Optometrists in South Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$104,385
after federal, FICA and South Carolina tax
Tax takes
$41,565
28.5% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$112,029
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
$145,950
Kept after tax
$104,385
Worth in national money
$112,029
State rank
15
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- This is a good state for the work. South Carolina pays optometrists a middle wage of $145,950, ranking 15 of 51 states and sitting about 6.87% above the national middle.
- This is one of the better-paid jobs in South Carolina. It ranks 9 out of 492 occupations the state publishes figures for, which puts it in the top quarter locally.
- Here is where South Carolina does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $145,950 you keep $104,385, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $112,029 would elsewhere. The average is lower, $129,570, so pay clusters nearer the top than usual.
- South Carolina's median for optometrists is $145,950, about 6.87% above the national figure and 15 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.
- Within South Carolina, optometrists ranks 9 of 492 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 Carolina income tax, retained pay for optometrists on $145,950 is $104,385. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $112,029 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 $129,570 falls below the median, a left skew that is uncommon in wage data.
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Pay band: Optometrists
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $51,740 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $145,950 |
| Top tenth earn over | $172,060 |
| This salary | $145,950 |
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 | $104,385 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $111,023 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$2,222 |
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 | $136,238 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$3,159 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 93 |
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 Carolina earn less than $145,950. The published range is $51,740 up to $172,060, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- That $104,385 take-home in South Carolina comes from $145,950. It is the no-frills case: single filer, standard deduction, nothing set aside before tax. Real circumstances almost always reduce the tax. City and school-district taxes are not counted at all. Locally the work ranks 9 of 492.
- One number stands for prices across all of South Carolina, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $112,029, the adjusted value of that $145,950 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 9 of 492 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for optometrists in South Carolina the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $51,740 to $172,060. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Retained pay of $104,385, from $145,950, assumes a single South Carolina filer with the standard deduction and no elective deferrals. Pre-tax retirement or HSA contributions, dependants and itemized deductions all reduce it further; local income taxes, excluded here, would increase it in the states that levy them. This occupation ranks 9 of 492 locally, and the state ranks 15 of 51 for it.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for South Carolina, so $112,029 — the adjusted value of that $145,950 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 9 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 $129,570, 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 $51,740, the highest tenth $172,060, and what separates them is experience, employer and what exactly the role does.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in South Carolina sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $112,029 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Four deductions, stacked. The federal layer and the two payroll taxes apply wherever you work; South Carolina then takes its own share, leaving $104,385.
Can I compare this job across every state?
All 51 jurisdictions report this work, which makes the ranking a like-for-like one.
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 $129,570. 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 ($51,740) and the ninetieth ($172,060) 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 $112,029 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 $104,385 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.