- The middle half earn between $22.63 and $29.77 an hour.
- North Carolina is 49th of the 50 states and DC, in the bottom ten for this trade.
- North Carolina pays less than all 4 neighboring states.
- BLS counts about 21,640 electricians on payrolls in North Carolina.
- At the state median wage, an electrical contracting business needs to bill about $118.55 an hour on the labor rate calculator's starting numbers.
Electrician pay in North Carolina, bottom to top
The BLS group covers electricians who install and repair wiring in homes, businesses and plants. Line workers on power lines are counted separately and are not included.
| Pay level | Hourly | Yearly | National hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $19.29 | $40,130 | $20.50 |
| 25th percentile | $22.63 | $47,070 | $23.76 |
| Median | $27.31 | $56,800 | $30.38 |
| 75th percentile | $29.77 | $61,920 | $40.36 |
| 90th percentile | $36.09 | $75,060 | $52.17 |
| Average (mean) | $27.33 | $56,850 | $34.37 |
Pay is bunched up in North Carolina. The top tenth earn $36.09 an hour or more, about 1.9 times the $19.29 at the bottom tenth. Nationally that gap is 2.5 times, so the step from the bottom of the scale to the top is shorter here than in most places.
Both ends trail the national figures. The bottom tenth earn $1.21 an hour less than the bottom tenth nationally, and the top tenth $16.08 less than the national top tenth.
The average, $27.33, is close to the median, so pay sits fairly evenly around the middle.
How North Carolina compares with other states
Over a full year, the North Carolina median of $56,800 is $6,390 less than the national $63,190.
In the state ranking, North Carolina sits 49th, between Florida ($27.52) and Alabama ($26.78). The range runs from $23.59 in Arkansas to $48.71 in Oregon.
Every one of the neighboring states pays electricians more than North Carolina. The closest is Georgia at $28.04, and the biggest gap is with Virginia.
BLS wages are not adjusted for living costs. Lower pay often comes with lower housing costs, so the gap in take-home value can be smaller than the gap in wages.
| Neighboring state | Median hourly | Median yearly | Against North Carolina |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Carolina | $27.31 | $56,800 | |
| Georgia | $28.04 | $58,320 | +$0.73 an hour |
| South Carolina | $28.24 | $58,740 | +$0.93 an hour |
| Tennessee | $29.37 | $61,090 | +$2.06 an hour |
| Virginia | $30.24 | $62,900 | +$2.93 an hour |
How many electricians work in North Carolina
About 21,640 electricians work on payrolls in North Carolina, 2.9% of the 757,220 nationwide, the 11th largest count among the states.
That is 4.4 of every 1,000 jobs in North Carolina, close to the trade's share of jobs nationally.
What an electrical contracting business in North Carolina should charge
A lower wage helps the price less than you might expect, because the overhead does not shrink with it. Here is an electrical contracting business in North Carolina paying the state median of $27.31, on the labor rate calculator's starting numbers: 40-hour weeks, 10 paid days off, 2 unbilled hours a day, 7.65% payroll taxes, $90,000 a year of overhead and 15% profit.
| Step | Math | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Paid hours | 40 × 52 | 2,080 |
| Hours at work | 2,080 − 10 days × 8 | 2,000 |
| Billable hours | 2,000 × 6 ÷ 8 | 1,500 |
| Labor cost | $27.31 × 2,080 × 1.0765 | $61,150 |
| Break-even rate | ($61,150 + $90,000) ÷ 1,500 | $100.77 |
| Rate with 15% profit | $100.77 ÷ 0.85 | $118.55 |
That is $118.55 per billable hour, 4.3 times the wage, and $5.39 less than the $123.94 the same math gives at the national median wage.
Paying the 75th percentile instead, $29.77 in North Carolina, to hire and keep experienced people raises the rate to $122.87.
A cheaper crew saves less than it seems: at the 25th percentile wage of $22.63, the rate only drops to $110.33.
Overhead, at $60 of every billed hour, and the unbilled hours move this rate more than a raise does. A dollar more in wages adds about $1.76 to the rate.
Run it with your own numbers in the electrician labor rate calculator. It is free and shows every step.
Working as an electrician in North Carolina
- Licensing. What North Carolina asks for before you can work on your own: Electrical license in North Carolina.
- Running the business. Quotes, invoices, booking and your website in one place: how electrical contractors run on Koira.
- Getting found. The free Koira report checks how your business shows up in search and on maps against shops near you.
Where these numbers come from
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.
The figures are the BLS state estimates for SOC 47-2111, electricians, across all industries, read straight from the May 2025 state data file. They cover wage and salary workers, not the self-employed. Where BLS did not publish a figure, this page leaves it out.
All states in one table: electrician salary by state.