Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers in South Carolina
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$31,456
after federal, FICA and South Carolina tax
Tax takes
$5,524
14.9% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$33,759
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
$36,980
Kept after tax
$31,456
Worth in national money
$33,759
State rank
30
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- South Carolina sits in the middle of the pack for this job. The median is $36,980, ranking 30 of 51 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: 414 of 492 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- South Carolina is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $36,980 the take-home is $31,456; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $33,759 would nationally. The average comes to $37,000, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- South Carolina occupies the middle band for veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers: a median of $36,980, ranking 30 of 51. Where nominal pay is close to the national figure, the tax and price adjustments below carry proportionally more weight in determining the real outcome.
- Veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers occupies position 414 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.
- Post-tax income for veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers in South Carolina, on $36,980, is $31,456 — equivalent to $33,759 once regional price parity is applied. ⚠️ The adjustment uses a statewide index that describes no particular address; within-state price variation, concentrated in housing, routinely exceeds the difference between two states. At $37,000 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
Compare this career across states
Choose your filing status and local taxes, compare pay, and keep a shortlist.Compare wage and personal-pay outcomes by state, with selected resident local taxes and saved career choices.
Pay band: Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $27,390 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $36,980 |
| Top tenth earn over | $48,630 |
| This salary | $36,980 |
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 | $31,456 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $31,893 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$939 |
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 | $36,436 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$1,135 |
| 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 veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers in South Carolina earn under $36,980 and half over. The published range runs $27,390 at the tenth percentile to $48,630 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In South Carolina the take-home figure of $31,456, from $36,980, 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 414 of 492 occupations here.
- Two cautions on $33,759, the adjusted value of that $36,980 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 414 of 492 locally.
- Figures are distribution medians for veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers in South Carolina, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $27,390 to $48,630; 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 $31,456 from $36,980. 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 414 of 492 locally.
- This $33,759 adjusted figure, worked from $36,980, 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 414 of 492 in the state. The occupation ranks 414 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $27,390 and the top tenth $48,630, 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 $33,759 in national terms.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Three of them are federal and one is not. After income tax, Social Security, Medicare and South Carolina's own levy, $31,456 remains.
Can I compare this job across every state?
Yes for this one. Pay is published in all 51 jurisdictions, so a state-to-state comparison here rests on the same survey everywhere rather than on a patchwork.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($27,390 to $48,630) 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 $33,759 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 $31,456 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.