Computer Science Teachers, Postsecondary in North Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$62,480
after federal, FICA and North Carolina tax
Tax takes
$17,600
22.0% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$66,370
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
$80,080
Kept after tax
$62,480
Worth in national money
$66,370
State rank
37
of 48 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- North Carolina is among the lower-paying states for this job. The middle earner takes $80,080, ranking 37 of 48 states — about 17.43% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- Within North Carolina this is well-paid work. Of 489 occupations with published figures in the state, this job ranks 107 — in the top quarter of everything people do there.
- Here is where North Carolina does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $80,080 you keep $62,480, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $66,370 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $89,040, because the best-paid pull it up.
- North Carolina ranks 37 of 48 for computer science teachers, postsecondary, with a median of $80,080 — about 17.43% 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.
- Ranked against every occupation North Carolina publishes a median for, computer science teachers, postsecondary sits 107 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.
- After federal, FICA and North Carolina income tax, retained pay for computer science teachers, postsecondary on $80,080 is $62,480. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $66,370 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 $89,040 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
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Pay band: Computer Science Teachers, Postsecondary
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $45,270 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $80,080 |
| Top tenth earn over | $135,900 |
| This salary | $80,080 |
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 | $62,480 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $65,166 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$691 |
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 | $76,261 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$954 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 94 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $80,080 as a midpoint for North Carolina, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $45,270 and the ninetieth is $135,900 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind North Carolina's $62,480, worked from $80,080. 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 107 of 489.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $66,370 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 107.
- The North Carolina median of $80,080 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $45,270 to $135,900. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- The North Carolina take-home of $62,480, on $80,080 for work ranking 107 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 107 of 489 in the state.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $66,370, worked from $80,080, 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 107 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 $89,040, pulled upward by the top of the range, which is why the middle is the fairer number to plan against.
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
Because one job title covers very different work. The bottom tenth here earn $45,270 and the top tenth $135,900 — experience, employer and specialism separate them, and a single figure hides all three.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. North Carolina is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $66,370 in national terms.
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 $62,480 of this wage survives to your account.
Why is this job missing from some states?
A blank is a suppression, not a zero. 48 states have a published figure for this work; the others had too few responses to release 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 $89,040. 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 drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($45,270) and the ninetieth ($135,900) 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 $66,370 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 $62,480 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 48 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.