Physics Teachers, Postsecondary in South Dakota
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$69,338
after federal, FICA and South Dakota tax
Tax takes
$16,672
19.4% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$78,708
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
$86,010
Kept after tax
$69,338
Worth in national money
$78,708
State rank
38
of 47 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- South Dakota is among the lower-paying states for physics teachers, postsecondary. The middle earner takes $86,010, ranking 38 of 47 states — about 14.26% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- This is one of the better-paid jobs in South Dakota. It ranks 66 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 $86,010 you keep $69,338, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $78,708 would elsewhere. The average is lower, $84,720, so pay clusters nearer the top than usual.
- South Dakota ranks 38 of 47 for physics teachers, postsecondary, with a median of $86,010 — about 14.26% 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.
- Within South Dakota, physics teachers, postsecondary ranks 66 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 physics teachers, postsecondary on $86,010 is $69,338. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $78,708 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 $84,720 falls below the median, a left skew that is uncommon in wage data.
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Pay band: Physics Teachers, Postsecondary
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $56,590 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $86,010 |
| Top tenth earn over | $107,950 |
| This salary | $86,010 |
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 | $69,338 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $69,338 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$7,354 |
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 | $86,010 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$10,159 |
| 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 $86,010. The published range is $56,590 up to $107,950, 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 $69,338, worked from $86,010. 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 66 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 $78,708, the adjusted value of that $86,010 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 66 of 457 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for physics teachers, postsecondary in South Dakota the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $56,590 to $107,950. 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 $69,338, on $86,010 for work ranking 66 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 66 of 457 in the state.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for South Dakota, so $78,708 — the adjusted value of that $86,010 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 66 of 457 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $56,590 at the tenth percentile, $107,950 at the ninetieth.
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 $78,708 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
Is most of this wage taxed away?
Less than people assume. $69,338 of this wage reaches your account, because South Dakota takes no income tax from wages — but federal tax, Social Security and Medicare still apply exactly as they do everywhere else.
Why is this job missing from some states?
The survey withholds small samples rather than publish an unreliable number. Pay appears for 47 states here, and a missing state means too few reports, not no jobs.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($56,590 to $107,950) 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 $78,708 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 $69,338 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.
Why does this occupation lack published estimates in every state?
BLS suppresses estimates failing disclosure or reliability criteria. This occupation has published state-level estimates in 47 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.