Bakers in South Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$30,265
after federal, FICA and South Carolina tax
Tax takes
$5,195
14.7% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$32,481
South Carolina costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in South Carolina — roughly, since only five points along the band are published.
One filer, standard deduction, no dependants and nothing paid in before tax — the same household the rest of this page uses, so the comparison holds. City and school-district income taxes are not included.
Median here
$35,460
Kept after tax
$30,265
Worth in national money
$32,481
State rank
33
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. South Carolina is 33 of 51 states for bakers, with a middle wage of $35,460. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Within South Carolina this is lower-paid work. Of 492 occupations the state publishes figures for, bakers ranks 434. That is the bottom quarter locally, whatever the national comparison says.
- Here is where South Carolina does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $35,460 you keep $30,265, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $32,481 would elsewhere. The average is lower, $34,980, so pay clusters nearer the top than usual.
- South Carolina ranks 33 of 51 for bakers at $35,460. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Against every occupation South Carolina reports, bakers ranks 434 of 492, in the lowest quartile of the state's distribution. That position is set by the local labor market and is independent of how the state compares nationally for this work.
- After federal, FICA and South Carolina income tax, retained pay for bakers on $35,460 is $30,265. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $32,481 in national-average terms. ⚠️ That figure is purchasing power, not a wage, and nobody is paid it; it is what the take-home buys. The mean of $34,980 falls below the median, a left skew that is uncommon in wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Bakers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $25,340 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $35,460 |
| Top tenth earn over | $45,330 |
| This salary | $35,460 |
Positions between the published tenth, quarter, half, three-quarter and ninetieth points are estimated by straight line.
The same pay, somewhere else
The state median for this job
| Take-home in South Carolina | $30,265 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $30,672 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$917 |
The raise and the real gain point in opposite directions here.
State income tax and state price levels only. No city income tax, and no housing market.
What you would need there
The state median for this job
| To match take-home only | $34,953 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$1,109 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 93 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- A median is the middle, not an offer. Half of bakers in South Carolina earn under $35,460 and half over. The published range runs $25,340 at the tenth percentile to $45,330 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In South Carolina the take-home figure of $30,265, from $35,460, assumes one filer, no dependants, and nothing paid into a pension before tax. Each of those lowers the bill, so treat it as the plain case. City and school-district income taxes are not included either, and in a few states those are real money. It ranks 434 of 492 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $32,481 uses one figure for the whole of South Carolina. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 492 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 434.
- Figures are distribution medians for bakers in South Carolina, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $25,340 to $45,330; within-state dispersion of that width routinely exceeds the dispersion between states, so tenure, employer and metropolitan area predict an individual's pay better than geography does.
- Take-home for South Carolina is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $30,265 from $35,460. Each omitted item reduces taxable income, so the figure is a lower bound on retained pay for this household shape. Municipal and school-district income taxes are excluded, which understates the burden materially in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Maryland. The occupation ranks 434 of 492 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $32,481, worked from $35,460, deflates by a statewide parity that conceals substantial intra-state variation, concentrated in housing — so it supports comparison between states rather than the pricing of a move to a particular South Carolina address, on work sitting at 434 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $25,340 at the bottom tenth to $45,330 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. South Carolina is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $32,481 in national terms.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Into four separate taxes, not one. Federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare apply everywhere, and South Carolina adds its own income tax on top — which is why $30,265 of this wage survives to your account.
Can I compare this job across every state?
This occupation is published everywhere — all 51 of them — so comparing states measures real differences rather than gaps in the data.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($25,340 to $45,330) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to South Carolina rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
South Carolina's regional price parity is at or below the national average, so nominal wages understate purchasing power. Take-home deflated by the state price level is $32,481 in national-average terms. The adjustment uses an all-items index and does not isolate housing.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $30,265 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and South Carolina income tax for a single filer with no adjustments. The state layer is levied in addition to the federal one; only its rate and base differ between states.
Is this occupation's state coverage complete?
State-level estimates are published for all 51 jurisdictions for this occupation, so cross-state comparison is not confounded by suppression. ⚠️ Estimates remain survey-based and carry sampling error; small differences between adjacent states should not be over-read.