Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters in North Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$36,066
after federal, FICA and North Carolina tax
Tax takes
$7,644
17.5% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$38,311
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
$43,710
Kept after tax
$36,066
Worth in national money
$38,311
State rank
19
of 48 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- North Carolina sits in the middle of the pack for this job. The median is $43,710, ranking 19 of 48 states with figures. Close enough to the national middle that where you live matters more than the headline suggests.
- Measured against other jobs in North Carolina, this one sits low: 373 of 489 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- North Carolina is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $43,710 the take-home is $36,066; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $38,311 would nationally. The average lands at $42,240, below the middle of the range.
- North Carolina occupies the middle band for helpers--pipelayers, plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters: a median of $43,710, ranking 19 of 48. Where nominal pay is close to the national figure, the tax and price adjustments below carry proportionally more weight in determining the real outcome.
- Helpers--pipelayers, plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters occupies position 373 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 helpers--pipelayers, plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters in North Carolina, on $43,710, is $36,066 — equivalent to $38,311 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 $42,240 the mean undershoots the median, an inversion of the usual skew.
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Pay band: Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $32,900 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $43,710 |
| Top tenth earn over | $48,380 |
| This salary | $43,710 |
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 | $36,066 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $37,301 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$74 |
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 | $42,173 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$90 |
| 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 $43,710. The published range is $32,900 up to $48,380, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- That $36,066 take-home in North Carolina comes from $43,710. 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 373 of 489.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $38,311 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 373.
- Reported values are medians; for helpers--pipelayers, plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters in North Carolina the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $32,900 to $48,380. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Retained pay of $36,066, from $43,710, 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 373 of 489 locally, and the state ranks 19 of 48 for it.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $38,311, worked from $43,710, 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 373 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 $42,240, pulled upward by the top of the range, which is why the middle is the fairer number to plan against.
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $32,900 at the bottom tenth to $48,380 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
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 $38,311 in national terms.
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, $36,066 remains.
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 48 states — the rest are withheld to protect confidentiality, which is not the same as nobody doing the work there.
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 $42,240. 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 is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($32,900 to $48,380) 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 $38,311 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 $36,066 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.