Rutherford County Ranks 10th Lowest in Wages

Rutherford County sits near the bottom of North Carolina’s wage scale for service-sector jobs, according to newly released data, highlighting the uneven impact of the state’s long-running economic shift away from manufacturing.

Figures published by the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners using NC Commerce and federal data show Rutherford County’s average weekly wage for service-providing jobs is $832, placing it 10th lowest out of 100 counties.

The data underscores a broader reality: while service jobs now dominate North Carolina’s economy, they are not paid equally across regions.

A transformed economy

The NCACC reports that 84% of jobs in North Carolina are now in service-providing industries, including retail, healthcare, finance, and government. Since 1990, those jobs have doubled, while goods-producing sectors such as manufacturing have declined by 25%.

But wage growth has been concentrated in urban areas.

Top-paying counties include:

• Durham County — $1,853/week

• Mecklenburg County — $1,624/week

• Wake County — $1,444/week

• Orange County — $1,581/week

The statewide average is $1,309 per week, leaving dozens of counties — including Rutherford — hundreds of dollars below that mark.

Rutherford County’s position

At $832 per week, Rutherford County falls into a cluster of rural counties where service-sector wages lag significantly. These areas tend to rely on lower-paying industries such as retail and hospitality, rather than higher-wage sectors like technology or finance that are concentrated in metropolitan hubs.

The ranking places Rutherford alongside other economically challenged counties, particularly in eastern and rural western North Carolina.

Full rankings: lowest to highest wages

Below is a partial list of North Carolina counties ranked by average weekly service-providing wages:

Martin — $718

Pamlico — $706

Washington — $752

Tyrrell — $752

Stokes — $728

Rockingham — $820

Halifax — $825

Yancey — $825

Montgomery — $828

Rutherford — $832

Richmond — $832

Sampson — $832

Stanly — $832

Gates — $830

Bertie — $860

Graham — $865

Hyde — $865

Columbus — $869

Surry — $870

Person — $871

Bladen — $873

Clay — $874

Randolph — $875

Cherokee — $876

Madison — $879

Scotland — $890

Currituck — $889

Harnett — $897

Pender — $899

Hoke — $901

Wilson — $902

Lenoir — $904

Wayne — $907

Northampton — $915

Carteret — $896

Johnston — $922

Nash — $922

Lee — $932

Macon — $933

Wilkes — $933

Burke — $936

Caldwell — $937

Jackson — $939

Onslow — $939

Cleveland — $953

Davidson — $952

Franklin — $969

Transylvania — $963

Pasquotank — $993

Davie — $992

Chowan — $991

Jones — $984

Chatham — $1,001

Gaston — $1,004

Lincoln — $1,023

Henderson — $1,025

Moore — $1,044

Cabarrus — $1,061

Catawba — $1,070

Craven — $1,082

Cumberland — $1,088

Rowan — $1,092

Granville — $1,109

Union — $1,138

Pitt — $1,145

Guilford — $1,148

Buncombe — $1,148

Iredell — $1,179

New Hanover — $1,198

Forsyth — $1,267

Wake — $1,444

Orange — $1,581

Mecklenburg — $1,624

Durham — $1,853

The bigger picture

The NCACC, which describes itself as nonpartisan, distributes the data as part of its regular policy and research updates for county leaders. Critics, however, have argued the organization’s advocacy tends to align more closely with left-leaning economic approaches and trainings.

The underlying figures come from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, a federal dataset widely used by economists and state agencies.