What Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists earn in Franklin County, MO
The median pay for Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists in Franklin County, MO is $74,130 per year, which works out to $35.64 per hour. The figure comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics wage survey for the St. Louis, MO-IL metropolitan area, the labor market that Franklin County, MO belongs to. Half of the workers in this occupation earn more than the median and half earn less, which makes it a sturdier yardstick than an average that a few very high earners can pull upward.
The mean wage is $80,740, which is 8.9% above the median, a sign that a group of high earners lifts the average. The survey counts about 6,980 people working in this occupation across the St. Louis, MO-IL metropolitan area, so the estimate rests on a substantial pool of workers. Franklin County, MO has roughly 105,950 residents, according to the population figures used by the rent data.
The salary range, from entry level to top earners
Pay for Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists in the St. Louis, MO-IL metropolitan area is not one number. The lowest-paid tenth of workers earn up to $39,520 a year ($19.00 an hour), while the highest-paid tenth earn $133,140 or more ($64.01 an hour). That is a gap of $93,620 between the bottom and the top of the scale. The middle half of workers falls between $51,060 at the 25th percentile and $99,630 at the 75th percentile. A top-tier earner makes 3.4 times what someone at the bottom makes, so experience, certification and employer all matter.
What the hourly rate looks like
Employers quote this occupation by the hour or by the year, so here are both: $35.64 an hour or $74,130 a year at the median for Franklin County, MO. Before any deductions, that is $6,178 a month, $2,851 every two weeks and $1,426 each week. After taxes the same job pays $27.93 per hour of take-home income, which is the number that actually has to cover rent and groceries.
About this occupation: Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists
The U.S. Department of Labor's O*NET database describes the work of Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists this way: "Research conditions in local, regional, national, or online markets. Gather information to determine potential sales of a product or service, or plan a marketing or advertising campaign. May gather information on competitors, prices, sales, and methods of marketing and distribution. May employ search marketing tactics, analyze web metrics, and develop recommendations to increase search engine ranking and visibility to target markets."
Core tasks recorded by O*NET include: "Collect and analyze data on customer demographics, preferences, needs, and buying habits to identify potential markets and factors affecting product demand"; "Prepare reports of findings, illustrating data graphically and translating complex findings into written text"; "Measure and assess customer and employee satisfaction"; "Forecast and track marketing and sales trends, analyzing collected data".
Job outlook for Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists
The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects national employment in this occupation to grow from 952,700 jobs in 2025 to 1,019,000 in 2035, a change of +7%, faster than the 3.5% projected for all occupations. The projection counts 82,000 openings a year on average, including positions created by growth and positions left by workers who retire or move to another occupation; that equals 8.6% of current employment each year.
Typical entry-level education: bachelor's degree. BLS lists a national median annual wage of $78,760 for this occupation; the Franklin County, MO median of $74,130 is 5.9% below it.
How pay in Franklin County, MO compares
Compared with the Missouri average
A worker in this occupation in Franklin County, MO earns $4,196 more than the Missouri average of $69,934, a premium of 6.0%. Over a year that premium is worth $4,196 before tax and roughly $3,289 after tax. Within Missouri, Franklin County, MO already has the highest median we track for this job.
Compared with the national average
The national employment-weighted average for Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists is $81,560 across the contiguous United States. At $74,130, Franklin County, MO pays $7,430 less, which is 9.1% below that benchmark. Keep in mind that a higher salary only helps if living costs do not rise faster, which is why the cost sections below matter as much as the headline number.
Where this job ranks in Franklin County, MO
Among the 578 occupations with published wages in Franklin County, MO, Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists ranks number 177 by median pay, ahead of about 69% of them. The best-paying occupation we track here is Financial Managers at $158,780 a year, which is $84,650 more than the median for Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists.
From gross pay to take-home pay
Three separate tax bills sit between the gross salary and the bank account: federal income tax, FICA, and state income tax. For Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists earning the Franklin County, MO median of $74,130, they add up to $16,032. The result is $58,098 of take-home pay a year ($4,842 a month), based on a single filer using the standard deduction.
Put another way, of every $100 earned, about $22 goes to taxes and $78 reaches the paycheck. The overall effective tax rate is 21.6%.
Federal income tax
After the $15,750 standard deduction, taxable income is $58,380. Federal brackets are marginal, so only the slice of income above each threshold is taxed at the higher rate; the last dollars of this salary fall in the 22% bracket. The resulting federal income tax is $7,758, an effective 10.5% of gross pay, well below the 22% marginal rate because the lower brackets are cheaper.
Social Security and Medicare (FICA)
Payroll taxes are a flat percentage of wages. Social Security takes 6.2% up to a wage base of $176,100, which costs $4,596 on this salary. Medicare takes 1.45%, or $1,075. FICA totals $5,671, which is 7.7% of gross pay.
State income tax in Missouri
Missouri income tax on this salary is $2,603 a year, or 3.5% of gross pay, after the state's own deductions and exemptions are applied. That is 34% of the federal income tax bill, and it comes out to $217 a month. Local taxes such as county or city income taxes are not included, so a few jurisdictions may withhold slightly more.
A cross-check with IRS data for Franklin County, MO
IRS Statistics of Income data for Franklin County, MO show an average adjusted gross income of $76,049 per return and an average effective federal income tax rate of 11.6% across all filers. Filers in the $50,000 to under $75,000 bracket, where this salary falls, paid an average of 6.9%, compared with the 10.5% estimated here for a single filer taking the standard deduction. Gaps between the two reflect filing status, dependents, credits and other income, none of which a single-person wage estimate includes.
Cost of living in Franklin County, MO
Take-home pay only means something next to what life costs. We price four basics for one adult in Franklin County, MO: a one-bedroom apartment, food, home energy and gasoline. All of them are converted to annual figures first, then compared with the $58,098 of take-home pay.
Rent
Housing is the largest line in most budgets. For Franklin County, MO, HUD sets the Fair Market Rent for a one-bedroom unit at $1,104 a month ($13,248 a year), and at $1,349 for two bedrooms. For Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists, a one-bedroom absorbs 22.8% of take-home pay and 17.9% of gross pay.
Food
The USDA Thrifty Food Plan (August 2026) puts the cost of a nutritious home-cooked diet for an adult at about $3,436 a year, which is $286 a month or $66.07 a week. That equals 4.6% of gross pay for Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists in Franklin County, MO. It is a thrifty budget with no restaurant meals, so treat it as a floor.
Energy and gasoline
Using Missouri residential prices from the Energy Information Administration and national household averages for consumption, electricity costs about $1,364 a year and other home energy such as natural gas about $672, for $2,036 in total. Gasoline in Missouri averages $3.03 per gallon; at about 463 gallons a year (11,106 miles at 24 miles per gallon) fuel adds $1,403.
What is left over
Rent, food, energy and gasoline cost $20,123 a year in Franklin County, MO. Subtract that from $58,098 of take-home pay and $37,976 remains, which is $3,165 a month of breathing room. That margin equals 51.2% of gross pay, a comfortable cushion by common budgeting rules.
Local housing and commute data for Franklin County, MO
The budget above covers rent, food, energy and gasoline. Three more local facts shape what a paycheck buys in Franklin County, MO: property taxes, housing prices and the daily commute. The figures below are exact U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates for Franklin County, MO, set beside the Missouri and national medians.
Property taxes in Franklin County, MO
Homeowners in Franklin County, MO pay a median of $1,813 a year in real estate taxes, 7% below the Missouri median of $1,948 and 42% below the U.S. median of $3,119. Against a median home value of $227,600, the median tax bill is 0.80% of that value (the ratio of the two county medians). For a worker paid the local Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists median of $74,130, a tax bill of that size would equal 2.4% of gross pay, which matters for anyone planning to buy rather than rent.
Rents, home prices and household income in Franklin County, MO
Renters in Franklin County, MO pay a median gross rent of $893 a month in the Census survey, 14% below the Missouri median of $1,033. HUD's Fair Market Rent for a one-bedroom apartment, which this site uses in the budget, is $1,104 a month; the two measures differ because the Census figure covers units of every size that renters already occupy, while the HUD figure is a one-bedroom benchmark. The median value of an owner-occupied home is $227,600, 1% below the Missouri median of $230,300. Median household income is $73,165, 3% above the Missouri median of $70,702, so a year of one-bedroom Fair Market Rent equals 18.1% of that income.
Commuting in Franklin County, MO
Workers in Franklin County, MO who travel to a workplace spend an average of 28.3 minutes each way, 20% above the Missouri average of 23.5. For someone who commutes five days a week, that is 4.7 hours of round-trip travel every week, a cost the budget does not price. 10.3% of workers in Franklin County, MO work from home, compared with 15.1% nationally, which removes the commute for them.
Can Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists afford to live in Franklin County, MO?
The 30% rent guideline
A common rule of thumb says rent should stay under 30% of gross income. For a gross salary of $74,130 that ceiling is $1,853 a month. The one-bedroom Fair Market Rent of $1,104 is $749 under it, so rent fits the guideline. Put as a wage, covering a one-bedroom at the 30% guideline takes $21.23 an hour; the median for Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists is $35.64, which is 68% above that mark. Another way to see it: at $27.93 of take-home pay an hour, a one-bedroom takes about 9.1 working hours every week.
Splitting a two-bedroom
Sharing a two-bedroom at $1,349 a month means $675 each. Compared with renting a one-bedroom alone, that saves $5,154 a year. With a roommate, the yearly margin after the basics becomes $43,130.
How fast you can save
At $3,165 a month of margin, building a $10,000 emergency fund would take about 4 months. Setting aside half of the margin stretches the same goal to about 8 months. These figures ignore interest, raises and any spending beyond the four basics.
Frequently asked questions about Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists pay in Franklin County, MO
How much do Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists make per hour in Franklin County, MO?
The median is $35.64 per hour, based on $74,130 a year over 2,080 hours. Hourly pay runs from about $19.00 at the 10th percentile to $64.01 at the 90th percentile.
How much do Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists take home after taxes in Franklin County, MO?
After federal income tax, FICA and state income tax, the median salary of $74,130 becomes $58,098 a year. That is $4,842 a month, $2,235 every two weeks or $1,117 a week.
How much tax do Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists pay in Franklin County, MO?
Total taxes are $16,032 a year, an effective rate of 21.6%: $7,758 federal income tax, $5,671 FICA and $2,603 Missouri income tax.
Do Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists earn more in Franklin County, MO than elsewhere in Missouri?
Yes. The local median of $74,130 is +6.0% versus the Missouri average of $69,934, a difference of $4,196 a year.
Can Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists afford a one-bedroom apartment in Franklin County, MO?
A one-bedroom costs $1,104 a month against take-home pay of $4,842, which is 22.8% of take-home pay. That meets the 30%-of-gross guideline, which allows up to $1,853 a month.
What is the monthly budget margin for Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists in Franklin County, MO?
About $3,165 a month ($37,976 a year) remains after a one-bedroom apartment, food, home energy and gasoline, which together cost $20,123 a year.
What hourly wage covers a one-bedroom in Franklin County, MO at the 30% guideline?
$21.23 an hour for a full-time schedule, calculated as the $13,248 annual rent divided by 0.30 and by 2,080 hours. The median for Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists is $35.64.
How we calculated these numbers
Wages are May 2025 medians from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey for the St. Louis, MO-IL metropolitan area; hourly-only values are annualized at 2,080 hours. Rents are HUD Fair Market Rents, food costs come from the USDA Thrifty Food Plan, and energy prices come from the Energy Information Administration. County-level tax statistics come from the IRS Statistics of Income.
Taxes use tax-year 2025 federal brackets, FICA rates and the Missouri rules for a single filer with wage income only. Figures are estimates for planning and comparison, not tax or financial advice, and they exclude local income taxes, benefits, retirement contributions and individual circumstances.