Counties in North Carolina by wages and salaries paid
Mecklenburg County had the highest wages and salaries paid of 100 counties in 2021, at $63.22 billion. Tyrrell County had the lowest, at $41.2 million. The median was $803.33 million and the figure for North Carolina was $294.28 billion. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.
Map of counties, 2021
- Under 200
- 200 to 500
- 500 to 800
- 800 to 1,300
- 1,300 to 3,200
- 3,200 and over
Top 40 counties, 2021
Full ranking
Other periods
About this ranking
Total wages and salaries paid to employees for jobs located in a place, including tips, bonuses and pay in kind, before deductions, in millions of current US dollars. United States: Bureau of Economic Analysis regional accounts, table SAINC4 line 50 for the nation and states and CAINC4 line 50 for counties.
Counted where the jobs are, not where the workers live, so places with many commuters coming in can pay more in wages than their residents receive in personal income (the District of Columbia does). Excludes employer contributions to pensions, insurance and social security, and the income of the self-employed.
Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.
How to cite
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents. https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip. Retrieved 2026-10-12.Citation styles
APA 7
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. (2026). CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents (Counties in North Carolina by wages and salaries paid, 2021) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip
MLA 9
CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents, Counties in North Carolina by wages and salaries paid, 2021. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, 5 Feb. 2026, https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/wages-and-salaries/north-carolina-counties?period=2021. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.
Chicago (author-date)
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. 2026. CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents. Counties in North Carolina by wages and salaries paid, 2021. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/wages-and-salaries/north-carolina-counties?period=2021.
Harvard
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (2026) CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents, Counties in North Carolina by wages and salaries paid, 2021 [Dataset]. Available at: https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/wages-and-salaries/north-carolina-counties?period=2021 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).
BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_north_carolina_2021,
author = {{U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis}},
title = {{CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents: Counties in North Carolina by wages and salaries paid, 2021}},
year = {2026},
howpublished = {Data set},
url = {https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip},
urldate = {2026-10-12},
note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/wages-and-salaries/north-carolina-counties?period=2021. Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents. https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY - DATA
AU - U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
TI - CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents: Counties in North Carolina by wages and salaries paid, 2021
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/02/05
PB - U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
DB - Invokely
UR - https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip
L2 - https://invokely.ai/rankings/wages-and-salaries/north-carolina-counties?period=2021
Y2 - 2026/10/12
N1 - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/wages-and-salaries/north-carolina-counties?period=2021.
N1 - Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents. https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER -
Use this data in your AI agent
Invokely serves this figure to AI assistants through MCP and to code through a REST API, with the source and citation attached. Ask your assistant:
Rank Counties in North Carolina by wages and salaries paid using official data, and cite the source.
rank_places {"indicator":"wages_and_salaries","level":"province","within":"North Carolina","limit":10}
GET https://invokely.ai/api/v1/rank?indicator=wages_and_salaries&level=province&within=North%20Carolina&limit=10Questions
Which county has the highest wages and salaries paid?
Mecklenburg County, with $63.22 billion in 2021, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.
Which county has the lowest wages and salaries paid?
Tyrrell County, with $41.2 million in 2021.
Where does this ranking come from?
Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
Wages and salaries paid: other rankings
Counties in North Carolina: more rankings
- Per capita personal income
- Child poverty rate, under 18 (US official measure)
- Median household income
- Average weekly wage (QCEW)
- Labor force participation rate (US five-year survey estimate)
- County house price index, 1990 = 100
- Fair Market Rent, one bedroom (HUD, monthly)
- Housing units authorized by building permits