Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers Salary
In Durham-Chapel Hill, NC, tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers earn $38,000 at the median, or about $18.27 an hour. The range runs from $18K at the entry level to $83K for experienced workers. Adjusted for local prices (RPP 97.57), that's roughly $38,946 in purchasing power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $1,711/month, about 64.8% of take-home, which is tight.
So what does $38K get you in Durham-Chapel Hill?
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by Durham-Chapel Hill’s Regional Price Parity (97.57). Rent from HUD Fair Market Rents. Taxes estimated for single filer, standard deduction. * Healthcare is the employee-paid share only (premiums + out-of-pocket). Actual costs vary by coverage type: employer-sponsored, ACA marketplace, or uninsured.
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What this looks like in Durham-Chapel Hill
Tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers pay in Durham-Chapel Hill tracks closely to the national median, $38K locally vs. $42K nationwide, a 9% difference. The catch: housing math doesn't keep up. A 2-bedroom at the HUD median rents for $1,711/month, which is 66.5% of the median worker's take-home, past the 30% guideline most planners use. Cost of living (RPP 97.57) is near the national average, so spending patterns here track the typical American budget fairly closely. Use the affordability calculator above to model your specific situation.
Compared to nearby metros
Median pay for tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers in metros near Durham-Chapel Hill, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia | $46K | $47K |
| Asheville | $39K | $41K |
| Winston-Salem | $35K | $38K |
| Charleston-North Charleston | $46K | $46K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Durham-Chapel Hill, NC
Entry-level tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers (10th percentile) start around $18K. Mid-career wages sit at $38K. Top earners bring in $83K or more, a $65K spread from bottom to top.
Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers pay across states
Median income ranked highest to lowest, compared to the national figure
View Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers salary in all states
| State | Median salary | vs. national | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York | $60K | +45% | 1,160 |
| District of Columbia | $58K | +39% | 80 |
| Washington | $54K | +30% | 100 |
| Hawaii | $54K | +29% | N/A |
| Colorado | $51K | +23% | 160 |
| Massachusetts | $50K | +21% | N/A |
| Nevada | $49K | +18% | 100 |
| Pennsylvania | $48K | +16% | 610 |
| Missouri | $48K | +16% | 200 |
| Maryland | $48K | +16% | N/A |
| Utah | $48K | +15% | 290 |
| Oregon | $47K | +14% | 100 |
| Minnesota | $46K | +11% | 290 |
| Virginia | $46K | +11% | 300 |
| New Hampshire | $46K | +10% | 60 |
| Delaware | $44K | +7% | N/A |
| California | $44K | +7% | 2,180 |
| New Mexico | $43K | +4% | N/A |
| Wisconsin | $43K | +4% | 210 |
| Georgia | $43K | +4% | 360 |
| New Jersey | $43K | +4% | 350 |
| Illinois | $42K | +2% | 320 |
| North Carolina | $41K | -1% | 740 |
| Arizona | $40K | -3% | N/A |
| Connecticut | $40K | -4% | 210 |
| Florida | $40K | -4% | 920 |
| Tennessee | $39K | -7% | 170 |
| Nebraska | $38K | -8% | 40 |
| Michigan | $38K | -10% | 280 |
| Ohio | $37K | -11% | 510 |
| Indiana | $36K | -12% | 360 |
| Texas | $36K | -13% | 1,540 |
| Montana | $35K | -17% | 50 |
| Louisiana | $34K | -19% | 250 |
| South Carolina | $33K | -21% | 340 |
| Kentucky | $33K | -22% | 230 |
| Iowa | $32K | -24% | 130 |
| Alabama | $31K | -25% | 90 |
| Arkansas | $31K | -26% | 80 |
| Kansas | $27K | -35% | 40 |
| Oklahoma | $26K | -37% | N/A |
| Mississippi | $25K | -39% | 160 |
Showing 1–10 of 42 states with published data
BLS does not publish data for every state when sample sizes are too small
Track tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers salary changes
BLS updates this data quarterly. We'll email you when Durham-Chapel Hill numbers change.
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Frequently asked questions
Can a tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewer afford a 2BR apartment alone in Durham-Chapel Hill?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $38K, rent takes 66.5% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,711/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $800/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.
What’s the entry-level salary for tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers in Durham-Chapel Hill?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers typically earn — is $18K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $1,095/month. At HUD’s $1,711/month FMR, rent would take 156% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.
Is tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewer a high-paying job in Durham-Chapel Hill?
Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $38K locally vs. $42K nationally, a 9% difference.
How does Durham-Chapel Hill compare to the national average for tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers?
Durham-Chapel Hill pays $38K median vs. the U.S. average of $42K — that’s -9%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 97.57), the purchasing-power equivalent is $39K — below the national median.
How much do tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers make in Durham-Chapel Hill, NC?
The median is $38,000 a year, that works out to about $18 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $18,250, and experienced tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers can clear $83,200. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $38K enough to live in Durham-Chapel Hill?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $2,572/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,711/month, which eats 66.5% of your paycheck. That's above the 30% rule of thumb, housing will be a stretch at the median salary, though you can manage with roommates or a smaller place.
How far does a tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers salary go in Durham-Chapel Hill?
Durham-Chapel Hill has a Regional Price Parity of 97.57 (100 is the national average). That's below average, your money stretches further here than the raw salary number suggests. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers salary is worth about $38,946 in national-average purchasing power.
Where do tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers get paid the most?
The table above ranks every state by median pay for this role. Keep in mind that the highest-paying states tend to have the highest costs of living, so the top salary doesn't always mean the most money in your pocket.