Take-home pay compared · Tax year 2026
Georgia vs North Carolina taxes
Georgia and North Carolina both tax wages at one flat rate and take nothing else from a paycheck. Georgia shelters more of your pay; North Carolina taxes the rest at a lower rate. On most salaries the lower rate wins.
Georgia
$2,253.80
take-home a paycheck · $58,599 a year
Effective tax rate 21.9%
North Carolina
$2,273.42
take-home a paycheck · $59,109 a year
Effective tax rate 21.2%
On $75,000, you keep $510 more a year in North Carolina than in Georgia. That is $19.62 a paycheck, paid every two weeks.
| Deduction | Georgia | North Carolina |
|---|---|---|
| Federal income tax | −$295.00 | −$295.00 |
| Social Security & Medicare | −$220.67 | −$220.67 |
| State income tax | −$115.15 | −$95.53 |
| State payroll deductions | None | None |
| Total tax | −$630.82 | −$611.20 |
| Take-home | $2,253.80 | $2,273.42 |
Income and payroll taxes only, for wage income with no pre-tax deductions or dependents. Full working for each side: Georgia paycheck calculator · North Carolina paycheck calculator.
Georgia and North Carolina side by side, 2026
| Georgia | North Carolina | |
|---|---|---|
| State income tax | 4.99% flat | 3.99% flat |
| Standard deduction (single) | $15,000 | $12,750 |
| Payroll deductions | None | None |
Take-home at every salary
| Salary | Georgia | North Carolina | Difference | Keeps more |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $30,000 | $25,537 | $25,597 | $60 | North Carolina |
| $40,000 | $33,073 | $33,233 | $160 | North Carolina |
| $50,000 | $40,609 | $40,869 | $260 | North Carolina |
| $60,000 | $48,145 | $48,505 | $360 | North Carolina |
| $75,000 | $58,599 | $59,109 | $510 | North Carolina |
| $100,000 | $74,939 | $75,699 | $760 | North Carolina |
| $125,000 | $91,215 | $92,225 | $1,010 | North Carolina |
| $150,000 | $107,055 | $108,315 | $1,260 | North Carolina |
| $200,000 | $139,696 | $141,456 | $1,760 | North Carolina |
| $250,000 | $171,456 | $173,716 | $2,260 | North Carolina |
| $500,000 | $316,275 | $321,035 | $4,760 | North Carolina |
| Salary | Georgia | North Carolina | Difference | Keeps more |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $60,000 | $51,073 | $51,193 | $120 | North Carolina |
| $80,000 | $66,145 | $66,465 | $320 | North Carolina |
| $100,000 | $81,217 | $81,737 | $520 | North Carolina |
| $150,000 | $117,197 | $118,217 | $1,020 | North Carolina |
| $200,000 | $150,838 | $152,358 | $1,520 | North Carolina |
| $250,000 | $186,490 | $188,510 | $2,020 | North Carolina |
| $300,000 | $220,820 | $223,340 | $2,520 | North Carolina |
| $400,000 | $289,480 | $293,000 | $3,520 | North Carolina |
| $500,000 | $353,000 | $357,520 | $4,520 | North Carolina |
A bigger deduction against a lower rate
On $75,000 a single filer keeps $59,109 in North Carolina and $58,599 in Georgia: $510 a year more in North Carolina. Neither state deducts anything from wages beyond its income tax, since both fund unemployment insurance from employers and run no disability or paid leave program, so the gap is the two income taxes: $2,994 in Georgia and $2,484 in North Carolina.
The two taxes are built the same way, with opposite strengths:
- Georgia has the bigger standard deduction, $15,000 single or $30,000 joint, and the higher rate, a flat 4.99%.
- North Carolina has the smaller deduction, $12,750 single or $25,500 joint, and the lower rate, a flat 3.99%.
Georgia’s extra deduction is worth a fixed amount. North Carolina’s lower rate is worth one percentage point of everything above the deduction, so it grows with pay and soon outweighs it.
Where the lines cross
For a single filer North Carolina keeps more on any salary above about $24,000, which covers every salary in the tables above. The lead then grows by about one cent in every extra dollar: $260 on $50,000, $1,260 on $150,000 and $2,260 on $250,000.
Married couples filing jointly have a later crossover, because Georgia’s joint deduction is $4,500 larger than North Carolina’s. Below about $48,000 of combined salary Georgia keeps slightly more; above it North Carolina does. On $150,000 jointly North Carolina keeps $1,020 more.
Both rates have been falling
Both states have been cutting on a schedule. North Carolina’s 3.99% is the last step of a phasedown from 5.25%, and its law allows further cuts if revenue conditions are met. Georgia’s 4.99% is part of a legislated phase-down that began when it replaced its graduated brackets with a single rate, and for 2026 it also raised its standard deduction. The figures here use each state’s 2026 law, not future steps.
What the take-home figure does not count
Housing, property taxes and the cost of living vary widely between and within the two states, and for a household choosing between them they are likely to matter more than a gap of this size. This page compares only what is taken from wages.
Questions people ask
- Do you take home more in Georgia or North Carolina on $75,000?
- North Carolina, by $510 a year, or $43 a month, for a single filer in 2026. That counts federal tax, Social Security, Medicare, state income tax and every state payroll deduction.
- Is the difference the same at every salary?
- No, but the same side stays ahead. The gap is $60 a year at $30,000 and $2,260 at $250,000, for a single filer.
- Does Atlanta or Charlotte levy a city income tax?
- No. No Georgia city or county levies an income tax, and no North Carolina city or county does either. Both columns hold anywhere in their state.
- Do the standard deductions rise with inflation?
- North Carolina's does not. Its amounts are written into G.S. 105-153.5 as fixed dollar figures, so they change only when the legislature amends the statute. Georgia's rose for 2026, from the amounts it used for 2024 and 2025.
- How do the two states treat retirement income?
- Both exempt Social Security. Georgia adds a retirement income exclusion per person from age 62, larger from 65, covering pensions, interest, dividends and capital gains. North Carolina exempts military retirement pay after 20 years of service and certain older government pensions under the Bailey settlement. None of that is modeled here, since these figures cover wages.
What this comparison covers
Income tax and payroll deductions on wages: federal income tax, Social Security, Medicare, state income tax, every state payroll deduction. It does not compare sales tax, property tax, housing or the cost of living, which can outweigh the difference in take-home pay. Figures assume the standard deduction, no dependents and no pre-tax retirement contributions. See how we calculate.
Where the Georgia figures come from
Every Georgia number on this page was read from the documents below — the state's own, not a summary of them. Nothing here is estimated. If a figure looks wrong, the source is one click away, and we would rather you checked.
- Important tax updates: 2026 income tax changesdor.georgia.gov
The flat rate for 2026 and the increased standard deduction, which the department's older deduction page still contradicts.
- Learn About Unemployment Taxes and Benefitsdol.georgia.gov
That employers pay the entire cost of unemployment insurance benefits in Georgia.
Where the North Carolina figures come from
Every North Carolina number on this page was read from the documents below — the state's own, not a summary of them. Nothing here is estimated. If a figure looks wrong, the source is one click away, and we would rather you checked.
- Tax rate schedulesncdor.gov
The flat rate for 2026 and the standard deduction by filing status.
- Employer Tax FAQsdes.nc.gov
That employers pay unemployment insurance taxes and they are not deducted from employees' wages.