Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC Salaries
Local wages where BEA prices sit below the US average (RPP 88.5) - BLS OEWS May 2025
Observed metro pay change
What changed, BLS OEWS 2024–2025
- BLS's published All Occupations median in Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC moved from $43,270 in May 2024 to $45,220 in May 2025 (+4.5%).
- Across the 393 metros priced in both releases, the median place changed +3.1%.
- Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC sits +1.4 pp ahead of that median, nominal dollars, no price deflator applied.
Based on wage level, year-over-year wage growth, and regional-price-parity-adjusted purchasing power from BLS and BEA sources, not job availability, industry mix, or day-to-day livability.
Upholsterers shows the widest metro-area vs national median gap in Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC
Upholsterers publishes $59,700 here versus $46,340 nationally (+28.8%; 2,220metro-area jobs). Next is Registered Nurses at $80,060 locally versus $97,550 nationally (-17.9%).
- Upholsterers$59,700 in Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC sits 28.8% above the national Upholsterers median of $46,340 (2,220 published local jobs).
- Registered Nurses$80,060 in Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC sits 17.9% below the national Registered Nurses median of $97,550 (3,020 published local jobs).
- Waiters and Waitresses$29,310 in Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC sits 16.8% below the national Waiters and Waitresses median of $35,230 (2,000 published local jobs).
- Cashiers$27,570 in Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC sits 16.1% below the national Cashiers median of $32,880 (3,470 published local jobs).
Upholsterers and the other occupations above are descriptive OEWS endpoints for Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC; they are not findings about taxes, employers, or worker experience.
BLS OEWS metro wage desk
MSA 25860 · Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC $54K mean
MEAN-LOW · RPP-LOW · OCC-MID · TOP-LEAD · EMP-MIX · TREND-INLINE · PHOTO-FINISH · BOOK-FULL
- MEAN-LOW #390/528
- RPP-LOW 88.5
- OCC-MID 385 occs
- TOP-LEAD Physicians, Al… · $313K
- EMP-MIX Industrial P…
- TREND-INLINE +1.4 pp
- PHOTO-FINISH Northeastern Pen…
- BOOK-FULL 380 rows · May 2025
Read with Northeastern Pennsylvania nonmetropolitan area ($19 on published-row mean) · Salary vs. cost of living
Instrument codes from this MSA’s OEWS published-row mean, BEA RPP, occupation book, employment lead, All Occupations pay change, and nearest peer, not a moving recommendation.
Published-row mean neighbourhood around Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC
Where Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC already employs the upper wage tier
Industrial Production Managers and Software Developers lead published employment inside Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC's top-pay sample, order follows OEWS job counts, not median wage.
- 1. Industrial Production Managers 640 jobs · $124,290
- 2. Software Developers 420 jobs · $122,540
- 3. Physicians, All Other 380 jobs · $313,460
- 4. Sales Managers 360 jobs · $132,060
- 5. Pharmacists 330 jobs · $137,180
- 6. Financial Managers 310 jobs · $138,150
- 7. Nurse Practitioners 300 jobs · $126,620
- 8. Computer and Information Systems Managers 220 jobs · $163,010
- 9. Architectural and Engineering Managers 200 jobs · $170,730
- 10. Marketing Managers 200 jobs · $151,190
- 11. Physician Assistants 190 jobs · $127,210
- 12. Human Resources Managers 140 jobs · $117,950
- 13. Dentists, General 130 jobs · $193,320
- 14. Nurse Anesthetists 120 jobs · $213,630
- 15. Facilities Managers 110 jobs · $111,610
- 16. Purchasing Managers 80 jobs · $132,570
- 17. Veterinarians 70 jobs · $124,970
- 18. Engineers, All Other 60 jobs · $125,160
Occupations Tracked
385
with wage data
Published-Row Mean
$53,830
employment-weighted, 380 complete rows
Top Salary
$313,460
Physicians, All Other
Cost of Living
88.5
12% below US avg
Top-pay occupations in Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC, by employment
Same top-pay sample as the salary ranking, sorted by published local jobs so the title sequence follows the OEWS mix.
| # | Occupation | Median Salary |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Industrial Production Managers | $124,290 |
| 2 | Software Developers | $122,540 |
| 3 | Physicians, All Other | $313,460 |
| 4 | Sales Managers | $132,060 |
| 5 | Pharmacists | $137,180 |
| 6 | Financial Managers | $138,150 |
| 7 | Nurse Practitioners | $126,620 |
| 8 | Computer and Information Systems Managers | $163,010 |
| 9 | Architectural and Engineering Managers | $170,730 |
| 10 | Marketing Managers | $151,190 |
| 11 | Physician Assistants | $127,210 |
| 12 | Human Resources Managers | $117,950 |
| 13 | Dentists, General | $193,320 |
| 14 | Nurse Anesthetists | $213,630 |
| 15 | Facilities Managers | $111,610 |
| 16 | Purchasing Managers | $132,570 |
| 17 | Veterinarians | $124,970 |
| 18 | Engineers, All Other | $125,160 |
| 19 | Chief Executives | $312,730 |
| 20 | Natural Sciences Managers | $162,690 |
| 21 | Optometrists | $136,920 |
| 22 | Sales Engineers | $121,100 |
| 23 | Information Security Analysts | $115,250 |
| 24 | Training and Development Managers | $113,070 |
| 25 | Family Medicine Physicians | $206,360 |
Lowest Paying Jobs in Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC
| Occupation | Median Salary |
|---|---|
| Amusement and Recreation Attendants | $24,290 |
| Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers | $24,480 |
| Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers | $26,940 |
| Hosts and Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, and Coffee Shop | $27,110 |
| Cooks, Fast Food | $27,550 |
| Cashiers | $27,570 |
| Fast Food and Counter Workers | $27,580 |
| Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary | $27,630 |
| Food Preparation Workers | $27,680 |
| Childcare Workers | $28,460 |
Other BLS Wage Areas in NC
Other metropolitan or nonmetropolitan OEWS areas assigned to the same state. Cross-state pay and employment peers live in Nationwide similar metros below.
Nationwide metros with similar published-row mean pay or employment scale
Two OEWS peer sets outside NC. Same-state wage areas above stay geographic; these neighborhoods are cross-state nearest neighbors on employment-weighted published-row mean wage ($53,830 here) and summed published employment.
Similar mean wage
Nearest other metros by employment-weighted published-row annual mean wage.
Similar employment scale
Nearest headcount peers (floor 100,000 summed published jobs), distinct from the mean-wage column.
Peers are nearest-neighbor matches on BLS OEWS employment-weighted published-row mean wage and summed occupation employment. Employment peers exclude metros already listed in the mean-wage column so the two link sets stay distinct. Mean wage here is not a worker-level median.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does the lower price level do to Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC wage reading? ▼
What is the highest paying job in Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC? ▼
What jobs pay the least in Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC? ▼
Which federal tables feed Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC's wage and price figures? ▼
Related federal data
What to do with this data
How to use Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC wage figures in a real decision
- Physicians, All Other leads published medians in Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC at $313,460/year; open the occupation for percentile bands and state rows. Physicians, All Other
- The employment-weighted published-row mean of $53,830 adjusts to about $60,834 on a national-price basis at BEA RPP 88.5. Salary vs cost of living
- Compare this metropolitan statistical area against the statewide occupation table for NC before treating one geography as the other. State wage page
BLS OEWS estimates reflect the May 2025 reference period; small occupation-area cells can be suppressed, and figures are not employer offers.
Source data and WageDex calculations are identified in context on this page. Occupation rows use BLS OEWS May 2025. The metro benchmark is WageDex's employment-weighted mean of published occupation means; where BEA RPP is available, the price-level figure divides that benchmark by the published area parity. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.