Bakers in South Dakota
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$32,986
after federal, FICA and South Dakota tax
Tax takes
$5,354
14.0% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$37,444
South Dakota costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in South Dakota — 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
$38,340
Kept after tax
$32,986
Worth in national money
$37,444
State rank
14
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- This is a good state for the work. South Dakota pays bakers a middle wage of $38,340, ranking 14 of 51 states and sitting about 3.18% above the national middle.
- Measured against other jobs in South Dakota, this one sits low: 393 of 457 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Here is where South Dakota does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $38,340 you keep $32,986, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $37,444 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $39,050, because the best-paid pull it up.
- South Dakota's median for bakers is $38,340, about 3.18% above the national figure and 14 of 51 states reporting. Whether that premium reaches the worker depends on the two adjustments below, which is the part a wage table cannot tell you.
- Bakers occupies position 393 of 457 in South Dakota's occupational wage distribution, in the bottom quartile. National ranking and local ranking answer different questions and frequently disagree; this is the one a resident experiences.
- After federal, FICA and South Dakota income tax, retained pay for bakers on $38,340 is $32,986. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $37,444 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 $39,050 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Bakers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $28,880 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $38,340 |
| Top tenth earn over | $50,360 |
| This salary | $38,340 |
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 Dakota | $32,986 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $32,986 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$3,499 |
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 | $38,340 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$4,231 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 88 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in South Dakota earn less than $38,340. The published range is $28,880 up to $50,360, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind South Dakota's $32,986, worked from $38,340. That is on purpose. It lets states be compared with each other, not with each other's family circumstances. Local city taxes are left out. Locally this work ranks 393 of 457.
- One number stands for prices across all of South Dakota, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $37,444, the adjusted value of that $38,340 median, as a way to compare states fairly, not as a quote for any particular place. The two datasets are also from different years. This job sits at 393 of 457 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for bakers in South Dakota the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $28,880 to $50,360. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- The South Dakota take-home of $32,986, on $38,340 for work ranking 393 of 457 locally, models the simplest household deliberately: holding it constant is what makes the interstate comparison meaningful. It also means the absolute figure overstates liability for most real filers, and municipal income taxes are outside the model entirely. The occupation ranks 393 of 457 in the state.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for South Dakota, so $37,444 — the adjusted value of that $38,340 median — establishes comparability between states rather than accuracy within one. The wage and parity series are dated independently, each following its own publication cycle, and neither is projected forward. This occupation sits at 393 of 457 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $28,880 and the top tenth $50,360, so most people doing this work in South Dakota sit within a fairly tight band.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. South Dakota is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $37,444 in national terms.
Is most of this wage taxed away?
Most of it arrives. $32,986 lands after tax, since there is no state income tax on wages here — though the federal floor is identical in every state.
Can I compare this job across every state?
All 51 jurisdictions report this work, which makes the ranking a like-for-like one.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($28,880 to $50,360) 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 Dakota rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
South Dakota'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 $37,444 in national-average terms. The adjustment uses an all-items index and does not isolate housing.
Why is the take-home ratio comparatively high in this state?
South Dakota levies no personal income tax on wages, so take-home of $32,986 reflects the federal layer and FICA alone. Federal income tax and FICA are unchanged; states without a wage income tax generally recover revenue through consumption and property bases instead.
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.