Physical Therapists in North Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$75,639
after federal, FICA and North Carolina tax
Tax takes
$24,271
24.3% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$80,348
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
$99,910
Kept after tax
$75,639
Worth in national money
$80,348
State rank
33
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- North Carolina sits in the middle of the pack for physical therapists. The median is $99,910, ranking 33 of 51 states with figures. Close enough to the national middle that where you live matters more than the headline suggests.
- Within North Carolina this is well-paid work. Of 489 occupations with published figures in the state, physical therapists ranks 62 — in the top quarter of everything people do there.
- Here is where North Carolina does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $99,910 you keep $75,639, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $80,348 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $100,010, because the best-paid pull it up.
- North Carolina occupies the middle band for physical therapists: a median of $99,910, ranking 33 of 51. Where nominal pay is close to the national figure, the tax and price adjustments below carry proportionally more weight in determining the real outcome.
- Ranked against every occupation North Carolina publishes a median for, physical therapists sits 62 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.
- After federal, FICA and North Carolina income tax, retained pay for physical therapists on $99,910 is $75,639. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $80,348 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 $100,010 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Physical Therapists
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $78,020 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $99,910 |
| Top tenth earn over | $125,940 |
| This salary | $99,910 |
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 | $75,639 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $79,117 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$1,068 |
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 | $94,967 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$1,476 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 94 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $99,910 as a midpoint for North Carolina, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $78,020 and the ninetieth is $125,940 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- That $75,639 take-home in North Carolina comes from $99,910. 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 62 of 489.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $80,348 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 62.
- The North Carolina median of $99,910 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $78,020 to $125,940. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- Retained pay of $75,639, from $99,910, 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 62 of 489 locally, and the state ranks 33 of 51 for it.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $80,348, worked from $99,910, 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 62 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $78,020 and the top tenth $125,940, so most people doing this work in North Carolina sit within a fairly tight band.
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 $80,348 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, $75,639 remains.
Can I compare this job across every state?
Yes for this one. Pay is published in all 51 jurisdictions, so a state-to-state comparison here rests on the same survey everywhere rather than on a patchwork.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($78,020 to $125,940) 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 $80,348 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 $75,639 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.