Architectural and Engineering Managers in North Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$119,797
after federal, FICA and North Carolina tax
Tax takes
$48,043
28.6% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$127,255
North Carolina costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in North Carolina — roughly, since only five points along the band are published.
One filer, standard deduction, no dependants and nothing paid in before tax — the same household the rest of this page uses, so the comparison holds. City and school-district income taxes are not included.
Median here
$167,840
Kept after tax
$119,797
Worth in national money
$127,255
State rank
20
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- North Carolina sits in the middle of the pack for this job. The median is $167,840, ranking 20 of 51 states with figures. Close enough to the national middle that where you live matters more than the headline suggests.
- Within North Carolina this is well-paid work. Of 489 occupations with published figures in the state, this job ranks 9 — in the top quarter of everything people do there.
- North Carolina is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $167,840 the take-home is $119,797; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $127,255 would nationally. The average comes to $173,390, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- North Carolina occupies the middle band for architectural and engineering managers: a median of $167,840, ranking 20 of 51. Where nominal pay is close to the national figure, the tax and price adjustments below carry proportionally more weight in determining the real outcome.
- Ranked against every occupation North Carolina publishes a median for, architectural and engineering managers sits 9 of 489 — the upper quartile of the state's wage distribution. National standing and within-state standing are separate questions, and a job can occupy very different positions on each.
- Post-tax income for architectural and engineering managers in North Carolina, on $167,840, is $119,797 — equivalent to $127,255 once regional price parity is applied. ⚠️ The adjustment uses a statewide index that describes no particular address; within-state price variation, concentrated in housing, routinely exceeds the difference between two states. At $173,390 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Architectural and Engineering Managers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $121,900 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $167,840 |
| Top tenth earn over | $231,350 |
| This salary | $167,840 |
Positions between the published tenth, quarter, half, three-quarter and ninetieth points are estimated by straight line.
The same pay, somewhere else
The state median for this job
| Take-home in North Carolina | $119,797 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $125,985 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$2,392 |
State income tax and state price levels only. No city income tax, and no housing market.
What you would need there
The state median for this job
| To match take-home only | $158,786 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$3,401 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 94 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- A median is the middle, not an offer. Half of architectural and engineering managers in North Carolina earn under $167,840 and half over. The published range runs $121,900 at the tenth percentile to $231,350 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- That $119,797 take-home in North Carolina comes from $167,840. It is the no-frills case: single filer, standard deduction, nothing set aside before tax. Real circumstances almost always reduce the tax. City and school-district taxes are not counted at all. Locally the work ranks 9 of 489.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $127,255 uses one figure for the whole of North Carolina. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 489 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 9.
- Figures are distribution medians for architectural and engineering managers in North Carolina, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $121,900 to $231,350; within-state dispersion of that width routinely exceeds the dispersion between states, so tenure, employer and metropolitan area predict an individual's pay better than geography does.
- Retained pay of $119,797, from $167,840, assumes a single North Carolina filer with the standard deduction and no elective deferrals. Pre-tax retirement or HSA contributions, dependants and itemized deductions all reduce it further; local income taxes, excluded here, would increase it in the states that levy them. This occupation ranks 9 of 489 locally, and the state ranks 20 of 51 for it.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $127,255, worked from $167,840, deflates by a statewide parity that conceals substantial intra-state variation, concentrated in housing — so it supports comparison between states rather than the pricing of a move to a particular North Carolina address, on work sitting at 9 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
No — it is the middle. Half of these workers earn more and half earn less. The average is $173,390, pulled upward by the top of the range, which is why the middle is the fairer number to plan against.
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $121,900 at the bottom tenth to $231,350 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in North Carolina sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $127,255 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Four deductions, stacked. The federal layer and the two payroll taxes apply wherever you work; North Carolina then takes its own share, leaving $119,797.
Can I compare this job across every state?
All 51 jurisdictions report this work, which makes the ranking a like-for-like one.
How does the published median differ from the mean for this occupation?
The median is the midpoint of the distribution; the mean for this occupation in North Carolina is $173,390. Wage distributions are right-skewed, so the mean exceeds the median wherever a minority earn substantially more. BLS publishes both because substituting one for the other misstates a typical worker's pay.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($121,900 to $231,350) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to North Carolina rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
North Carolina's regional price parity is at or below the national average, so nominal wages understate purchasing power. Take-home deflated by the state price level is $127,255 in national-average terms. The adjustment uses an all-items index and does not isolate housing.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $119,797 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and North Carolina income tax for a single filer with no adjustments. The state layer is levied in addition to the federal one; only its rate and base differ between states.
Is this occupation's state coverage complete?
State-level estimates are published for all 51 jurisdictions for this occupation, so cross-state comparison is not confounded by suppression. ⚠️ Estimates remain survey-based and carry sampling error; small differences between adjacent states should not be over-read.