Respiratory Therapists in North Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$62,486
after federal, FICA and North Carolina tax
Tax takes
$17,604
22.0% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$66,377
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
$80,090
Kept after tax
$62,486
Worth in national money
$66,377
State rank
29
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. North Carolina is 29 of 51 states for respiratory therapists, with a middle wage of $80,090. 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, respiratory therapists ranks 106 — in the top quarter of everything people do there.
- North Carolina is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $80,090 the take-home is $62,486; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $66,377 would nationally. The average comes to $81,360, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- North Carolina ranks 29 of 51 for respiratory therapists at $80,090. 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, respiratory therapists sits 106 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 respiratory therapists in North Carolina, on $80,090, is $62,486 — equivalent to $66,377 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 $81,360 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Respiratory Therapists
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $63,990 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $80,090 |
| Top tenth earn over | $99,520 |
| This salary | $80,090 |
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 | $62,486 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $65,173 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$691 |
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 | $76,271 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$955 |
| 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 respiratory therapists in North Carolina earn under $80,090 and half over. The published range runs $63,990 at the tenth percentile to $99,520 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- That $62,486 take-home in North Carolina comes from $80,090. 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 106 of 489.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $66,377 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 106.
- Figures are distribution medians for respiratory therapists in North Carolina, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $63,990 to $99,520; 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.
- Retained pay of $62,486, from $80,090, 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 106 of 489 locally, and the state ranks 29 of 51 for it.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $66,377, worked from $80,090, 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 106 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $63,990 and the top tenth $99,520, 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 $66,377.
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, $62,486 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 ($63,990 to $99,520) 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 $66,377 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 $62,486 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.