Cement Masons and Concrete Finishers in North Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$38,410
after federal, FICA and North Carolina tax
Tax takes
$8,370
17.9% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$40,801
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
$46,780
Kept after tax
$38,410
Worth in national money
$40,801
State rank
46
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- North Carolina is among the lower-paying states for this job. The middle earner takes $46,780, ranking 46 of 51 states — about 17.96% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 489 occupations North Carolina reports figures for, this is number 330.
- North Carolina is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $46,780 the take-home is $38,410; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $40,801 would nationally. The average comes to $47,210, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- North Carolina ranks 46 of 51 for cement masons and concrete finishers, with a median of $46,780 — about 17.96% below the national figure. A nominal shortfall is not by itself a real one: lower-paying states frequently carry lower tax and lower price levels, and the adjusted figures below are where that is settled rather than assumed.
- In North Carolina's occupational distribution, cement masons and concrete finishers sits at 330 of 489 — neither quartile. This local position is what a resident compares against, and it is determined by the state's own labor market rather than by national patterns for this occupation.
- Post-tax income for cement masons and concrete finishers in North Carolina, on $46,780, is $38,410 — equivalent to $40,801 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 $47,210 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
Compare this career across states
Choose your filing status and local taxes, compare pay, and keep a shortlist.Compare wage and personal-pay outcomes by state, with selected resident local taxes and saved career choices.
Pay band: Cement Masons and Concrete Finishers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $37,090 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $46,780 |
| Top tenth earn over | $60,290 |
| This salary | $46,780 |
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 | $38,410 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $39,768 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$123 |
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 | $45,090 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$148 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 94 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in North Carolina earn less than $46,780. The published range is $37,090 up to $60,290, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- That $38,410 take-home in North Carolina comes from $46,780. 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 330 of 489.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $40,801 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 330.
- Reported values are medians; for cement masons and concrete finishers in North Carolina the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $37,090 to $60,290. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Retained pay of $38,410, from $46,780, 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 330 of 489 locally, and the state ranks 46 of 51 for it.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $40,801, worked from $46,780, 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 330 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $37,090 at the tenth percentile, $60,290 at the ninetieth.
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 $40,801.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Three of them are federal and one is not. After income tax, Social Security, Medicare and North Carolina's own levy, $38,410 remains.
Can I compare this job across every state?
This occupation is published everywhere — all 51 of them — so comparing states measures real differences rather than gaps in the data.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($37,090 to $60,290) 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 $40,801 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 $38,410 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.