Psychiatrist Salary in North Carolina: What Psychiatrists Earn
Psychiatrists in North Carolina had a median annual wage of $168,880 in May 2025, $112,990 below the national median of $281,870, a 40% gap, and the median ranks 42nd of the 46 jurisdictions that publish one.
The state's 10th percentile is the one figure above national.
An estimated 620 psychiatrists work in North Carolina, 9th of the 45 jurisdictions where BLS publishes both a median and an employment estimate, so this page reads the full distribution rather than the median alone.
Psychiatrists · SOC 29-1223
$168,880/yr
−40% vs. national $281,870
$81.19/hr median
Which psychiatrists this covers
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 state and national estimates — North Carolina, SOCs 29-1223.
Retrieved 2026-09-24 from the BLS Public Data API.
How to read these figures
North Carolina vs. the national figure
Each occupation is compared with its own national median from the same May 2025 release, and the national psychiatrist salary page gives the national distribution.
Ranks count only the jurisdictions (states plus DC) where BLS publishes that occupation’s figure.
Differences are whole percentages of the national figure, rounded half away from zero, computed from the figures shown.
By estimated employment, North Carolina ranks 9th of 45 for psychiatrists.
A median $112,990 below national
The North Carolina median of $168,880 is $112,990 below the national median of $281,870, a 40% gap.
The hourly median tells the same story: $81.19 against $135.51 nationally, $54.32 less per hour, and it also ranks 42nd of 46.
The state's estimated employment of 620 ranks 9th of the 45 jurisdictions that publish both a median and an employment estimate for the occupation.
That estimate is above the small-sample threshold, so this page reads the full distribution instead of stopping at the median.
Above national only at the floor, widest in dollars at the ceiling
North Carolina psychiatrist pay runs from a 10th percentile of $101,080 to a 90th percentile of $297,250, a spread of $196,170 against the national $362,460.
The 10th percentile is the one point above national: $101,080 is 20% above the national 10th percentile of $84,060, a difference of $17,020, while every point above the floor sits below its national counterpart.
The 25th percentile of $133,240 is $20,910 below the national $154,150, a 14% gap, and in percentage terms the gap is deepest at the median.
In dollars it is largest at the ceiling: the 75th percentile of $266,850 is $95,890 below the national $362,740, and the 90th percentile of $297,250 is $149,270 below the national $446,520, a 33% gap — even the state's 90th percentile sits just above the national median of $281,870.
The middle half spans $133,610 against the national $208,590, and the state's 90th percentile is 2.9 times its 10th, against 5.3 times nationally.
What this figure covers: Psychiatrists employed for wages.
OEWS does not count self-employed physicians or practice owners, and psychiatric nurse practitioners are in a separate occupation (29-1171, all nurse practitioners).
Reading an offer against these figures
An offer at $168,880 matches the North Carolina median, $112,990 below the national median of $281,870.
An offer near $266,850 reaches the state's 75th percentile and still sits below the national median.
The state's 90th percentile of $297,250, the boundary of its top tenth, sits just above the national median of $281,870, while the national 90th percentile is $446,520 — $149,270 above the state figure.
For hourly postings, $81.19 is the state hourly median and $135.51 the national one.
A percentile is a position in the state distribution, not a pay step or a measure of time in the field.
What this figure does and does not describe
This row is the BLS occupation for psychiatrists employed for wages, not a figure for one credential.
BLS assigns workers to the occupation by the duties of their jobs, not by the credential they hold, and the row is not a count of licence holders.
It is not split by board certification or subspecialty, so it cannot say what a child and adolescent or addiction psychiatrist earns in North Carolina, and it does not include other prescribers, whom BLS counts in occupations of their own.
Before comparing an offer with this row, check what licence and certification the posting requires.
Before you weigh an offer, check what licence or certification the posting requires — browse psychiatrist jobs in North Carolina.
What Psychiatrist Job Listings in North Carolina Show Right Now
From the 21 active psychiatrist listings on BehavioralHires as of October 29, 2026.
Employers with the most openings
- LifeStance Health7
- Monarch3
- Lyra Health2
- Universal Health Services2
Pay employers post
- 38% of psychiatrist listings in North Carolina state any pay at all.
Benefits and work arrangement
- 29% remote or telehealth and 33% hybrid; the rest are on-site
- Health Insurancenamed in 71%
- Dental & Visionnamed in 57%
- 401k Matchnamed in 48%
- Flexible Schedulenamed in 33%
Source: active psychiatrist listings on BehavioralHires, updated daily. Pay figures use only listings that state pay (midpoint of each posted range). Benefits count listings that name the benefit; a listing that doesn’t mention one may still offer it.
Browse 21 jobs →Frequently Asked Questions
How much do psychiatrists make in North Carolina?
BLS reports a May 2025 median annual wage of $168,880 for psychiatrists in North Carolina, or $81.19 an hour, 40% below the national median of $281,870.
The middle half of North Carolina psychiatrists earned between $133,240 and $266,850, and the top tenth earned more than $297,250.
Where is the North Carolina psychiatrist pay gap to national largest?
In percentage terms the gap is deepest at the median, 40% below the national median of $281,870.
In dollars it is largest at the 90th percentile: $297,250 against the national $446,520, $149,270 lower.
The one point where North Carolina is above national is the 10th percentile, $101,080 against $84,060.
How many psychiatrists work in North Carolina?
BLS estimates 620 psychiatrists employed in North Carolina in May 2025, which ranks 9th of the 45 jurisdictions where BLS publishes both a median and an employment estimate for the occupation.
That counts psychiatrists in jobs during the survey period, not open positions, and it does not count psychiatrists who are not employed for wages.
Where does North Carolina rank among jurisdictions publishing a psychiatrist median?
Among the 46 jurisdictions where BLS publishes a median for psychiatrists, North Carolina ranks 42nd, and the hourly median of $81.19 also ranks 42nd.
The estimated employment of 620 ranks higher, 9th of 45.
A rank compares the published figures only; the rows carry nothing that explains why one place's median differs from another's.
More North Carolina Psychiatrist Resources
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 state estimates — North Carolina, SOC 29-1223 (BLS Public Data API) (retrieved 2026-09-24)
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 national estimates — SOC 29-1223 (BLS Public Data API) (retrieved 2026-09-24)
Wage figures: BLS OEWS May 2025 state and national estimates, SOCs 29-1223, retrieved 2026-09-24.
Page last updated 2026-09-29.