Computer Programmers in North Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$63,137
after federal, FICA and North Carolina tax
Tax takes
$17,933
22.1% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$67,068
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
$81,070
Kept after tax
$63,137
Worth in national money
$67,068
State rank
40
of 46 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Pay for computer programmers is on the low side in North Carolina. The middle earner gets $81,070. That is 40 of 46 states, and about 19.24% under the national figure. Whether that matters depends on what things cost here.
- This is one of the better-paid jobs in North Carolina. It ranks 101 out of 489 occupations the state publishes figures for, which puts it in the top quarter locally.
- Here is where North Carolina does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $81,070 you keep $63,137, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $67,068 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $81,740, because the best-paid pull it up.
- For computer programmers, North Carolina sits in the lower band at $81,070, ranking 40 of 46 and trailing the national median by about 19.24%. Nominal rankings routinely invert once tax and regional price level are applied, so this position should not be read as the conclusion.
- Within North Carolina, computer programmers ranks 101 of 489 occupations by median pay, placing it in the top quartile of the local distribution. This is the comparison a resident actually makes — against neighbors rather than against the same job elsewhere.
- After federal, FICA and North Carolina income tax, retained pay for computer programmers on $81,070 is $63,137. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $67,068 in national-average terms. ⚠️ That figure is purchasing power, not a wage, and nobody is paid it; it is what the take-home buys. The mean of $81,740 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Computer Programmers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $26,170 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $81,070 |
| Top tenth earn over | $134,780 |
| This salary | $81,070 |
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 | $63,137 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $65,863 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$710 |
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 | $77,195 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$981 |
| 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 $81,070. The published range is $26,170 up to $134,780, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind North Carolina's $63,137, worked from $81,070. That is on purpose. It lets states be compared with each other, not with each other's family circumstances. Local city taxes are left out. Locally this work ranks 101 of 489.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $67,068 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 101.
- Reported values are medians; for computer programmers in North Carolina the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $26,170 to $134,780. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- The North Carolina take-home of $63,137, on $81,070 for work ranking 101 of 489 locally, models the simplest household deliberately: holding it constant is what makes the interstate comparison meaningful. It also means the absolute figure overstates liability for most real filers, and municipal income taxes are outside the model entirely. The occupation ranks 101 of 489 in the state.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $67,068, worked from $81,070, 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 101 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
One title, many jobs. The lowest tenth take $26,170, the highest tenth $134,780, and what separates them is experience, employer and what exactly the role does.
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 $67,068 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Into four separate taxes, not one. Federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare apply everywhere, and North Carolina adds its own income tax on top — which is why $63,137 of this wage survives to your account.
Why is this job missing from some states?
Because the survey suppresses a figure when too few employers report it. This occupation has published pay in 46 states — the rest are withheld to protect confidentiality, which is not the same as nobody doing the work there.
What drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($26,170) and the ninetieth ($134,780) 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 $67,068 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 $63,137 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 46 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.