St. Joseph, MO-KS metro area · BLS May 2025 · Updated

How much does a waiter or waitress make in St. Joseph, MO?

In the St. Joseph, MO-KS metropolitan area, waiters or waitresses earned a median of $30,490 a year ($14.66 an hour) in May 2025, according to the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey for the metro. BLS counted 600 of these jobs there. That is 36% below the $47,350 median for all jobs in the metro. The middle 80% earned between $28,600 and $58,750; these percentiles do not measure years of experience. Applying 2026 federal and Kansas tax rules to the median leaves an estimated $25,757 in take-home pay.

Waiter or waitress pay in St. Joseph, MO at a glance

Median salary

$30,490$14.66 per hour · $2,541 monthly · BLS May 2025
10th percentile$28,600$13.75/hr
25th percentile$28,600$13.75/hr
75th percentile$39,720$19.10/hr
90th percentile$58,750$28.25/hr
Jobs in this metro600Location quotient 0.76 (U.S. = 1.00)
Against all jobs here36% belowAll-jobs median $47,350
Against Kansas16% belowStatewide median $36,120
Against the U.S.13% belowNational median $35,230

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Same U.S. tax tables as the rest of the site. Change the salary, state, or filing status.

Waiter or waitress salary in St. Joseph, MO after taxes

$30,490
$15,000$65,000
Filing status:
Gross salary breakdown$30,490
Net 84%
Fed 5%
KS 3%
FICA 8%
Annual take-home$25,757After all taxes
Monthly deposit$2,146Estimated per month
Biweekly paycheck$991Every 2 weeks (26/yr)
Effective tax rate15.5%Total tax burden
Federal income tax$1,479 / yr
Kansas state income tax$922 / yr
FICA (Social Security & Medicare)$2,332 / yr

Waiters or waitresses pay range in St. Joseph, MO, hourly and yearly

BLS May 2025 estimates for the St. Joseph, MO-KS metropolitan statistical area. Monthly and take-home figures are ours, computed from the annual wage.

What waiters or waitresses earned in the St. Joseph, MO-KS metro area, May 2025
PercentileHourlyMonthlyYearlyAfter tax a year (KS)
10th percentile$13.75/hr$2,383$28,600$24,337
25th percentile$13.75/hr$2,383$28,600$24,337
MedianMedian$14.66/hr$2,541$30,490$25,757
75th percentile$19.10/hr$3,310$39,720$32,678
90th percentile$28.25/hr$4,896$58,750$46,907

Is $30,490 a good salary in St. Joseph, MO?

It depends on what else people there earn and what things cost. Here is the median for waiters or waitresses next to both.

Median household income$65,005Census Bureau ACS
Local price level (U.S. = 100)86.413.6% below national average
One paycheck vs. a household46.9%of area median income

The same job statewide and nationally, and a calculator for your own paycheck.

Do waiters or waitresses pay tax on tips?

Yes, but less than before. This job is on the Treasury's list of tipped occupations, so from 2025 through 2028 up to $25,000 a year of reported tips comes off federal taxable income, shrinking above $150,000 of income ($300,000 joint). Social Security and Medicare are still owed on every tip, and most states still tax them. The BLS pay figures on this page already include tips as employers report them.

See what the tips deduction saves you →

Waiter or waitress pay in St. Joseph, MO: common questions

What is the median salary for waiters or waitresses in St. Joseph, MO-KS?

The BLS median annual wage for waiters or waitresses in the St. Joseph, MO-KS metro area was $30,490 in May 2025, about $2,541 a month or $14.66 an hour. Statewide, the Kansas median for this job is $36,120, so the metro pays 16% below the state.

What is the hourly pay for waiters or waitresses in St. Joseph, MO-KS?

The median hourly wage for waiters or waitresses in St. Joseph, MO-KS was $14.66 in the BLS survey. One in ten earned less than $13.75 an hour and one in ten earned more than $28.25.

How many waiters or waitresses work in St. Joseph, MO-KS?

BLS estimated 600 jobs for waiters or waitresses in the metro in May 2025, or 11.0 of every 1,000 jobs. Its location quotient of 0.76 means the job is less concentrated here than in the country as a whole.

What is the pay range for waiters or waitresses in St. Joseph, MO-KS?

BLS wage estimates for waiters or waitresses in St. Joseph, MO-KS run from $28,600 at the 10th percentile to $28,600 at the 25th, $39,720 at the 75th, and $58,750 at the 90th. These are points in the wage distribution, not experience levels.

How much do waiters or waitresses take home after taxes in St. Joseph, MO-KS?

On a median gross salary of $30,490, an estimated $25,757 lands in net take-home pay per year ($991 biweekly) for a single filer claiming the standard deduction in Kansas in 2026. Total tax withholding equals $4,733 (an effective rate of 15.5%).

How much do waiters or waitresses make per month in St. Joseph, MO-KS?

On the median annual salary of $30,490, gross monthly income is $2,541. After federal, FICA, and Kansas state income taxes, estimated net take-home pay is $2,146 per month (or $991 every two weeks).

Is $30,490 a good salary in St. Joseph, MO-KS?

At $30,490, the median salary for waiters or waitresses is 46.9% of the St. Joseph, MO-KS median household income ($65,005). It is 36% below the $47,350 median for all jobs in the metro. The BEA regional price parity is 86.4, so prices here run 13.6% below the U.S. average.