What skilled trades pay in South Carolina, where the jobs are and how work is changing, from 37 public government sources. The best-paying trade here is elevator installer at a $90,860 median. For every trade and metro, start from the South Carolina pay page.
How South Carolina compares
3 of the 40 trades we track in South Carolina pay more than in a typical U.S. metro. The biggest premiums are for auto body repairer (+3%), hazmat removal worker (+2%) and machinist (+2%), and the biggest gaps for rebar worker (-28%) and brickmason (-22%). Prices in South Carolina's metros run about 7% below the U.S. average, and a typical 1-bedroom rents for $1,180 a month (U.S. metros: $1,097).
Best-paying trades in South Carolina
Statewide median pay, BLS May 2025. The lowest-paying trade we track here is landscaper at $36,710.
Every trade in South Carolina
Statewide medians and jobs, BLS OEWS May 2025. “vs. U.S.” compares with the typical U.S. metro median for the trade.
Where the jobs are
- Maintenance Technician: 28,020 jobs
- Construction Laborer: 19,620 jobs
- Landscaper: 15,600 jobs
- Auto Mechanic: 13,420 jobs
- Construction Supervisor: 13,150 jobs
South Carolina metros, best pay first
Ranked by how each metro's trade pay compares with all U.S. metros, averaged across trades.
Construction hiring
- Charleston: +8.8% (25,246 workers)
- Columbia: +3.8% (17,654 workers)
- Spartanburg: +2.6% (7,766 workers)
- Greenville: +2.2% (24,262 workers)
- Myrtle Beach: +0.4% (9,665 workers)
- Hilton Head Island: -4.3% (6,094 workers)
Change in private construction jobs from a year earlier, 2026 Q1, metros with at least 5,000 construction workers (BLS QCEW).
Unions
2.7% of South Carolina workers belong to a union (4.1% are covered by a union contract), compared with about 10% nationally (all jobs, 2025).
Apprenticeships
Registered apprentices in South Carolina who finished or left a program in FY2020–2024 completed most often in carpenter (98%), diesel mechanic (92%) and industrial machinery mechanic (76%).
Wages and safety
Unpaid wages recovered
Since 2018, the U.S. Labor Department has concluded 216 wage cases against construction employers in South Carolina, recovering $2,112,112 in back wages for 1,643 workers.offer check and keep your own record of hours.
DOL Wage and Hour Division enforcement data, cases concluded 2018–2026. Counts only; employers aren't named here.
Safety inspections
In 2025, South Carolina's state-run safety program and federal OSHA opened 284 inspections of construction worksites in the state. About 15% were set off by a complaint, a referral or an accident (15 after an accident or fatality); the rest were planned spot checks.
OSHA inspection data via the U.S. Department of Labor, construction (NAICS 23), inspections opened in 2025. Counts only.
Storm and disaster rebuild work
Since 2016, the South Carolina metros with the most federal major disasters are Charleston (9), Hilton Head Island (8) and Greenville (7) (FEMA).
Veterans
Veterans: train on the job with the GI Bill
In South Carolina, 597 employers and programs are approved for GI Bill on-the-job training and apprenticeships, across all fields. Veterans in an approved trade apprenticeship can get a monthly housing allowance on top of apprentice pay. Search approved employers with the VA's GI Bill Comparison Tool.
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, GI Bill Comparison Tool data, October 2026.
Common questions
What is the highest-paying skilled trade in South Carolina?
Elevator Installer pays the most of the trades we track, with a $90,860 statewide median (BLS, May 2025), followed by electrical lineworker and construction supervisor.
Which trade has the most jobs in South Carolina?
maintenance technicians, with about 28,020 jobs statewide, followed by construction laborers and landscapers.
Which South Carolina city pays the trades best?
Spartanburg, compared with other U.S. metros across the trades we track, followed by Charleston.
Is construction hiring growing in South Carolina?
In 2026 Q1, private construction jobs were up 8.8% from a year earlier in Charleston, the fastest-changing large market in the state, and down 4.3% in Hilton Head Island.
Part of the State of Trade Pay 2026 report. Cite as “PayByTrade, State of Trade Pay in South Carolina 2026, payby.trade/report/sc/.”