How much does an RN make in South Carolina?

BLS reports a median annual wage of $79,900 for RNs 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 $75,210 and the 75th-percentile is $94,480.

How are South Carolina RN 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.

What does the top of the RN pay scale look like in South Carolina?

The 90th percentile lands at $102,040. That tier typically reflects senior roles, specialty certifications, high-cost-of-living metros within the state, or union-negotiated rate cards. Below that, the P75 quartile is $94,480.

How many RNs does South Carolina employ?

BLS OES counts 50,300 RNs 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.

Is South Carolina a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for RNs?

Yes — the BEA RPP of 93.5 is below the national 100 baseline, so nominal $79,900 stretches to a real-wage equivalent of $85,476. The take-home advantage versus a higher-RPP state is meaningful for RNs comparing offers across regions.

Should I negotiate based on the BLS median for South Carolina?

The BLS median is a calibration anchor, not a ceiling. Use it to validate that an offer is in-band — anything well below the P25 in this state is a flag, anything above the P75 typically requires demonstrable specialty depth, niche credentials, or a high-COL metro within South Carolina.

Travel RN vs staff RN in South Carolina — which earns more on a real basis?

Travel RN gross weekly is usually higher, but the real comparison nets out housing stipends (which are tax-advantaged but state-dependent), per-diem premiums, and the lack of staff-side benefits and pension accrual. In South Carolina, the real-wage gap is narrower than the headline contract numbers suggest.

South Carolina Registered Nurse Salary: BLS $80K Median, Real $85K (2026)

TL;DR

Median RN salary in South Carolina: $79,900 nominal, $85,476 real (BEA RPP basis).
Cost of living below the national index lifts real wage by $5,576 over the nominal — a take-home arbitrage that nominal-ranking tables miss.
Wage envelope: $64,200 (P10) to $102,040 (P90), with quartiles at $75,210 and $94,480.
South Carolina accepts the NLC multistate license; cross-state mobility is materially cheaper here than in non-compact states.
On a real-wage basis, this state sits at #47 of 51; nominal rank is #41.

Wage breakdown — South Carolina

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$64,200	$68,680
P25 (lower quartile)	$75,210	$80,458
P50 (median)	$79,900	$85,476
P75 (upper quartile)	$94,480	$101,073
P90 (top tier)	$102,040	$109,161
Mean	$84,930	$90,857
Employment	50,300 RNs 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 (RN)	$79,900	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$8,825	11.0% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$3,390	0–6.2% (graduated)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$6,112	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$61,572	77.1% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$65,869	÷ (93.5 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

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

Mid-band state-tax burden at 4.2% effective. Combined with federal and FICA, take-home is $61,572 (77.1% of gross). After the 93.5 RPP, real take-home is $65,869.

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 $93,600 for RNs with mean pay of $98,430 and total employment of 3,282,010. South Carolina sits at #41 on nominal pay and #47 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, South Carolina falls 6 positions — the cost premium eats into the headline wage.

Licensure — South Carolina (NLC)

South Carolina participates in the Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC), with effective participation since 2017. RNs holding a multistate license issued by another Compact state may practice in South Carolina without applying for a separate South Carolina license. South Carolina-issued multistate licenses are reciprocally recognized in 36 other Compact states (37 jurisdictions total in 2026), eliminating the per-state endorsement workflow ($100–$500 + 4–16 week processing) for travel and per-diem RN work.

South Carolina has been a Compact participant for 9 years as of 2026, putting it among the long-tenured members where the Compact pathway is the established norm at most employers and travel agencies.

Source: NCSBN compact implementation tracker — re-synced quarterly. See NLC reciprocity hub for the cross-state matrix and changelog for status changes.

Frequently asked questions

How much does an RN make in South Carolina?: BLS reports a median annual wage of $79,900 for RNs 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 $75,210 and the 75th-percentile is $94,480.
How are South Carolina RN 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.
What does the top of the RN pay scale look like in South Carolina?: The 90th percentile lands at $102,040. That tier typically reflects senior roles, specialty certifications, high-cost-of-living metros within the state, or union-negotiated rate cards. Below that, the P75 quartile is $94,480.
How many RNs does South Carolina employ?: BLS OES counts 50,300 RNs 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.
Is South Carolina a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for RNs?: Yes — the BEA RPP of 93.5 is below the national 100 baseline, so nominal $79,900 stretches to a real-wage equivalent of $85,476. The take-home advantage versus a higher-RPP state is meaningful for RNs comparing offers across regions.
Should I negotiate based on the BLS median for South Carolina?: The BLS median is a calibration anchor, not a ceiling. Use it to validate that an offer is in-band — anything well below the P25 in this state is a flag, anything above the P75 typically requires demonstrable specialty depth, niche credentials, or a high-COL metro within South Carolina.
Travel RN vs staff RN in South Carolina — which earns more on a real basis?: Travel RN gross weekly is usually higher, but the real comparison nets out housing stipends (which are tax-advantaged but state-dependent), per-diem premiums, and the lack of staff-side benefits and pension accrual. In South Carolina, the real-wage gap is narrower than the headline contract numbers suggest.

Sources & methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), SOC 29-1141, 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 2026-05-05.

Cross-comparison: see how South Carolina RN 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.