The median annual wage for sales managers working in Raleigh, NC, sits at $163,520, per BLS survey data. It runs 28% above the national median of $127,730 for this occupation — pay here is notably stronger than the U.S. average. The middle 50% land between $108,750 and $217,730 — a 108,980 range that reflects differences in seniority, employer type, and specialization. The average (mean) of $173,330 comes in higher than the median, which usually means a share of high earners is pulling the average up. The catch: Raleigh is roughly in line with the national cost of living (cost index 100 against a 100 baseline), so that headline number buys less than it would elsewhere. On an hourly basis that is about $78.62, useful for comparing contract or part-time offers.

For context, the national median for sales managers across all U.S. metros in our data is $127,730.