Surgical Technologists in South Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$50,320
after federal, FICA and South Carolina tax
Tax takes
$11,840
19.0% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$54,005
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
$62,160
Kept after tax
$50,320
Worth in national money
$54,005
State rank
33
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. South Carolina is 33 of 51 states for surgical technologists, with a middle wage of $62,160. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 492 occupations South Carolina reports figures for, this is number 190.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $62,160 you keep $50,320 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $54,005 at national prices. Here the average runs under the middle, at $60,050.
- South Carolina ranks 33 of 51 for surgical technologists at $62,160. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- In South Carolina's occupational distribution, surgical technologists sits at 190 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 $50,320 after the full tax stack, from $62,160. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $54,005 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $60,050 sits under the median, so the lower tail is the longer one.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Surgical Technologists
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $38,830 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $62,160 |
| Top tenth earn over | $75,210 |
| This salary | $62,160 |
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 | $50,320 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $52,126 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$364 |
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 | $59,913 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$440 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 93 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $62,160 as a midpoint for South Carolina, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $38,830 and the ninetieth is $75,210 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind South Carolina's $50,320, worked from $62,160. 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 190 of 492.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $54,005 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 190.
- The South Carolina median of $62,160 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $38,830 to $75,210. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- The South Carolina take-home of $50,320, on $62,160 for work ranking 190 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 190 of 492 in the state.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $54,005, worked from $62,160, 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 190 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
No — it is the middle. Half of these workers earn more and half earn less. The average is $60,050, pulled upward by the top of the range, which is why the middle is the fairer number to plan against.
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $38,830 and the top tenth $75,210, so most people doing this work in South Carolina sit within a fairly tight band.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. South Carolina is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $54,005 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 $50,320.
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 $60,050. 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 ($38,830 to $75,210) 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 $54,005 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 $50,320 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.