The top 25 occupations in South Carolina ranked by 2026 median annual salary. Based on BLS data projected forward with South Carolina cost-of-living adjustment.
Ranked by median annual base salary. Click any role for full South Carolina-specific detail.
| Rank | Role | Median 2026 | 75th % | Top 10% (P90) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | CEO (Mid-Market) Business & Management | $448,100 | $582,600 | $739,400 |
| #2 | Surgeon Healthcare | $368,700 | $479,300 | $608,300 |
| #3 | Chief Financial Officer Finance | $337,500 | $438,700 | $556,800 |
| #4 | Physician (MD/DO) Healthcare | $237,700 | $309,000 | $392,200 |
| #5 | Corporate Lawyer Legal | $202,700 | $263,500 | $334,400 |
| #6 | Investment Banker Finance | $183,800 | $239,000 | $303,300 |
| #7 | Dentist Healthcare | $174,600 | $227,000 | $288,100 |
| #8 | AI Engineer Technology | $173,800 | $226,000 | $286,800 |
| #9 | Machine Learning Engineer Technology | $159,000 | $206,700 | $262,400 |
| #10 | Senior Software Engineer Technology | $155,300 | $201,900 | $256,300 |
| #11 | Site Reliability Engineer Technology | $149,800 | $194,700 | $247,100 |
| #12 | IT Manager Technology | $146,100 | $189,900 | $241,000 |
| #13 | Controller Finance | $143,300 | $186,300 | $236,400 |
| #14 | Judge / Magistrate Legal | $143,300 | $186,300 | $236,400 |
| #15 | Management Consultant Business & Management | $141,900 | $184,500 | $234,100 |
| #16 | Product Manager Technology | $140,500 | $182,700 | $231,900 |
| #17 | Lawyer / Attorney Legal | $139,500 | $181,400 | $230,200 |
| #18 | Petroleum Engineer Engineering | $138,200 | $179,600 | $228,000 |
| #19 | Sales Engineer Sales | $138,200 | $179,600 | $228,000 |
| #20 | Data Scientist Technology | $136,800 | $177,900 | $225,800 |
| #21 | Marketing Manager Business & Management | $135,400 | $176,000 | $223,400 |
| #22 | Pharmacist Healthcare | $133,900 | $174,100 | $220,900 |
| #23 | Account Executive (SaaS) Sales | $132,600 | $172,300 | $218,700 |
| #24 | Data Engineer Technology | $131,300 | $170,700 | $216,600 |
| #25 | Cloud Engineer (AWS/Azure) Technology | $131,300 | $170,700 | $216,600 |
In South Carolina, the highest-paying job tracked is CEO (Mid-Market), with a median salary of $448,100 in 2026. The 90th percentile reaches $739,400.
Salaries are based on BLS OEWS data, projected forward to 2026 using category-specific wage growth and adjusted for South Carolina's cost-of-living index. The ranking shows median annual base pay (excluding bonuses, equity, and benefits).
Most of the top 25 highest-paying jobs in South Carolina typically require at least a bachelor's degree, and many require advanced degrees (medicine, law, engineering specializations). Trades roles are notable exceptions — they appear in some state rankings without requiring four-year degrees.