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Hampshire | $76K | +14% | 80 |
| New Jersey | $74K | +11% | 1,200 |
| California | $74K | +10% | 5,410 |
| Massachusetts | $74K | +10% | 1,380 |
| Maryland | $72K | +8% | 570 |
| New York | $72K | +8% | 4,240 |
| Colorado | $72K | +7% | 1,250 |
| Rhode Island | $72K | +7% | 160 |
| Alaska | $71K | +7% | 440 |
| Illinois | $71K | +6% | 1,970 |
| Hawaii | $70K | +5% | 1,010 |
| Virginia | $70K | +5% | 1,870 |
| Texas | $69K | +3% | 4,300 |
| Michigan | $67K | +1% | 1,070 |
| Pennsylvania | $67K | +1% | 1,460 |
| Minnesota | $67K | +1% | 740 |
| Georgia | $67K | +0% | 1,850 |
| Ohio | $66K | -1% | 690 |
| Vermont | $65K | -2% | 80 |
| North Carolina | $65K | -3% | 1,300 |
| Nevada | $65K | -3% | 1,350 |
| Arizona | $64K | -4% | 1,380 |
| New Mexico | $64K | -4% | 200 |
| Alabama | $64K | -4% | 260 |
| Florida | $63K | -5% | 6,920 |
| Idaho | $63K | -5% | 250 |
| Kansas | $63K | -5% | 120 |
| Kentucky | $63K | -5% | 510 |
| Louisiana | $63K | -5% | 460 |
| Maine | $63K | -5% | 160 |
| Mississippi | $63K | -5% | 170 |
| South Carolina | $63K | -5% | 480 |
| West Virginia | $63K | -5% | 90 |
| Wisconsin | $63K | -5% | 540 |
| Nebraska | $62K | -8% | 290 |
| Indiana | $62K | -8% | 460 |
| Iowa | $62K | -8% | 220 |
| Utah | $61K | -8% | 510 |
| Arkansas | $61K | -8% | 190 |
| Wyoming | $61K | -8% | 90 |
| Tennessee | $61K | -8% | 840 |
| South Dakota | $56K | -17% | 60 |
| North Dakota | $55K | -18% | 170 |
| Montana | $55K | -18% | 330 |
| Missouri | $51K | -23% | 930 |
Showing 1–10 of 45 states with published data
BLS does not publish data for every state when sample sizes are too small
Track transportation security screeners salary changes
BLS updates this data quarterly. We'll email you when St. Louis numbers change.
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Frequently asked questions
Can a transportation security screener afford a 2BR apartment alone in St. Louis?
Yes — at the median salary of $63K, rent takes 29.1% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,218/month. That stays under the 30% guideline most financial planners use.
What’s the entry-level salary for transportation security screeners in St. Louis?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new transportation security screeners typically earn — is $41K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,468/month. At HUD’s $1,218/month FMR, rent would take 49% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.
Is transportation security screener a high-paying job in St. Louis?
Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $63K locally vs. $67K nationally, a 6% difference.
How does St. Louis compare to the national average for transportation security screeners?
St. Louis pays $63K median vs. the U.S. average of $67K — that’s -6%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 95.09), the purchasing-power equivalent is $66K — below the national median.
How much do transportation security screeners make in St. Louis, MO-IL?
The median is $62,650 a year, that works out to about $30 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $41,140, and experienced transportation security screeners can clear $68,910. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $63K enough to live in St. Louis?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $4,182/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,218/month, which eats 29.1% of your paycheck. That's under the 30% guideline most financial planners use, so the numbers work.
How far does a transportation security screeners salary go in St. Louis?
St. Louis has a Regional Price Parity of 95.09 (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 transportation security screeners salary is worth about $65,885 in national-average purchasing power.
Where do transportation security screeners 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.