SOC 27-3042 · May 2025 · BLS OEWS
Technical Writers — South Dakota
South Dakota
The median wage for Technical Writers in South Dakota is $63,350 per year, substantially below the national median of $90,390 — a gap of 29.9%.
Wage distribution · annual
Shaded band holds the middle 50% of earners
How pay has moved
The next ten years
Projected to grow more slowly than average
- Change in jobs, 2024 to 2034
- +0.9%
- Openings per year
- 4,500
- Typical entry-level education
- Bachelor's degree
- Related work experience
- Less than 5 years
- On-the-job training
- Short-term on-the-job training
Includes jobs opened by workers leaving the occupation, not only new positions.
Projections are published nationally only. This is the outlook for the occupation across the United States, not a measurement for South Dakota.
Projections are based on 2024 employment and run to 2034. The wages above are from the May 2025 survey, a separate BLS programme on a different release cycle, so the two are not two views of one dataset.
Salary overview
The median wage for Technical Writers in South Dakota is $63,350 per year, substantially below the national median of $90,390 — a gap of 29.9%. Half of workers earn between $53,730 and $75,500. Beyond that band, the tenth percentile sits at $49,490 and the ninetieth at $84,090.
Employment stands at 70, or 0.1 jobs per thousand held locally. South Dakota ranks number 44th out of 45 states by median pay for this occupation. Of the 563 occupations with published wages in this area, it sits 197th.
Percentile breakdown
| Percentile | Annual | vs US median |
|---|---|---|
| 10th | $49,490 | −45.2% |
| 25th | $53,730 | −40.6% |
| Median (50th) | $63,350 | −29.9% |
| 75th | $75,500 | −16.5% |
| 90th | $84,090 | −7.0% |
| Mean | $65,090 | −28.0% |
What the pay is worth locally
Prices in South Dakota run 11.4% below the national average, so the median of $63,350 goes as far as $71,501 would elsewhere in the country. Measured that way it compares to the national median at 20.9% below the national median in real terms.
Published median
$63,350as reported by BLSLocal price level
88.6US average = 100 · BEA 2024Adjusted for local prices
$71,501US average = 100 · BEA 2024Why the state that pays most is usually not where pay goes furthest
Key takeaways
- Median pay is $63,350 a year, 29.9% below the national median.
- Published pay spans $49,490 to $84,090 between the tenth and ninetieth percentiles.
- The area has 70 jobs in this occupation.
- It ranks 44th of 45 states for this occupation.
Frequently asked questions
What is the median wage for Technical Writers in South Dakota?
The median annual wage is $63,350, or $30.46 per hour, as of May 2025. Half of the workers in this occupation earn more than that and half earn less.
Is that higher than the national average?
The national median for this occupation is $90,390, so pay in South Dakota is 29.9% lower. These figures are medians, not averages: half of workers fall on each side.
What do the top earners make?
The top tenth of this occupation in South Dakota earns more than $84,090 per year. The ninetieth percentile is the highest figure the survey publishes.
What is the starting range?
The tenth percentile wage is $49,490 per year. The survey measures wages actually paid rather than experience level, so this reflects the lowest-paid tenth rather than entry-level pay specifically.
How many jobs are there in this occupation here?
The survey estimates 70 jobs in this occupation in South Dakota. Self-employed workers are not included.
Source and methodology
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 Wages are for wage-and-salary workers; self-employed workers are not included. Salary Explorer is an independent project. It is not affiliated with, or endorsed by, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics or any government agency. Full methodology.
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