Missouri · BLS May 2025

School Bus Driver Salary in Missouri

The Bureau of Labor Statistics counted 8,970 bus drivers, school working in Missouri. Here is what they are paid, what the median leaves after federal, state and FICA tax, and what that is worth against local prices.

Median pay · Missouri

$46,880A year, or $22.54 an hour.
Take-home a month$3,217After federal, state and FICA tax at 17.7%
Worth at national prices$51,620Prices here sit at 90.8 against 100
Against the nation2.2% belowNational median $47,920
What bus drivers, school earn in Missouri, May 2025
PercentileAnnualHourly
10th percentileEntry and lowest-paid$33,980$16.34
25th percentile$39,430$18.96
MedianHalf earn more, half less$46,880$22.54
75th percentile$51,220$24.63
90th percentileMost experienced and senior$58,730$28.23
MeanThe average, pulled up by the top$47,020$22.61
How we got this
  1. Median wage in MissouriBLS OEWS May 2025. Half of bus drivers, school earned more than this, half less.$46,880
  2. Median hourly wagePublished separately by BLS, not divided out of the annual figure.$22.54
  3. Take-home after federal, state and FICA tax$3,217 a month at an effective rate of 17.7%.$38,601 a year
  4. Worth at national average pricesPrices in Missouri sit at 90.8 against a national 100 (BEA, 2024).$51,620
  5. Against the national medianThe national median is $47,920.2.2% below
  6. Jobs countedA concentration of 1.18 against the nation's 1.00.8,970
What we assumed
  • Wages are BLS OEWS survey estimates for May 2025, not job postings or offers.
  • OEWS surveys wage and salary workers. The self-employed and business owners are outside it.
  • Take-home assumes one 2026 filer, filing single, taking the standard deduction, with no dependents, pre-tax retirement contributions or local income tax.
  • Regional price parities compare price levels between places in one year. They are not inflation, and they do not adjust for what a household actually buys.
Technical details

Method occupation-wage-v1Data bls-oews-2025-05-v1, us-tax-2026-v1, bea-rpp-2024-v1, census-acs5-2024-v1

What lands in the bank

A $46,880 salary in Missouri, for one single filer taking the standard deduction in 2026.

  • Federal income tax. $3,446 a year.
  • State income tax. $1,247 a year.
  • Social Security and Medicare. $3,586 a year.
  • Left over. $38,601 a year, $3,217 a month, an effective rate of 17.7%.

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What $46,880 is worth in Missouri

Prices in Missouri sit at 90.8 against a national average of 100, so $46,880 earned here buys what $51,620 buys at national average prices.

  • Rents. 69.9 against 100, the component that moves most between states.
  • Against local households. The median household in Missouri takes in $70,702, so this occupation's median is 0.66 times that, on one income.
  • How common the job is here. 18% more concentrated in Missouri than in the country as a whole.

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Common questions

School Bus Driver pay in Missouri, answered

How much does a school bus driver make in Missouri?

The median wage for school bus drivers in Missouri is $46,880 a year, or $22.54 an hour.

Half earn more than that and half earn less. The figure comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics occupational wage survey for May 2025.

What is the take-home pay for a school bus driver in Missouri?

On the median wage of $46,880, one filer taking the standard deduction keeps about $38,601 a year, or roughly $3,217 a month.

That is after federal, state and FICA tax, an effective rate of 17.7%.

Missouri takes $1,247 of it in state income tax.

Do school bus drivers earn more in Missouri than in the rest of the country?

No. The median in Missouri is 2.2% below the national median of $47,920.

Nominal pay is only half the comparison: prices in Missouri sit at 90.8 against a national 100, so the gap in what the money buys is different from the gap in the salary.

Is $46,880 a good salary in Missouri?

It is 0.66 times the median household income of $70,702. A household often has more than one earner, so a single salary at this level goes further than the ratio alone suggests.

Prices in Missouri run at 90.8 against a national average of 100, with rents at 69.9, so $46,880 here buys about what $51,620 buys at national average prices.

What do the highest-paid school bus drivers earn in Missouri?

The top tenth earn $58,730 a year or more, against $33,980 at the bottom tenth.

Experience, specialism, employer and the part of Missouri someone works in all move a wage inside that range; the survey reports the spread, not the reason for it.

How many school bus drivers are there in Missouri?

The survey counted 8,970 of these jobs in Missouri for May 2025.

That makes the occupation 18% more concentrated here than in the country as a whole. It counts wage and salary jobs, so the self-employed are outside it.

Sources

Where this data comes from