How much is North Dakota income tax on oilfield pay?

On $128,967 gross - $35 an hour on a 14/7 of 12-hour days - North Dakota takes $1,595 a year. That is 1.24% of gross, $132.95 a month, $91.79 a hitch, or about 55 cents an hour worked.

Is Texas really better than North Dakota for take-home pay?

Yes, but by $1,595 a year on this income - $99,415 against $97,820. That is about 0.55% of take-home, and smaller than a 50 cent difference in hourly rate, which is worth roughly $1,450 on the same hours.

Why is North Dakota's income tax so low?

Its first bracket is taxed at zero up to $47,150, then 1.95% to $238,200 and 2.5% above. A large slice of a typical oilfield income is untaxed by the state outright and the rest is taxed at under two percent.

Which states cost the most on oilfield income?

On $128,967, California takes about $8,132, Montana $7,363 and New York $7,170 - roughly five times North Dakota's $1,595. Those are the comparisons where no income tax is genuinely decisive.

State by state

Texas vs North Dakota: what the Bakken actually costs you

"Texas has no income tax" gets treated as a decisive argument, and against somewhere like California it is. Against North Dakota it is almost nothing — $1,595 a year on oilfield money, or about 55 cents an hour. If you are turning down Bakken work over the state tax, you are turning it down over the wrong number.

Short answer

$1,595 a year — 55¢ an hour

On $128,967 gross, Texas takes $0 in state tax and North Dakota takes $1,595 — 1.24% of gross, or $91.79 a hitch. For scale, California would take $8,132.

The same job in both states

$35 an hour on a 14/7 of 12-hour days — 84-hour weeks, 40 regular and 44 overtime, 17.38 hitches a year. That is $128,967 gross wherever you do it. The federal tax and FICA are identical in both states; only the state line moves.

Per year on $128,967	Texas	North Dakota
State income tax	$0	$1,595
Total tax	$29,552	$31,147
Take-home	$99,415	$97,820
Share you keep	77.1%	75.8%

A difference of $1,595, which works out at:

North Dakota state tax, broken down	Amount
Per month	$132.95
Per 168-hour hitch	$91.79
Per hour worked	$0.55

Why it is so small

North Dakota has one of the gentlest income taxes in the country, and the reason is the first bracket: the first $47,150 is taxed at zero. After that it is 1.95% up to $238,200, and 2.5% above.

So on a $128,967 income, a large slice is untaxed by the state outright and the rest is taxed at under two percent. Compare that with a graduated state tax that starts biting at the first dollar, and the arithmetic stops being close:

State	State tax	Take-home	Cost vs Texas
Texas	$0	$99,415	—
North Dakota	$1,595	$97,820	$1,595
New York	$7,170	$92,245	$7,170
Montana	$7,363	$92,052	$7,363
California	$8,132	$91,283	$8,132

North Dakota is five times cheaper than the states people actually mean. "No income tax" is a real advantage against California, New York or Montana — worth seven to eight thousand a year. Against North Dakota it is worth about one week's groceries a month, and it is the wrong thing to be deciding on.

What to weigh instead

$1,595 is roughly 0.55% of your take-home. Almost anything else in the offer moves your money more than that:

A 50¢ difference in the hourly rate is worth about $1,450 a year on these hours — nearly the entire state tax gap, from a rounding error on the rate.
Per diem. Paid per day worked rather than per hour, it never touches overtime but it lands whole in your monthly total. A modest per diem outweighs the state tax several times over.
Whether the rotation is really 14/7. One extra week of hitch a year is worth thousands. The schedule moves your income far more than the state does.
Travel and housing. Flights home from western North Dakota, and what winter accommodation costs, are both larger numbers than $1,595.
How the overtime is actually paid. A shift differential left out of the regular rate, or a day rate with no overtime on it, dwarfs every state-tax question on this page.

Two things that genuinely do differ

You may have to file in two states. If you live in Texas and work in North Dakota, North Dakota generally taxes the income you earn there — a non-resident return. Texas has no income tax and no return, so there is nothing to credit it against. Living in a no-tax state does not exempt you from the state you actually work in.

The reverse case is better than it looks. A North Dakota resident working in Texas pays North Dakota tax on that income, because your home state taxes your worldwide income. Again, on these figures, it is $1,595.

Check your own residency before acting on this. Which state gets to tax you turns on where you are domiciled and where the work is performed, and a rotation worker can easily have a different answer from the person next to them. This page compares the tax rates, not your residency — that part is worth ten minutes with a CPA the first year.

Compare the states yourself

Cimplora carries every state's income tax model. Put in your rate and rotation, switch the state, and watch the take-home move — per hour, week, hitch, month and year, with every deduction itemised. No account, no sign-up; your pay data stays on your device.

Open the calculator

Common questions

How much is North Dakota income tax on oilfield pay?: On $128,967 gross — $35 an hour on a 14/7 of 12-hour days — North Dakota takes $1,595 a year. That is 1.24% of gross, $132.95 a month, $91.79 a hitch, or about 55 cents an hour worked.
Is Texas really better than North Dakota for take-home pay?: Yes, but by $1,595 a year on this income — $99,415 against $97,820. That is about 0.55% of take-home, and smaller than a 50 cent difference in hourly rate, which is worth roughly $1,450 on the same hours.
Why is North Dakota's income tax so low?: Its first bracket is taxed at zero up to $47,150, then 1.95% to $238,200 and 2.5% above. A large slice of a typical oilfield income is untaxed by the state outright and the rest is taxed at under two percent.
Do I pay North Dakota tax if I live in Texas?: Generally yes on the income you earn in North Dakota, via a non-resident return. Texas has no income tax and no return, so there is nothing to credit it against. Living in a no-tax state does not exempt you from the state where the work is performed.
Which states cost the most on this income?: On $128,967, California takes about $8,132, Montana $7,363 and New York $7,170 — roughly five times North Dakota's $1,595. Those are the comparisons where "no income tax" is genuinely decisive.