North Carolina Salary Guide — What Every Role Pays by City

Average salary across all roles in North Carolina: $47,145/yr. Highest-paying role: Operations Manager.

Last updated: 2026-07-23 · Source: BLS OEWS May 2025

Average Salary by Role in North Carolina

Each figure is the average of the role's median pay across the 5 North Carolina metros we track. 20 of the roles below link to a full guide with the city-by-city breakdown, career path, and negotiation numbers.

Averages across 5 major North Carolina metros. Source: BLS OEWS May 2025.

Salary Data by North Carolina City

Charlotte is the highest-paying North Carolina metro we track ($48,398/yr average median) and Winston-Salem the lowest ($45,563/yr) — a spread of about 6%. Use the per-role guides above to see whether your job follows that pattern before negotiating.

CityAvg Median Pay (All Roles)Top-Paying Tracked Role
Charlotte$48,398Operations Manager in Charlotte — $112,730
Raleigh$47,951
Greensboro$45,819
Winston-Salem$45,563
Durham$47,976

City averages for North Carolina cover the roles with BLS OEWS May 2025 data in each metro; 1 city links to a per-role salary page.

How to use these numbers

The medians here are the middle of what employers actually pay, not the top of a range from a job ad. If an offer in North Carolina comes in under the median for your role and metro, that is your opening to negotiate — bring the BLS figure, not a guess. And if a posting hides pay entirely, the per-role guides linked above show what the market rate is before you apply.