Auto Mechanic Pay and Health Insurance in Mississippi (2026)

Q: How much does an auto mechanic make in Mississippi?

The BLS median wage for Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics in Mississippi is $38,070 a year (May 2024). Starting pay — the 10th percentile — is about $28,360. The middle half earn $31,770 to $56,610, and the top 10% more than $75,930. BLS counts about 6,410 people doing this work for an employer in Mississippi. The self-employed are not in the BLS survey, so this is the going rate for the work, not your own number.

Wage benchmark and the 2027 subsidy cliff

$38,070median annual wage, Auto Mechanics in Mississippi

239%of the federal poverty level

$63,8402027 subsidy cliff, single-person household

Below the cliff. At this income a single-person household remains eligible for a premium tax credit in 2027.

This occupation is below the cliff in all 23 states reported.

What this figure is. It is the median annual wage BLS reports for Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics (SOC 49-3023) in Mississippi. BLS surveys wage and salary workers and excludes the self-employed, so it is a benchmark for the occupation in this state — not the income of a self-employed auto mechanic. Premium tax credit eligibility is set by household modified adjusted gross income and household size, not by occupation, so treat this as a reference point rather than a determination of what you qualify for.

Why the cliff is back. The enhanced premium tax credits expired on 31 December 2025. For plan year 2027 the 400% FPL limit applies again, so household income above $63,840 ends premium tax credit eligibility outright.

Sources

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2024. State-level annual median wage (A_MEDIAN), detailed occupation. https://www.bls.gov/oes/. Retrieved 2026-08-03. Figures used unmodified; suppressed cells are omitted, not estimated.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Annual Update of the HHS Poverty Guidelines. 91 FR 1797, 15 January 2026. https://aspe.hhs.gov/topics/poverty-economic-mobility/poverty-guidelines. Retrieved 2026-09-27. The 2026 guidelines govern premium tax credit eligibility for plan year 2027 coverage. The 2027 guidelines apply to 2028 coverage.
Full dataset for all occupations and states: CSV · JSON (CC BY 4.0).

All 23 states

Benchmark premium and median wage for this occupation, ranked by premium.

#	State	Benchmark @40	Median wage	vs cliff
1	Maryland	$414	$57,560	below
2	Virginia	$455	$56,320	below
3	Indiana	$474	$47,550	below
4	Nevada	$497	$47,570	below
5	Ohio	$513	$47,010	below
6	Michigan	$523	$48,840	below
7	Colorado	$557	$59,340	below
8	South Carolina	$564	$45,950	below
9	Oklahoma	$604	$41,720	below
10	Wisconsin	$611	$50,990	below
11	Georgia	$615	$48,800	below
12	North Carolina	$638	$48,530	below
13	Utah	$640	$46,990	below
14	Alabama	$645	$45,710	below
15	Illinois	$646	$50,450	below
16	South Dakota	$655	$48,410	below
17	Texas	$661	$48,660	below
18	Mississippi	$662	$38,070	below
19	Kansas	$670	$47,010	below
20	Florida	$683	$48,520	below
21	Nebraska	$710	$48,810	below
22	Tennessee	$711	$47,460	below
23	Arkansas	$774	$43,830	below

Questions

How much does an auto mechanic make in Mississippi?

The BLS median wage for Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics in Mississippi is $38,070 a year (May 2024). Starting pay — the 10th percentile — is about $28,360. The middle half earn $31,770 to $56,610, and the top 10% more than $75,930. BLS counts about 6,410 people doing this work for an employer in Mississippi. The self-employed are not in the BLS survey, so this is the going rate for the work, not your own number.

Does being a auto mechanic change what health insurance costs in Mississippi?

No. Under the ACA carriers may not rate, decline, or exclude based on occupation or health history. Premiums vary only by age, ZIP code, tobacco use and household size, so the benchmark of $662 a month applies regardless of trade.

Do auto mechanics qualify for a subsidy in Mississippi in 2026?

Premium tax credit eligibility depends on household modified adjusted gross income and household size, not occupation. For reference, the BLS median wage for Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics in Mississippi is $38,070, which is below the 2027 cliff of $63,840 for a single-person household. Your own income and household size decide the answer.

What is the benchmark premium in Mississippi for 2026?

$662 a month for a 40-year-old, ranking 18 of 23 states published here. That is full price before any premium tax credit.

Where do these numbers come from?

Premiums come from the CMS Plan Year 2026 Qualified Health Plan Landscape file and published state rate approvals. Wages come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2024. Both are reproduced unmodified; the full wage dataset is downloadable as CSV or JSON.

Going deeper on Mississippi

This page compares states. For Mississippi specifically — county-by-county carriers, plan data and enrollment help — that is published on Coverage by County. To check whether a plan actually covers your hospital, see Plans By City.

← Auto Mechanics in all states · All trades · All occupations

Want this worked out for your ZIP?

Put your ZIP code in and a licensed agent will show you the carriers filing in your county, what the cheapest plan costs, and what you would actually pay after any help you qualify for. No cost, and you talk to a licensed agent — not a call center.

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The 2027 picture for Auto Mechanics in Mississippi

Mississippi loses two carriers this cycle: Cigna and Molina are out of Mississippi’s individual market from January 1, 2027, leaving 3 filing here. For Auto Mechanics that is a forced decision, and a better one made in November than in January.

On price the only honest number today is national: the Peterson-KFF read of 2027 filings puts the median proposed rise near 15%, spanning −1% to 54%. Final Mississippi rates are not approved, so any precise 2027 figure quoted for this state is guesswork.

Mark November 1, 2026 to open and December 15 to act. That second date guarantees cover from January 1 in Mississippi regardless of how the current litigation over the enrollment window resolves.

There is still no PPO on the Mississippi marketplace — not in any of its 82 counties. Every plan is an EPO or HMO, which for an auto mechanic working across a wide area is the binding constraint, not price.

A head start beats a scramble

If you are with Cigna or Molina, you already know you are changing plans — both are leaving. The only real question is whether you pick the replacement or the marketplace picks it for you, and that is a much easier decision made now than in the second week of December.

Enter a ZIP and a licensed agent will tell you three things:

Whether your current plan and carrier are still writing in your county for 2027
What your income estimate should realistically be — the number your credit is calculated from, and the one auto mechanics most often get wrong
Whether the doctors you actually use are in the 2027 network, before you are locked in

Map my 2027 options →

Auto Mechanics Health Insurance in Mississippi