How much does a Financial Advisor make in South Carolina?

BLS reports a median annual wage of $98,900 for Financial Advisors in South Carolina as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $63,750 and the 75th-percentile is $168,370.

What is the real (cost-adjusted) Financial Advisor salary in South Carolina?

After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 93.5 for South Carolina), the real-wage equivalent is $105,801 — what the $98,900 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $68,199 to $180,119.

How are South Carolina Financial Advisor salaries calculated on this page?

Nominal wages come from BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES) — annual employer surveys, May 2026 reference period. Real-wage figures use BEA Regional Price Parities (2023 vintage) to adjust for state-level cost of living. No self-report or jobs-board data is mixed in.

How many Financial Advisors does South Carolina employ?

BLS OES counts 2,070 Financial Advisors employed in South Carolina in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.

Why is the BEA RPP for South Carolina different from a single CPI number?

BEA splits regional price parity into three components — goods, services, and rents — reweighted to the BEA's national consumption basket. South Carolina's overall index of 93.5 reflects rents 80.5, services 85.8, and goods 95.9.

When does this data update?

BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.

AUM-fee economics — what does it take to earn the South Carolina BLS median?

The classic 1% AUM fee on a $50M practice yields $500K gross revenue. After overhead (typically 30-50% of revenue: staff, technology, custodial fees, compliance, rent, marketing) the principal advisor in South Carolina nets $250-350K, well above the BLS-reported W-2 median for SOC 13-2052. To match the BLS-reported median for South Carolina as a wirehouse W-2 advisor, the typical book size required is $30-40M AUM at standard grid payouts — achievable in 5-10 years with strong recruiting and referral systems. Below that production threshold, wirehouse advisors are typically counseled out or transition to support roles.

South Carolina Financial Advisor Salary: BLS $99K Median, Real $106K (2026)

TL;DR

South Carolina pays Financial Advisors a BLS median of $98,900 — the more useful number is $105,801, what that paycheck buys after rent and services.
After the cost-of-living adjustment, take-home rises by $6,901 versus the BLS median — purchasing-power arbitrage.
Quartile range $63,750 (bottom 25%) to $168,370 (top 25%). BLS suppresses the P10 or P90 tail for this state, typically because the top tier exceeds the OES wage cap.
Financial Advisor ranking: #20 on the BLS table, #14 once cost of living is in.

Wage breakdown — South Carolina

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$51,360	$54,944
P25 (lower quartile)	$63,750	$68,199
P50 (median)	$98,900	$105,801
P75 (upper quartile)	$168,370	$180,119
P90 (top tier)
Mean	$140,490	$150,294
Employment	2,070 Financial Advisors in South Carolina

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	South Carolina index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	93.5
Goods	95.9
Services	85.8
Rents	80.5

South Carolina sits below the national baseline (RPP 93.5), so nominal pay translates to a higher real wage than the BLS median suggests — particularly visible in rents at 80.5.

After-tax take-home — South Carolina (2024 BLS · 2024 tax year, single filer)

Layer-by-layer take-home math at the BLS median

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (Financial Advisor)	$98,900	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$13,005	13.1% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$4,568	0–6.2% (graduated)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$7,566	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$73,761	74.6% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$78,908	÷ (93.5 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

What the South Carolina state-tax burden means for Financial Advisor take-home

Mid-band state-tax burden at 4.6% effective. Combined with federal and FICA, take-home is $73,761 (74.6% of gross). After the 93.5 RPP, real take-home is $78,908.

Computed from 2026 IRS federal brackets (Rev. Proc. 2025-32), 2026 state DOR brackets, and 2026 FICA rates. Single filer, standard deduction, no other adjustments. See methodology · tax for limitations (married filers, ITM/SALT itemizers, retirement deferrals, HSA, dependent credits, etc.).

National context

Across the United States, BLS reports a national median of $102,140 for Financial Advisors with mean pay of $160,210 and total employment of 270,480. South Carolina sits at #20 on nominal pay and #14 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, South Carolina climbs 6 positions — the cost of living is favorable relative to the wage.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a Financial Advisor make in South Carolina?: BLS reports a median annual wage of $98,900 for Financial Advisors in South Carolina as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $63,750 and the 75th-percentile is $168,370.
What is the real (cost-adjusted) Financial Advisor salary in South Carolina?: After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 93.5 for South Carolina), the real-wage equivalent is $105,801 — what the $98,900 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $68,199 to $180,119.
How are South Carolina Financial Advisor salaries calculated on this page?: Nominal wages come from BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES) — annual employer surveys, May 2026 reference period. Real-wage figures use BEA Regional Price Parities (2023 vintage) to adjust for state-level cost of living. No self-report or jobs-board data is mixed in.
How many Financial Advisors does South Carolina employ?: BLS OES counts 2,070 Financial Advisors employed in South Carolina in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.
Why is the BEA RPP for South Carolina different from a single CPI number?: BEA splits regional price parity into three components — goods, services, and rents — reweighted to the BEA's national consumption basket. South Carolina's overall index of 93.5 reflects rents 80.5, services 85.8, and goods 95.9.
When does this data update?: BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.
AUM-fee economics — what does it take to earn the South Carolina BLS median?: The classic 1% AUM fee on a $50M practice yields $500K gross revenue. After overhead (typically 30-50% of revenue: staff, technology, custodial fees, compliance, rent, marketing) the principal advisor in South Carolina nets $250-350K, well above the BLS-reported W-2 median for SOC 13-2052. To match the BLS-reported median for South Carolina as a wirehouse W-2 advisor, the typical book size required is $30-40M AUM at standard grid payouts — achievable in 5-10 years with strong recruiting and referral systems. Below that production threshold, wirehouse advisors are typically counseled out or transition to support roles.

Sources & methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), SOC 13-2052, 2024 reference period.
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis — Regional Price Parities, 2023 vintage (all-items, goods, services, rents).
Real-wage figures = nominal BLS wage ÷ (state RPP / 100).
See the methodology page for full computation details and limitations.

By Marcus Liang · Founder & Editor · Last synced 2026-05-08.

Cross-comparison: see how South Carolina Financial Advisor pay ranks against the other 254 state × occupation pages on the Real Wage Atlas → — four-way ranking by real wage, after-tax take-home, state-tax savings, and cost-of-living arbitrage.