Lawyers salary in Winston-Salem, NC
Median pay for lawyers in Winston-Salem, NC: $129,560/yr
Typical range (10th–90th percentile): $64,700 – $239,200 · about 880 employed locally
Above the typical metro median ($119,840) by +$9,720 (+8%).
What it's really worth in Winston-Salem
With Winston-Salem's cost of living at 92 (US=100), that $129,560 has the buying power of about $141,438 in an average-cost US metro.
Local context: median household income $60,145 · median home $283,871 · median rent $1,546/mo.
How Winston-Salem ranks for this job
On raw pay, Winston-Salem, NC is 55th of the 183 metros we hold lawyers wages for. Once Winston-Salem's cost of living is applied, it ranks 35th.
Pay here goes further than the headline number suggests — Winston-Salem is one of the places where lawyers gain ground in real terms, because local costs are low relative to what the job pays.
What that salary buys in Winston-Salem
A median home in Winston-Salem, NC costs $283,871 — about 2.2× this salary, against a typical US metro figure of 4.7×. Buying is more attainable here than in the average metro on this income.
Median rent of $1,546/mo works out at 14% of gross pay — inside the conventional 30% affordability ceiling.
Where lawyers earn more
Pay on its own is only half the picture, so each row shows what rent costs there relative to Winston-Salem.
| Metro | Median pay | vs Winston-Salem | Rent vs Winston-Salem |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Jose, CA | $239,200 | +85% | 2.3× |
| San Francisco, CA | $217,340 | +68% | 2.1× |
| Los Angeles, CA | $194,020 | +50% | 1.9× |
| New York, NY | $185,790 | +43% | 2.3× |
Same job elsewhere in NC
| Metro | Median pay | vs Winston-Salem | Rent vs Winston-Salem |
|---|---|---|---|
| Charlotte, NC | $151,480 | +17% | 1.1× |
| Raleigh, NC | $142,050 | +10% | 1.1× |
| Greensboro, NC | $129,030 | +0% | 0.9× |
| Durham, NC | $128,250 | −1% | 1.1× |
Staying in NC keeps state income tax and licensing the same, which makes these the most directly comparable moves.
Who hires lawyers around Winston-Salem
Large local employers in sectors that typically employ this role.
- Truist Financial Corp · Finance
Other jobs in Winston-Salem
Source: US BLS OEWS (May 2023) median annual wage; cost of living from BEA; home price and rent from Zillow; household income from US Census ACS. Rankings are across the 183 metros we hold wage data for in this occupation. Estimates for guidance only. See methodology.