Bus driver pay in Ohio after taxes: what you keep (2026)

The median bus driver in Ohio earned $54,360 a year in May 2024, which is $26 an hour for a full-time year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Half of the 3,730 bus drivers the BLS counts in Ohio earned more than that and half earned less; the middle half of them sat between $46,980 and $68,120. That is the gross figure, before anyone takes anything. What you keep depends on Ohio's tax, and Ohio has a progressive state income tax with a top rate of 3.5%.

What the median bus driver keeps in Ohio

For a single filer on the median $54,360, taking the standard deduction and no other adjustments:

The state line is 2.5% of gross at this salary, approximated at 70% of the top bracket, which is where a middle income lands in most progressive states. Most cities add a 1 to 2.5% municipal income tax, which is not in the table. Health insurance, retirement contributions and local taxes are not in it either; they vary by employer and by city.

Where Ohio ranks for bus driver pay

Of the 50 states, Ohio ranks 13 of 50 on the gross median for bus drivers. The highest-paying state is New York at $82,420 and the lowest is Arkansas at $36,940. Gross rank is not take-home rank: a state with no income tax climbs several places once the state line is applied, and a high-tax state drops.

Across the border

The same job in the states next to Ohio, gross median and estimated take-home for a single filer:

None of Ohio's neighbours beats it on take-home for bus drivers. Indiana, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Michigan and West Virginia pay less once tax is counted. Pay is one line; rent is the other, and a higher median in a metro with higher rent can leave you with less.

Where the bus driver jobs are in Ohio

The BLS count of 3,730 bus drivers is statewide. The metros with the most of that work are Columbus, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Toledo and Akron, which is where the median is set and where the upper quartile ($68,120 and above) is most often paid. Employers who could not hire locally and have filed with the Department of Labor are listed on the Ohio openings page; those filings are the ones already paying to bring people in, and housing or transport is often part of the offer.

Ohio also has a program that pay people to move in: Hamilton Talent Attraction Program (student loan reimbursement paid over several years, for recent graduates moving to Hamilton, Ohio; check the current round). Each has a residence condition and a funding round; the amount is the program's own "up to" figure.

What people get wrong about bus driver pay in Ohio

• Quoting the mean. The BLS mean for Ohio is $27 an hour, pulled up by the top earners. The median ($26) is what the typical bus driver makes.
• Comparing gross across states. A $54,360 offer in Ohio is $44,330 in hand; the same number in a no-tax state is $45,662.
• Forgetting the employer's share of insurance. A job that pays $52,360 with full health coverage can beat one that pays $57,360 without it.
• Treating the statewide median as the metro median. Columbus pays differently from a rural county; ask for the figure for the place you are actually going.

Everything about Ohio, on one page

The Ohio page has the licence registries and boards, the state tax at three salaries, the programs that pay you to come, and the openings filed in Ohio this month. If you know which state you are leaving, the move pages compare the two directly. Creating a free Workmerica profile with your trade and your destination puts you in front of Ohio employers hiring from out of state.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2024 state estimates for Bus driver. Tax lines are a single filer with the standard deduction, 2024 federal brackets, and the state rate in lib/us-states.ts; progressive states are approximated. Not tax advice.