Conservation Scientists in South Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$43,059
after federal, FICA and South Carolina tax
Tax takes
$9,251
17.7% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$46,212
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
$52,310
Kept after tax
$43,059
Worth in national money
$46,212
State rank
50
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Pay for conservation scientists is on the low side in South Carolina. The middle earner gets $52,310. That is 50 of 51 states, and about 28.35% under the national figure. Whether that matters depends on what things cost here.
- Against other work in South Carolina, this sits in the middle: 254 of 492 occupations with published pay. Solidly ordinary for the state, which is not the same as ordinary nationally.
- South Carolina is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $52,310 the take-home is $43,059; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $46,212 would nationally. The average comes to $60,250, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- For conservation scientists, South Carolina sits in the lower band at $52,310, ranking 50 of 51 and trailing the national median by about 28.35%. Nominal rankings routinely invert once tax and regional price level are applied, so this position should not be read as the conclusion.
- Conservation scientists ranks 254 of 492 occupations in South Carolina by median pay, in the middle bands. Within-state and national positions are separate measurements and a job commonly sits in different quartiles on each.
- Post-tax income for conservation scientists in South Carolina, on $52,310, is $43,059 — equivalent to $46,212 once regional price parity is applied. ⚠️ The adjustment uses a statewide index that describes no particular address; within-state price variation, concentrated in housing, routinely exceeds the difference between two states. At $60,250 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
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Pay band: Conservation Scientists
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $37,810 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $52,310 |
| Top tenth earn over | $96,100 |
| This salary | $52,310 |
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 | $43,059 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $44,211 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$715 |
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 | $50,876 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$865 |
| 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 conservation scientists in South Carolina earn under $52,310 and half over. The published range runs $37,810 at the tenth percentile to $96,100 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In South Carolina the take-home figure of $43,059, from $52,310, 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 254 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 $46,212 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 254.
- Figures are distribution medians for conservation scientists in South Carolina, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $37,810 to $96,100; 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 $43,059 from $52,310. 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 254 of 492 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $46,212, worked from $52,310, 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 254 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $60,250, dragged up by high earners; the middle figure describes a typical worker better.
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
One title, many jobs. The lowest tenth take $37,810, the highest tenth $96,100, and what separates them is experience, employer and what exactly the role does.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
A smaller wage in a cheaper place is not automatically less. Adjusted for local prices, this is worth $46,212.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Three of them are federal and one is not. After income tax, Social Security, Medicare and South Carolina's own levy, $43,059 remains.
Can I compare this job across every state?
Yes for this one. Pay is published in all 51 jurisdictions, so a state-to-state comparison here rests on the same survey everywhere rather than on a patchwork.
How does the published median differ from the mean for this occupation?
The median is the midpoint of the distribution; the mean for this occupation in South Carolina is $60,250. Wage distributions are right-skewed, so the mean exceeds the median wherever a minority earn substantially more. BLS publishes both because substituting one for the other misstates a typical worker's pay.
What drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($37,810) and the ninetieth ($96,100) exceeds the family median dispersion. SOC codes aggregate roles differing in seniority, industry and specialisation, and BLS does not disaggregate below the detailed occupation level, so within-title variance is not separable from the published series.
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 $46,212 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 $43,059 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.