Atmospheric and Space Scientists in North Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$70,098
after federal, FICA and North Carolina tax
Tax takes
$21,462
23.4% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$74,462
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
$91,560
Kept after tax
$70,098
Worth in national money
$74,462
State rank
31
of 47 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. North Carolina is 31 of 47 states for atmospheric and space scientists, with a middle wage of $91,560. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Within North Carolina this is well-paid work. Of 489 occupations with published figures in the state, atmospheric and space scientists ranks 80 — in the top quarter of everything people do there.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $91,560 you keep $70,098 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $74,462 at national prices. Averages run higher here, $93,080, since top earners drag the number up.
- North Carolina ranks 31 of 47 for atmospheric and space scientists at $91,560. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Ranked against every occupation North Carolina publishes a median for, atmospheric and space scientists sits 80 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.
- Retained pay in North Carolina is $70,098 after the full tax stack, from $91,560. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $74,462 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $93,080 exceeds the median, so the upper tail is doing the work.
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Pay band: Atmospheric and Space Scientists
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $49,940 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $91,560 |
| Top tenth earn over | $136,990 |
| This salary | $91,560 |
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 | $70,098 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $73,242 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$910 |
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 | $87,090 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$1,256 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 94 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $91,560 as a midpoint for North Carolina, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $49,940 and the ninetieth is $136,990 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- In North Carolina the take-home figure of $70,098, from $91,560, assumes one filer, no dependants, and nothing paid into a pension before tax. Each of those lowers the bill, so treat it as the plain case. City and school-district income taxes are not included either, and in a few states those are real money. It ranks 80 of 489 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $74,462 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 80.
- The North Carolina median of $91,560 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $49,940 to $136,990. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- Take-home for North Carolina is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $70,098 from $91,560. Each omitted item reduces taxable income, so the figure is a lower bound on retained pay for this household shape. Municipal and school-district income taxes are excluded, which understates the burden materially in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Maryland. The occupation ranks 80 of 489 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $74,462, worked from $91,560, 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 80 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
Because one job title covers very different work. The bottom tenth here earn $49,940 and the top tenth $136,990 — experience, employer and specialism separate them, and a single figure hides all three.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
A smaller wage in a cheaper place is not automatically less. Adjusted for local prices, this is worth $74,462.
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 $70,098.
Why is this job missing from some states?
A blank is a suppression, not a zero. 47 states have a published figure for this work; the others had too few responses to release one.
What drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($49,940) and the ninetieth ($136,990) exceeds the family median dispersion. SOC codes aggregate roles differing in seniority, industry and specialisation, and BLS does not disaggregate below the detailed occupation level, so within-title variance is not separable from the published series.
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 $74,462 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 $70,098 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.
Why does this occupation lack published estimates in every state?
BLS suppresses estimates failing disclosure or reliability criteria. This occupation has published state-level estimates in 47 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.