Civil Engineers in South Dakota
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$78,265
after federal, FICA and South Dakota tax
Tax takes
$20,435
20.7% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$88,842
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
$98,700
Kept after tax
$78,265
Worth in national money
$88,842
State rank
27
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. South Dakota is 27 of 51 states for civil engineers, with a middle wage of $98,700. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- This is one of the better-paid jobs in South Dakota. It ranks 43 out of 457 occupations the state publishes figures for, which puts it in the top quarter locally.
- Here is where South Dakota does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $98,700 you keep $78,265, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $88,842 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $99,500, because the best-paid pull it up.
- South Dakota ranks 27 of 51 for civil engineers at $98,700. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Within South Dakota, civil engineers ranks 43 of 457 occupations by median pay, placing it in the top quartile of the local distribution. This is the comparison a resident actually makes — against neighbors rather than against the same job elsewhere.
- After federal, FICA and South Dakota income tax, retained pay for civil engineers on $98,700 is $78,265. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $88,842 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 $99,500 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Civil Engineers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $70,050 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $98,700 |
| Top tenth earn over | $127,090 |
| This salary | $98,700 |
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 | $78,265 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $78,265 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$8,301 |
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 | $98,700 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$11,467 |
| 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 $98,700. The published range is $70,050 up to $127,090, 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 $78,265, worked from $98,700. 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 43 of 457.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $88,842 uses one figure for the whole of South Dakota. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 457 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 43.
- Reported values are medians; for civil engineers in South Dakota the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $70,050 to $127,090. 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 $78,265, on $98,700 for work ranking 43 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 43 of 457 in the state.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $88,842, worked from $98,700, 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 Dakota address, on work sitting at 43 of 457 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $70,050 at the bottom tenth to $127,090 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in South Dakota sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $88,842 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
Is most of this wage taxed away?
No. $78,265 survives, because South Dakota levies no wage income tax. The federal share does not change with the state you work in.
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 ($70,050 to $127,090) 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 $88,842 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 $78,265 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.