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Map of South Dakota showing 2 metro areas with skilled trade pay data
South Dakota: 2 metros with trade pay data

Wind Turbine Technician pay in South Dakota

Statewide and by city · BLS, May 2025

$73,820statewide median a year
$35.49median an hour
#9of 25 states
180wind turbine technicians employed statewide

Statewide pay Government data

Wind turbine technicians in South Dakota earn a statewide median of $73,820 a year, 17% above the typical U.S. metro, ranking #9 of 25 states. About 180 people work in the trade statewide.

Statewide pay range

$46,350Entry · 10th$60,91025th$73,820Median$77,96075th$79,300Top · 90th

States ranked near South Dakota

Iowa$74,880
Colorado$74,740
Ohio$73,880
South Dakota$73,820
North Dakota$66,700
North Carolina$66,380
Arizona$66,330

See all states on the wind turbine technician overview.

Pay by city Government data

BLS publishes wind turbine technician pay for 1 South Dakota metro: Sioux Falls.

MetroMedian payReal payJobs
Sioux FallsSOUTH DAKOTA · SD$62,650$69,126100

Pay: BLS OEWS, May 2025 (metro-level). Real pay: BEA price parities, 2024. How we calculate

Pay outside the cities Government data

BLS also reports pay for South Dakota's rural (nonmetropolitan) regions.

East South Dakota$78,140

BLS OEWS nonmetropolitan areas, May 2025.

The job (national)

Blueprint-style drawing of an electrical panel feeding branch circuits, illustrating wind turbine technician work in South Dakota
Wind Turbine Technician pay in South Dakota: $73,820 statewide median, BLS May 2025.

Inspect, diagnose, adjust, or repair wind turbines. Perform maintenance on wind turbine equipment including resolving electrical, mechanical, and hydraulic malfunctions.

Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 29.5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 1,500 openings a year. Typical training: long-term on-the-job training.

Nationally, wind turbine technicians have 133 injuries or illnesses serious enough to miss work per 10,000 full-time workers, 1.5× the rate for all jobs (87). The most common cause is being struck by or caught in objects and equipment.

What the work is like Government data

How often wind turbine technicians deal with each condition, from surveys of workers in the job.

Outdoors, in all kinds of weatherVery often
Indoors with heating and air conditioningOccasionally
Very hot or cold conditionsVery often
Working at heightsVery often
Climbing ladders, scaffolds or polesOften
Cramped spaces and awkward positionsVery often
Loud noiseVery often
Hazardous conditionsVery often
Standing, bending, kneeling and walkingOften
SittingOccasionally

Getting started usually takes medium preparation (vocational training or an apprenticeship, often 1–2+ years).

O*NET 31.0 Work Context and Job Zones (U.S. Department of Labor), national.

Licensing in South Dakota Official source

The main state licensing office in South Dakota is the South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation. The state licenses electricians and plumbers. It can point you to the right license for wind turbine technicians.

Official South Dakota licensing site ↗

Requirements for wind turbine technicians vary by state and sometimes by city; always confirm with the official agency.

Union membership

In 2025, 2.3% of wage and salary workers in South Dakota were union members, below the U.S. rate of about 10% (#51 of 51 states and D.C.), and 3.1% were covered by a union contract. These figures cover all jobs in the state, not only wind turbine technicians.

BLS Union Members, 2025 (Current Population Survey), table 5.

Cities in South Dakota

Sioux FallsSOUTH DAKOTA · SD+9.5%population since 2020 · 2.0% unemployment

All trades in South Dakota.

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