Paramedics in South Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$43,973
after federal, FICA and South Carolina tax
Tax takes
$9,577
17.9% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$47,193
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
$53,550
Kept after tax
$43,973
Worth in national money
$47,193
State rank
41
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- South Carolina is among the lower-paying states for paramedics. The middle earner takes $53,550, ranking 41 of 51 states — about 11.63% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- Against other work in South Carolina, this sits in the middle: 247 of 492 occupations with published pay. Solidly ordinary for the state, which is not the same as ordinary nationally.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $53,550 you keep $43,973 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $47,193 at national prices. Averages run higher here, $55,130, since top earners drag the number up.
- South Carolina ranks 41 of 51 for paramedics, with a median of $53,550 — about 11.63% below the national figure. A nominal shortfall is not by itself a real one: lower-paying states frequently carry lower tax and lower price levels, and the adjusted figures below are where that is settled rather than assumed.
- Paramedics ranks 247 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.
- Retained pay in South Carolina is $43,973 after the full tax stack, from $53,550. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $47,193 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $55,130 exceeds the median, so the upper tail is doing the work.
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Pay band: Paramedics
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $40,710 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $53,550 |
| Top tenth earn over | $67,180 |
| This salary | $53,550 |
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 | $43,973 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $45,207 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$671 |
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 | $52,013 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$812 |
| 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 paramedics in South Carolina earn under $53,550 and half over. The published range runs $40,710 at the tenth percentile to $67,180 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind South Carolina's $43,973, worked from $53,550. 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 247 of 492.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $47,193 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 247.
- Figures are distribution medians for paramedics in South Carolina, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $40,710 to $67,180; 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.
- The South Carolina take-home of $43,973, on $53,550 for work ranking 247 of 492 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 247 of 492 in the state.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $47,193, worked from $53,550, 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 247 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $40,710 at the tenth percentile, $67,180 at the ninetieth.
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 $47,193 in national terms.
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 $43,973.
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 ($40,710 to $67,180) 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 $47,193 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 $43,973 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.