Cooks, Fast Food in North Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$23,425
after federal, FICA and North Carolina tax
Tax takes
$3,765
13.8% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$24,883
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
$27,190
Kept after tax
$23,425
Worth in national money
$24,883
State rank
44
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- North Carolina is among the lower-paying states for cooks, fast food. The middle earner takes $27,190, ranking 44 of 51 states — about 11.98% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- Measured against other jobs in North Carolina, this one sits low: 488 of 489 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $27,190 you keep $23,425 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $24,883 at national prices. Here the average runs under the middle, at $27,080.
- North Carolina ranks 44 of 51 for cooks, fast food, with a median of $27,190 — about 11.98% 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.
- Cooks, fast food occupies position 488 of 489 in North Carolina's occupational wage distribution, in the bottom quartile. National ranking and local ranking answer different questions and frequently disagree; this is the one a resident experiences.
- Retained pay in North Carolina is $23,425 after the full tax stack, from $27,190. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $24,883 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $27,080 sits under the median, so the lower tail is the longer one.
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Pay band: Cooks, Fast Food
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $21,890 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $27,190 |
| Top tenth earn over | $34,860 |
| This salary | $27,190 |
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 | $23,425 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $24,001 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$185 |
The raise and the real gain point in opposite directions here.
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 | $26,490 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$218 |
| 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 $27,190. The published range is $21,890 up to $34,860, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- That $23,425 take-home in North Carolina comes from $27,190. 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 488 of 489.
- One number stands for prices across all of North Carolina, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $24,883, the adjusted value of that $27,190 median, as a way to compare states fairly, not as a quote for any particular place. The two datasets are also from different years. This job sits at 488 of 489 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for cooks, fast food in North Carolina the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $21,890 to $34,860. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Retained pay of $23,425, from $27,190, 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 488 of 489 locally, and the state ranks 44 of 51 for it.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for North Carolina, so $24,883 — the adjusted value of that $27,190 median — establishes comparability between states rather than accuracy within one. The wage and parity series are dated independently, each following its own publication cycle, and neither is projected forward. This occupation sits at 488 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $21,890 at the tenth percentile, $34,860 at the ninetieth.
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 $24,883 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 $23,425 of this wage survives to your account.
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 ($21,890 to $34,860) 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 $24,883 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 $23,425 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.