Sewing Machine Operators in South Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$32,451
after federal, FICA and South Carolina tax
Tax takes
$5,799
15.2% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$34,827
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
$38,250
Kept after tax
$32,451
Worth in national money
$34,827
State rank
18
of 50 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- South Carolina sits in the middle of the pack for sewing machine operators. The median is $38,250, ranking 18 of 50 states with figures. Close enough to the national middle that where you live matters more than the headline suggests.
- Measured against other jobs in South Carolina, this one sits low: 403 of 492 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $38,250 you keep $32,451 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $34,827 at national prices. Here the average runs under the middle, at $37,820.
- South Carolina occupies the middle band for sewing machine operators: a median of $38,250, ranking 18 of 50. Where nominal pay is close to the national figure, the tax and price adjustments below carry proportionally more weight in determining the real outcome.
- Sewing machine operators occupies position 403 of 492 in South Carolina's occupational wage distribution, in the bottom quartile. National ranking and local ranking answer different questions and frequently disagree; this is the one a resident experiences.
- Retained pay in South Carolina is $32,451 after the full tax stack, from $38,250. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $34,827 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $37,820 sits under the median, so the lower tail is the longer one.
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Pay band: Sewing Machine Operators
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $26,690 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $38,250 |
| Top tenth earn over | $47,210 |
| This salary | $38,250 |
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 | $32,451 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $32,914 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$957 |
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 | $37,674 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$1,157 |
| 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 sewing machine operators in South Carolina earn under $38,250 and half over. The published range runs $26,690 at the tenth percentile to $47,210 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- That $32,451 take-home in South Carolina comes from $38,250. 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 403 of 492.
- Two cautions on $34,827, the adjusted value of that $38,250 median. It levels out prices with a single number for all of South Carolina. No actual address matches that. The wage figures and price figures are also from different years. Each is published on its own timetable. This work sits at 403 of 492 locally.
- Figures are distribution medians for sewing machine operators in South Carolina, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $26,690 to $47,210; 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.
- Retained pay of $32,451, from $38,250, 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 403 of 492 locally, and the state ranks 18 of 50 for it.
- This $34,827 adjusted figure, worked from $38,250, rests on a state-level price parity averaging over within-state dispersion larger than much of the between-state dispersion. Wage and price vintages differ by publication schedule. The result is directionally sound and not address-specific, for work at 403 of 492 in the state. The occupation ranks 403 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $26,690 and the top tenth $47,210, so most people doing this work in South Carolina sit within a fairly tight band.
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 $34,827.
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 $32,451.
Why is this job missing from some states?
Because the survey suppresses a figure when too few employers report it. This occupation has published pay in 50 states — the rest are withheld to protect confidentiality, which is not the same as nobody doing the work there.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($26,690 to $47,210) 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 $34,827 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 $32,451 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.
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 50 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.