What is North Carolina's income tax rate?

North Carolina uses a flat individual income tax rate of 4.5% for the 2024 tax year, applied after the state standard deduction. The flat rate has been scheduled to fall further in coming years. There are no local income taxes in North Carolina.

What is the North Carolina standard deduction?

For 2024 the North Carolina standard deduction is $12,750 for single filers and $25,500 for married filing jointly. North Carolina does not offer a separate personal exemption, so the standard deduction is the main reduction before the flat rate applies.

What FICA taxes come out of my paycheck?

Social Security is withheld at 6.2% on wages up to the annual wage base ($168,600 for 2024), and Medicare is 1.45% on all wages, with an extra 0.9% on wages above $200,000. Employers match the Social Security and base Medicare portions separately.

Does North Carolina have local income taxes?

No. Unlike some states, North Carolina has no city or county income taxes. Your state income withholding is the single flat 4.5% rate, which keeps the calculation simpler than states with bracketed or local taxes.

Is this exact or an estimate?

It is a close estimate. Real paychecks also reflect 401(k) and HSA contributions, health insurance premiums, allowances on your W-4, and other pre-tax deductions that this simplified tool does not capture. Use it for planning, not for filing.

North Carolina Paycheck Calculator

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North Carolina applies a single flat state income tax rate, which makes take-home pay easier to estimate than in bracketed states. This calculator subtracts federal income tax, Social Security, Medicare, and North Carolina’s 4.5% flat tax from your gross pay to show your net paycheck.

How it works

Your paycheck is reduced by four main taxes. First, gross pay is annualized based on your pay frequency. Then:

federal tax  = brackets applied to (annual gross − federal standard deduction)
social sec   = 6.2% of wages up to the wage base ($168,600)
medicare     = 1.45% of all wages (+0.9% over $200,000)
NC state tax = 4.5% of (annual gross − NC standard deduction)

The federal standard deduction is $14,600 (single) or $29,200 (married jointly) for 2024. North Carolina’s standard deduction is $12,750 (single) or $25,500 (married jointly), and the remainder is taxed at the flat 4.5% rate. Net annual pay is gross minus all four taxes, divided back into your pay periods.

Example

A single worker earning $60,000 a year has roughly $5,200 in federal income tax, $3,720 Social Security, $870 Medicare, and 4.5% of ($60,000 − $12,750) = about $2,126 in North Carolina tax. Take-home is around $48,000, or about $1,850 per biweekly check.

Notes

This is a simplified estimate. It does not model 401(k), HSA, or health-premium deductions, W-4 adjustments, or the additional Medicare tax interaction with filing status. North Carolina’s flat rate is scheduled to decline in future years, so confirm the current rate and standard deduction with the North Carolina Department of Revenue at ncdor.gov.