Special Education Teachers, Middle School in South Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$50,430
after federal, FICA and South Carolina tax
Tax takes
$11,880
19.1% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$54,123
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
$62,310
Kept after tax
$50,430
Worth in national money
$54,123
State rank
34
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. South Carolina is 34 of 51 states for this job, with a middle wage of $62,310. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Ordinary, locally speaking. This job ranks 189 among 492 occupations South Carolina publishes pay for.
- Here is where South Carolina does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $62,310 you keep $50,430, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $54,123 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $64,550, because the best-paid pull it up.
- South Carolina ranks 34 of 51 for special education teachers, middle school at $62,310. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Position 189 of 492 in South Carolina places special education teachers, middle school in the middle of the state's wage distribution. Because within-state and cross-state rankings measure different things, this figure and the national one above should be read together rather than as a single verdict.
- After federal, FICA and South Carolina income tax, retained pay for special education teachers, middle school on $62,310 is $50,430. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $54,123 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 $64,550 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
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Pay band: Special Education Teachers, Middle School
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $48,900 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $62,310 |
| Top tenth earn over | $81,280 |
| This salary | $62,310 |
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 | $50,430 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $52,246 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$358 |
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 | $60,050 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$433 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 93 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $62,310 as a midpoint for South Carolina, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $48,900 and the ninetieth is $81,280 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- In South Carolina the take-home figure of $50,430, from $62,310, 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 189 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 $54,123 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 189.
- The South Carolina median of $62,310 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $48,900 to $81,280. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- Take-home for South Carolina is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $50,430 from $62,310. 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 189 of 492 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $54,123, worked from $62,310, 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 189 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
Half earn more than this and half earn less. The average sits at $64,550 because a long tail of high pay lifts it, so the two answer different questions.
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $48,900 at the tenth percentile, $81,280 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 $54,123 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 $50,430.
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 $64,550. 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 is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($48,900 to $81,280) 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 $54,123 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 $50,430 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.