What General and Operations Managers earn in James City County, VA
If you are weighing a move or a job offer, start with $100,340: the median annual pay for General and Operations Managers in James City County, VA. Spread over a standard 2,080-hour work year, that is $48.24 an hour. Because the wage survey covers the whole Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC metropolitan area, the number reflects employers across the region rather than a single town or a single company.
The mean wage is $117,850, which is 17.5% above the median, a sign that a group of high earners lifts the average. The survey counts about 17,400 people working in this occupation across the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC metropolitan area, so the estimate rests on a substantial pool of workers. James City County, VA has roughly 81,013 residents, according to the population figures used by the rent data.
The salary range, from entry level to top earners
Pay for General and Operations Managers in the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC metropolitan area is not one number. The lowest-paid tenth of workers earn up to $47,490 a year ($22.83 an hour), while the highest-paid tenth earn $206,480 or more ($99.27 an hour). That is a gap of $158,990 between the bottom and the top of the scale. The middle half of workers falls between $64,650 at the 25th percentile and $151,650 at the 75th percentile. A top-tier earner makes 4.3 times what someone at the bottom makes, so experience, certification and employer all matter.
What the hourly rate looks like
Employers quote this occupation by the hour or by the year, so here are both: $48.24 an hour or $100,340 a year at the median for James City County, VA. Before any deductions, that is $8,362 a month, $3,859 every two weeks and $1,930 each week. After taxes the same job pays $35.66 per hour of take-home income, which is the number that actually has to cover rent and groceries.
About this occupation: General and Operations Managers
The U.S. Department of Labor's O*NET database describes the work of General and Operations Managers this way: "Plan, direct, or coordinate the operations of public or private sector organizations, overseeing multiple departments or locations. Duties and responsibilities include formulating policies, managing daily operations, and planning the use of materials and human resources, but are too diverse and general in nature to be classified in any one functional area of management or administration, such as personnel, purchasing, or administrative services. Usually manage through subordinate supervisors. Excludes First-Line Supervisors."
Core tasks recorded by O*NET include: "Direct and coordinate activities of businesses or departments concerned with the production, pricing, sales, or distribution of products"; "Review financial statements, sales or activity reports, or other performance data to measure productivity or goal achievement or to identify areas needing cost reduction or program improvement"; "Direct administrative activities directly related to making products or providing services"; "Prepare staff work schedules and assign specific duties".
Job outlook for General and Operations Managers
The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects national employment in this occupation to grow from 3,599,000 jobs in 2025 to 3,780,300 in 2035, a change of +5%, faster than the 3.5% projected for all occupations. The projection counts 285,000 openings a year on average, including positions created by growth and positions left by workers who retire or move to another occupation; that equals 7.9% of current employment each year.
Typical entry-level education: bachelor's degree. Work experience in a related occupation: 5 years or more. BLS lists a national median annual wage of $105,770 for this occupation; the James City County, VA median of $100,340 is 5.1% below it.
How pay in James City County, VA compares
Compared with the Virginia average
Pay in James City County, VA runs $38,100 below the Virginia average of $138,440, a gap of 27.5%. A worker who moved to a better-paying part of Virginia would, on paper, gain that difference before taxes. Within Virginia, the highest median we track for this job is $156,460 in Fairfax County, VA.
Compared with the national average
The national employment-weighted average for General and Operations Managers is $110,123 across the contiguous United States. At $100,340, James City County, VA pays $9,783 less, which is 8.9% below that benchmark. Keep in mind that a higher salary only helps if living costs do not rise faster, which is why the cost sections below matter as much as the headline number.
Where this job ranks in James City County, VA
Among the 520 occupations with published wages in James City County, VA, General and Operations Managers ranks number 69 by median pay, ahead of about 87% of them. The best-paying occupation we track here is Software Developers at $129,090 a year, which is $28,750 more than the median for General and Operations Managers.
From gross pay to take-home pay
Three separate tax bills sit between the gross salary and the bank account: federal income tax, FICA, and state income tax. For General and Operations Managers earning the James City County, VA median of $100,340, they add up to $26,170. The result is $74,170 of take-home pay a year ($6,181 a month), based on a single filer using the standard deduction.
Put another way, of every $100 earned, about $26 goes to taxes and $74 reaches the paycheck. The overall effective tax rate is 26.1%.
Federal income tax
After the $15,750 standard deduction, taxable income is $84,590. Federal brackets are marginal, so only the slice of income above each threshold is taxed at the higher rate; the last dollars of this salary fall in the 22% bracket. The resulting federal income tax is $13,524, an effective 13.5% of gross pay, well below the 22% marginal rate because the lower brackets are cheaper.
Social Security and Medicare (FICA)
Payroll taxes are a flat percentage of wages. Social Security takes 6.2% up to a wage base of $176,100, which costs $6,221 on this salary. Medicare takes 1.45%, or $1,455. FICA totals $7,676, which is 7.6% of gross pay.
State income tax in Virginia
Virginia income tax on this salary is $4,970 a year, or 5.0% of gross pay, after the state's own deductions and exemptions are applied. That is 37% of the federal income tax bill, and it comes out to $414 a month. Local taxes such as county or city income taxes are not included, so a few jurisdictions may withhold slightly more.
A cross-check with IRS data for James City County, VA
IRS Statistics of Income data for James City County, VA show an average adjusted gross income of $116,479 per return and an average effective federal income tax rate of 14.3% across all filers. Filers in the $100,000 to under $200,000 bracket, where this salary falls, paid an average of 11.1%, compared with the 13.5% estimated here for a single filer taking the standard deduction. Gaps between the two reflect filing status, dependents, credits and other income, none of which a single-person wage estimate includes.
Cost of living in James City County, VA
Take-home pay only means something next to what life costs. We price four basics for one adult in James City County, VA: a one-bedroom apartment, food, home energy and gasoline. All of them are converted to annual figures first, then compared with the $74,170 of take-home pay.
Rent
Housing is the largest line in most budgets. For James City County, VA, HUD sets the Fair Market Rent for a one-bedroom unit at $1,488 a month ($17,856 a year), and at $1,667 for two bedrooms. For General and Operations Managers, a one-bedroom absorbs 24.1% of take-home pay and 17.8% of gross pay.
Food
The USDA Thrifty Food Plan (August 2026) puts the cost of a nutritious home-cooked diet for an adult at about $3,436 a year, which is $286 a month or $66.07 a week. That equals 3.4% of gross pay for General and Operations Managers in James City County, VA. It is a thrifty budget with no restaurant meals, so treat it as a floor.
Energy and gasoline
Using Virginia residential prices from the Energy Information Administration and national household averages for consumption, electricity costs about $1,523 a year and other home energy such as natural gas about $597, for $2,119 in total. Gasoline in Virginia averages $3.09 per gallon; at about 463 gallons a year (11,106 miles at 24 miles per gallon) fuel adds $1,429.
What is left over
Rent, food, energy and gasoline cost $24,840 a year in James City County, VA. Subtract that from $74,170 of take-home pay and $49,331 remains, which is $4,111 a month of breathing room. That margin equals 49.2% of gross pay, a comfortable cushion by common budgeting rules.
Local housing and commute data for James City County, VA
The budget above covers rent, food, energy and gasoline. Three more local facts shape what a paycheck buys in James City County, VA: property taxes, housing prices and the daily commute. The figures below are exact U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates for James City County, VA, set beside the Virginia and national medians.
Property taxes in James City County, VA
Homeowners in James City County, VA pay a median of $2,901 a year in real estate taxes, 4% above the Virginia median of $2,790 and 7% below the U.S. median of $3,119. Against a median home value of $447,200, the median tax bill is 0.65% of that value (the ratio of the two county medians). For a worker paid the local General and Operations Managers median of $100,340, a tax bill of that size would equal 2.9% of gross pay, which matters for anyone planning to buy rather than rent.
Rents, home prices and household income in James City County, VA
Renters in James City County, VA pay a median gross rent of $1,552 a month in the Census survey, 2% below the Virginia median of $1,579. HUD's Fair Market Rent for a one-bedroom apartment, which this site uses in the budget, is $1,488 a month; the two measures differ because the Census figure covers units of every size that renters already occupy, while the HUD figure is a one-bedroom benchmark. The median value of an owner-occupied home is $447,200, 17% above the Virginia median of $383,700. Median household income is $109,985, 18% above the Virginia median of $93,170, so a year of one-bedroom Fair Market Rent equals 16.2% of that income.
Commuting in James City County, VA
Workers in James City County, VA who travel to a workplace spend an average of 26.6 minutes each way, 3% below the Virginia average of 27.3. For someone who commutes five days a week, that is 4.4 hours of round-trip travel every week, a cost the budget does not price. 17.4% of workers in James City County, VA work from home, compared with 15.1% nationally, which removes the commute for them.
Can General and Operations Managers afford to live in James City County, VA?
The 30% rent guideline
A common rule of thumb says rent should stay under 30% of gross income. For a gross salary of $100,340 that ceiling is $2,508 a month. The one-bedroom Fair Market Rent of $1,488 is $1,020 under it, so rent fits the guideline. Put as a wage, covering a one-bedroom at the 30% guideline takes $28.62 an hour; the median for General and Operations Managers is $48.24, which is 69% above that mark. Another way to see it: at $35.66 of take-home pay an hour, a one-bedroom takes about 9.6 working hours every week.
Splitting a two-bedroom
Sharing a two-bedroom at $1,667 a month means $834 each. Compared with renting a one-bedroom alone, that saves $7,854 a year. With a roommate, the yearly margin after the basics becomes $57,185.
How fast you can save
At $4,111 a month of margin, building a $10,000 emergency fund would take about 3 months. Setting aside half of the margin stretches the same goal to about 6 months. These figures ignore interest, raises and any spending beyond the four basics.
Frequently asked questions about General and Operations Managers pay in James City County, VA
How much do General and Operations Managers make per hour in James City County, VA?
The median is $48.24 per hour, based on $100,340 a year over 2,080 hours. Hourly pay runs from about $22.83 at the 10th percentile to $99.27 at the 90th percentile.
How much do General and Operations Managers take home after taxes in James City County, VA?
After federal income tax, FICA and state income tax, the median salary of $100,340 becomes $74,170 a year. That is $6,181 a month, $2,853 every two weeks or $1,426 a week.
How much tax do General and Operations Managers pay in James City County, VA?
Total taxes are $26,170 a year, an effective rate of 26.1%: $13,524 federal income tax, $7,676 FICA and $4,970 Virginia income tax.
Do General and Operations Managers earn more in James City County, VA than elsewhere in Virginia?
No. The local median of $100,340 is -27.5% versus the Virginia average of $138,440, a difference of $38,100 a year.
Can General and Operations Managers afford a one-bedroom apartment in James City County, VA?
A one-bedroom costs $1,488 a month against take-home pay of $6,181, which is 24.1% of take-home pay. That meets the 30%-of-gross guideline, which allows up to $2,508 a month.
What is the monthly budget margin for General and Operations Managers in James City County, VA?
About $4,111 a month ($49,331 a year) remains after a one-bedroom apartment, food, home energy and gasoline, which together cost $24,840 a year.
What hourly wage covers a one-bedroom in James City County, VA at the 30% guideline?
$28.62 an hour for a full-time schedule, calculated as the $17,856 annual rent divided by 0.30 and by 2,080 hours. The median for General and Operations Managers is $48.24.
How we calculated these numbers
Wages are May 2025 medians from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey for the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC metropolitan area; hourly-only values are annualized at 2,080 hours. Rents are HUD Fair Market Rents, food costs come from the USDA Thrifty Food Plan, and energy prices come from the Energy Information Administration. County-level tax statistics come from the IRS Statistics of Income.
Taxes use tax-year 2025 federal brackets, FICA rates and the Virginia rules for a single filer with wage income only. Figures are estimates for planning and comparison, not tax or financial advice, and they exclude local income taxes, benefits, retirement contributions and individual circumstances.