Cooks, Short Order in North Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$26,582
after federal, FICA and North Carolina tax
Tax takes
$4,708
15.0% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$28,237
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
$31,290
Kept after tax
$26,582
Worth in national money
$28,237
State rank
33
of 49 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- North Carolina is among the lower-paying states for cooks, short order. The middle earner takes $31,290, ranking 33 of 49 states — about 12.79% 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: 471 of 489 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- North Carolina is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $31,290 the take-home is $26,582; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $28,237 would nationally. The average comes to $31,680, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- North Carolina ranks 33 of 49 for cooks, short order, with a median of $31,290 — about 12.79% 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, short order occupies position 471 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.
- Post-tax income for cooks, short order in North Carolina, on $31,290, is $26,582 — equivalent to $28,237 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 $31,680 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
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Pay band: Cooks, Short Order
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $23,350 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $31,290 |
| Top tenth earn over | $38,210 |
| This salary | $31,290 |
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 | $26,582 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $27,322 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$121 |
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 | $30,369 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$146 |
| 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 $31,290. The published range is $23,350 up to $38,210, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In North Carolina the take-home figure of $26,582, from $31,290, 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 471 of 489 occupations here.
- Two cautions on $28,237, the adjusted value of that $31,290 median. It levels out prices with a single number for all of North Carolina. No actual address matches that. The wage figures and price figures are also from different years. Each is published on its own timetable. This work sits at 471 of 489 locally.
- Reported values are medians; for cooks, short order in North Carolina the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $23,350 to $38,210. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for North Carolina is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $26,582 from $31,290. 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 471 of 489 locally.
- This $28,237 adjusted figure, worked from $31,290, rests on a state-level price parity averaging over within-state dispersion larger than much of the between-state dispersion. Wage and price vintages differ by publication schedule. The result is directionally sound and not address-specific, for work at 471 of 489 in the state. The occupation ranks 471 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $23,350 and the top tenth $38,210, so most people doing this work in North Carolina sit within a fairly tight band.
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 $28,237.
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, $26,582 remains.
Why is this job missing from some states?
The survey withholds small samples rather than publish an unreliable number. Pay appears for 49 states here, and a missing state means too few reports, not no jobs.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($23,350 to $38,210) 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 $28,237 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 $26,582 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 49 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.