Counter and Rental Clerks in North Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$31,881
after federal, FICA and North Carolina tax
Tax takes
$6,349
16.6% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$33,866
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
$38,230
Kept after tax
$31,881
Worth in national money
$33,866
State rank
34
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. North Carolina is 34 of 51 states for counter and rental clerks, with a middle wage of $38,230. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Within North Carolina this is lower-paid work. Of 489 occupations the state publishes figures for, counter and rental clerks ranks 417. That is the bottom quarter locally, whatever the national comparison says.
- Here is where North Carolina does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $38,230 you keep $31,881, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $33,866 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $42,950, because the best-paid pull it up.
- North Carolina ranks 34 of 51 for counter and rental clerks at $38,230. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Against every occupation North Carolina reports, counter and rental clerks ranks 417 of 489, in the lowest quartile of the state's distribution. That position is set by the local labor market and is independent of how the state compares nationally for this work.
- After federal, FICA and North Carolina income tax, retained pay for counter and rental clerks on $38,230 is $31,881. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $33,866 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 $42,950 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Counter and Rental Clerks
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $27,110 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $38,230 |
| Top tenth earn over | $64,070 |
| This salary | $38,230 |
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 | $31,881 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $32,898 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$12 |
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 | $36,965 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$14 |
| 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 $38,230. The published range is $27,110 up to $64,070, 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 $31,881, worked from $38,230. 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 417 of 489.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $33,866 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 417.
- Reported values are medians; for counter and rental clerks in North Carolina the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $27,110 to $64,070. 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 $31,881, on $38,230 for work ranking 417 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 417 of 489 in the state.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $33,866, worked from $38,230, 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 417 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 $42,950, 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?
The label is broader than the work. From $27,110 at the bottom tenth to $64,070 at the top, the same title covers roles that share little beyond a name.
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 $33,866.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Four deductions, stacked. The federal layer and the two payroll taxes apply wherever you work; North Carolina then takes its own share, leaving $31,881.
Can I compare this job across every state?
All 51 jurisdictions report this work, which makes the ranking a like-for-like 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 $42,950. 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 ($27,110) and the ninetieth ($64,070) 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 $33,866 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 $31,881 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.