Pharmacists in North Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$101,145
after federal, FICA and North Carolina tax
Tax takes
$37,715
27.2% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$107,442
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
$138,860
Kept after tax
$101,145
Worth in national money
$107,442
State rank
30
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. North Carolina is 30 of 51 states for pharmacists, with a middle wage of $138,860. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Within North Carolina this is well-paid work. Of 489 occupations with published figures in the state, pharmacists ranks 16 — in the top quarter of everything people do there.
- North Carolina is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $138,860 the take-home is $101,145; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $107,442 would nationally. The average lands at $137,990, below the middle of the range.
- North Carolina ranks 30 of 51 for pharmacists at $138,860. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Ranked against every occupation North Carolina publishes a median for, pharmacists sits 16 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.
- Post-tax income for pharmacists in North Carolina, on $138,860, is $101,145 — equivalent to $107,442 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 $137,990 the mean undershoots the median, an inversion of the usual skew.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Pharmacists
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $101,670 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $138,860 |
| Top tenth earn over | $169,820 |
| This salary | $138,860 |
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 | $101,145 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $106,177 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$1,821 |
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 | $131,498 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$2,589 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 94 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- A median is the middle, not an offer. Half of pharmacists in North Carolina earn under $138,860 and half over. The published range runs $101,670 at the tenth percentile to $169,820 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In North Carolina the take-home figure of $101,145, from $138,860, 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 16 of 489 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $107,442 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 16.
- Figures are distribution medians for pharmacists in North Carolina, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $101,670 to $169,820; within-state dispersion of that width routinely exceeds the dispersion between states, so tenure, employer and metropolitan area predict an individual's pay better than geography does.
- Take-home for North Carolina is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $101,145 from $138,860. 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 16 of 489 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $107,442, worked from $138,860, 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 16 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $101,670 at the bottom tenth to $169,820 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in North Carolina sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $107,442 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
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 $101,145 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 ($101,670 to $169,820) 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 $107,442 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 $101,145 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.