What Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists earn in Washington County, OR
The median pay for Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists in Washington County, OR is $85,350 per year, which works out to $41.03 per hour. The figure comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics wage survey for the Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA metropolitan area, the labor market that Washington County, OR 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 $97,230, which is 13.9% above the median, a sign that a group of high earners lifts the average. The survey counts about 8,130 people working in this occupation across the Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA metropolitan area, so the estimate rests on a substantial pool of workers. Washington County, OR has roughly 603,947 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 Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA metropolitan area is not one number. The lowest-paid tenth of workers earn up to $50,280 a year ($24.17 an hour), while the highest-paid tenth earn $163,440 or more ($78.58 an hour). That is a gap of $113,160 between the bottom and the top of the scale. The middle half of workers falls between $62,850 at the 25th percentile and $124,900 at the 75th percentile. A top-tier earner makes 3.3 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: $41.03 an hour or $85,350 a year at the median for Washington County, OR. Before any deductions, that is $7,113 a month, $3,283 every two weeks and $1,641 each week. After taxes the same job pays $30.13 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 Washington County, OR median of $85,350 is 8.4% above it.
How pay in Washington County, OR compares
Compared with the Oregon average
A worker in this occupation in Washington County, OR earns $5,172 more than the Oregon average of $80,178, a premium of 6.5%. Over a year that premium is worth $5,172 before tax and roughly $3,798 after tax. Within Oregon, Washington County, OR 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 $85,350, Washington County, OR pays $3,790 more, which is 4.7% above 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 Washington County, OR
Among the 592 occupations with published wages in Washington County, OR, Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists ranks number 181 by median pay, ahead of about 70% of them. The best-paying occupation we track here is Software Developers at $156,000 a year, which is $70,650 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 Washington County, OR median of $85,350, they add up to $22,676. The result is $62,674 of take-home pay a year ($5,223 a month), based on a single filer using the standard deduction.
Put another way, of every $100 earned, about $27 goes to taxes and $73 reaches the paycheck. The overall effective tax rate is 26.6%.
Federal income tax
After the $15,750 standard deduction, taxable income is $69,600. 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 $10,226, an effective 12.0% 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 $5,292 on this salary. Medicare takes 1.45%, or $1,238. FICA totals $6,529, which is 7.7% of gross pay.
State income tax in Oregon
Oregon income tax on this salary is $5,920 a year, or 6.9% of gross pay, after the state's own deductions and exemptions are applied. That is 58% of the federal income tax bill, and it comes out to $493 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 Washington County, OR
IRS Statistics of Income data for Washington County, OR show an average adjusted gross income of $106,816 per return and an average effective federal income tax rate of 14.1% across all filers. Filers in the $75,000 to under $100,000 bracket, where this salary falls, paid an average of 9.5%, compared with the 12.0% 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 Washington County, OR
Take-home pay only means something next to what life costs. We price four basics for one adult in Washington County, OR: a one-bedroom apartment, food, home energy and gasoline. All of them are converted to annual figures first, then compared with the $62,674 of take-home pay.
Rent
Housing is the largest line in most budgets. For Washington County, OR, HUD sets the Fair Market Rent for a one-bedroom unit at $1,633 a month ($19,596 a year), and at $1,878 for two bedrooms. For Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists, a one-bedroom absorbs 31.3% of take-home pay and 23.0% 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 4.0% of gross pay for Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists in Washington County, OR. It is a thrifty budget with no restaurant meals, so treat it as a floor.
Energy and gasoline
Using Oregon residential prices from the Energy Information Administration and national household averages for consumption, electricity costs about $1,553 a year and other home energy such as natural gas about $595, for $2,148 in total. Gasoline in Oregon averages $4.06 per gallon; at about 463 gallons a year (11,106 miles at 24 miles per gallon) fuel adds $1,879.
What is left over
Rent, food, energy and gasoline cost $27,059 a year in Washington County, OR. Subtract that from $62,674 of take-home pay and $35,616 remains, which is $2,968 a month of breathing room. That margin equals 41.7% of gross pay, a comfortable cushion by common budgeting rules.
Local housing and commute data for Washington County, OR
The budget above covers rent, food, energy and gasoline. Three more local facts shape what a paycheck buys in Washington County, OR: 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 Washington County, OR, set beside the Oregon and national medians.
Property taxes in Washington County, OR
Homeowners in Washington County, OR pay a median of $4,929 a year in real estate taxes, 27% above the Oregon median of $3,876 and 58% above the U.S. median of $3,119. Against a median home value of $588,000, the median tax bill is 0.84% of that value (the ratio of the two county medians). For a worker paid the local Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists median of $85,350, a tax bill of that size would equal 5.8% of gross pay, which matters for anyone planning to buy rather than rent.
Rents, home prices and household income in Washington County, OR
Renters in Washington County, OR pay a median gross rent of $1,849 a month in the Census survey, 21% above the Oregon median of $1,525. HUD's Fair Market Rent for a one-bedroom apartment, which this site uses in the budget, is $1,633 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 $588,000, 23% above the Oregon median of $477,600. Median household income is $107,772, 30% above the Oregon median of $83,011, so a year of one-bedroom Fair Market Rent equals 18.2% of that income.
Commuting in Washington County, OR
Workers in Washington County, OR who travel to a workplace spend an average of 24.0 minutes each way, 4% above the Oregon average of 23.0. For someone who commutes five days a week, that is 4.0 hours of round-trip travel every week, a cost the budget does not price. 24.4% of workers in Washington County, OR 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 Washington County, OR?
The 30% rent guideline
A common rule of thumb says rent should stay under 30% of gross income. For a gross salary of $85,350 that ceiling is $2,134 a month. The one-bedroom Fair Market Rent of $1,633 is $501 under it, so rent fits the guideline. Put as a wage, covering a one-bedroom at the 30% guideline takes $31.40 an hour; the median for Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists is $41.03, which is 31% above that mark. Another way to see it: at $30.13 of take-home pay an hour, a one-bedroom takes about 12.5 working hours every week.
Splitting a two-bedroom
Sharing a two-bedroom at $1,878 a month means $939 each. Compared with renting a one-bedroom alone, that saves $8,328 a year. With a roommate, the yearly margin after the basics becomes $43,944.
How fast you can save
At $2,968 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 Washington County, OR
How much do Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists make per hour in Washington County, OR?
The median is $41.03 per hour, based on $85,350 a year over 2,080 hours. Hourly pay runs from about $24.17 at the 10th percentile to $78.58 at the 90th percentile.
How much do Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists take home after taxes in Washington County, OR?
After federal income tax, FICA and state income tax, the median salary of $85,350 becomes $62,674 a year. That is $5,223 a month, $2,411 every two weeks or $1,205 a week.
How much tax do Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists pay in Washington County, OR?
Total taxes are $22,676 a year, an effective rate of 26.6%: $10,226 federal income tax, $6,529 FICA and $5,920 Oregon income tax.
Do Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists earn more in Washington County, OR than elsewhere in Oregon?
Yes. The local median of $85,350 is +6.5% versus the Oregon average of $80,178, a difference of $5,172 a year.
Can Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists afford a one-bedroom apartment in Washington County, OR?
A one-bedroom costs $1,633 a month against take-home pay of $5,223, which is 31.3% of take-home pay. That meets the 30%-of-gross guideline, which allows up to $2,134 a month.
What is the monthly budget margin for Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists in Washington County, OR?
About $2,968 a month ($35,616 a year) remains after a one-bedroom apartment, food, home energy and gasoline, which together cost $27,059 a year.
What hourly wage covers a one-bedroom in Washington County, OR at the 30% guideline?
$31.40 an hour for a full-time schedule, calculated as the $19,596 annual rent divided by 0.30 and by 2,080 hours. The median for Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists is $41.03.
How we calculated these numbers
Wages are May 2025 medians from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey for the Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA 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 Oregon 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.