Protective Service Workers, All Other in South Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$37,028
after federal, FICA and South Carolina tax
Tax takes
$7,102
16.1% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$39,740
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
$44,130
Kept after tax
$37,028
Worth in national money
$39,740
State rank
33
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Middling, nationally. South Carolina pays this job around $44,130 at the midpoint, 33 of 51 states. The interesting numbers on this page are the two below it.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 492 occupations South Carolina reports figures for, this is number 348.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $44,130 you keep $37,028 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $39,740 at national prices. Averages run higher here, $45,790, since top earners drag the number up.
- For protective service workers, all other the South Carolina median is $44,130, ranking 33 of 51 states reporting. Mid-band nominal positions are the ones most frequently reordered by the adjustments, because no large wage premium exists to absorb a state's tax or price level.
- In South Carolina's occupational distribution, protective service workers, all other sits at 348 of 492 — neither quartile. This local position is what a resident compares against, and it is determined by the state's own labor market rather than by national patterns for this occupation.
- Retained pay in South Carolina is $37,028 after the full tax stack, from $44,130. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $39,740 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $45,790 exceeds the median, so the upper tail is doing the work.
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Pay band: Protective Service Workers, All Other
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $28,360 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $44,130 |
| Top tenth earn over | $63,760 |
| This salary | $44,130 |
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 | $37,028 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $37,638 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$1,007 |
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 | $43,371 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$1,218 |
| 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 protective service workers, all other in South Carolina earn under $44,130 and half over. The published range runs $28,360 at the tenth percentile to $63,760 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In South Carolina the take-home figure of $37,028, from $44,130, 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 348 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 $39,740 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 348.
- Figures are distribution medians for protective service workers, all other in South Carolina, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $28,360 to $63,760; 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 $37,028 from $44,130. 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 348 of 492 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $39,740, worked from $44,130, 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 348 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 $45,790, dragged up by high earners; the middle figure describes a typical worker better.
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
The label is broader than the work. From $28,360 at the bottom tenth to $63,760 at the top, the same title covers roles that share little beyond a name.
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 $39,740.
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 $37,028.
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 $45,790. 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 ($28,360) and the ninetieth ($63,760) 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 $39,740 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 $37,028 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.