Mecklenburg County · North Carolina
Charlotte, NC demographics
Population, income and the local tax burden that sits on top of them — sourced from the Census Bureau and the North Carolina Department of Revenue.
Quick answer
Charlotte, NC has a population of 911,311 and a median household income of $78,438 — about $6,537 a month before tax. That ranks 29 of 94 covered metros by income and 15 of 94 by population.
Population
911,311
City limits, ACS 5-year
Median household income
$78,438
ACS 5-year estimate
Combined sales tax
7.25%
North Carolina + local
Income rank
#29
of 94 covered metros
Estimated annual sales tax on a median household
A Charlotte household at the median income of $78,438 spending roughly a quarter of pre-tax income on taxable retail goods would pay about $1,422 a year in sales tax at 7.25%. This is an illustration, not a filing figure: the taxable share of spending varies with household composition, and North Carolina exempts or discounts several categories. Mecklenburg's half-cent transit tax funds the LYNX light rail and is the reason Charlotte sits above most other North Carolina cities.
Method: median household income × 25% taxable share × combined rate. The 25% share is a rough national benchmark from the BLS Consumer Expenditure Survey, not a Charlotte-specific measurement.
Sources
What each figure on this page comes from.
- Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates
- Source: North Carolina Department of Revenue rate tables · rates as published for 2026