Forklift operator pay in Idaho after taxes: what you keep (2026)

The median forklift operator in Idaho earned $46,870 a year in May 2024, which is $23 an hour for a full-time year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Half of the 2,790 forklift operators the BLS counts in Idaho earned more than that and half earned less; the middle half of them sat between $40,450 and $54,010. That is the gross figure, before anyone takes anything. What you keep depends on Idaho's tax, and Idaho has a flat 5.3% state income tax.

What the median forklift operator keeps in Idaho

For a single filer on the median $46,870, taking the standard deduction and no other adjustments:

The state line is 5.3% of gross at this salary. Health insurance, retirement contributions and local taxes are not in it either; they vary by employer and by city.

Where Idaho ranks for forklift operator pay

Of the 50 states, Idaho ranks 24 of 50 on the gross median for forklift operators. The highest-paying state is New Mexico at $60,960 and the lowest is Tennessee at $40,760. 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 Idaho, gross median and estimated take-home for a single filer:

Wyoming, Washington, Nevada, Oregon, Utah and Montana leave a forklift operator with more at the end of the year than Idaho does; Wyoming by about $9,957. 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 forklift operator jobs are in Idaho

The BLS count of 2,790 forklift operators is statewide. The metros with the most of that work are Boise, Meridian, Nampa and Idaho Falls, which is where the median is set and where the upper quartile ($54,010 and above) is most often paid. Employers who could not hire locally and have filed with the Department of Labor are listed on the Idaho openings page; those filings are the ones already paying to bring people in, and housing or transport is often part of the offer.

What people get wrong about forklift operator pay in Idaho

• Quoting the mean. The BLS mean for Idaho is $23 an hour, pulled up by the top earners. The median ($23) is what the typical forklift operator makes.
• Comparing gross across states. A $46,870 offer in Idaho is $37,160 in hand; the same number in a no-tax state is $39,644.
• Forgetting the employer's share of insurance. A job that pays $44,870 with full health coverage can beat one that pays $49,870 without it.
• Treating the statewide median as the metro median. Boise pays differently from a rural county; ask for the figure for the place you are actually going.

Everything about Idaho, on one page

The Idaho 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 Idaho 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 Idaho employers hiring from out of state.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2024 state estimates for Forklift operator. 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.