Do carpenters make more in Columbia or Augusta?

Augusta pays more: the median is $48,070 in Columbia and $58,930 in Augusta, a 18% difference.

Carpenter salary in Columbia, SC

Updated September 27, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025

Carpenters in the Columbia, SC area earn a median of $48,070 a year, or $23.11 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The top 10% earn more than $77,860. That's 5% less than the South Carolina median of $50,670.

Median yearly pay$48,070

Bottom 10% under$36,390Top 10% over$77,860

Apprentice starting pay (estimate): $17.49/hr
Jobs in this area: 880
After cost of living: $51,320
Median hourly pay: $23.11/hr
vs U.S. median: −21%
vs South Carolina median: −5%
Mean (average) pay: $53,260 a year · $25.60 an hour

Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (area 17900, Columbia, SC). Excludes self-employed carpenters. Cost of living: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024. *Starting pay is estimated from the 10th percentile; BLS does not report pay by license level.

Pay by percentile

What carpenters in Columbia, SC earn at each point of the pay range, May 2025: 10% earn less than the 10th percentile, half earn less than the median, and 10% earn more than the 90th.

Percentile	Hourly	Yearly
10th percentile	$17.49	$36,390
25th percentile	$20.13	$41,880
Median (50th)	$23.11	$48,070
75th percentile	$28.49	$59,260
90th percentile	$37.44	$77,860

BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. BLS yearly figures are the hourly wage times 2,080 hours.

How Columbia, SC compares

Columbia ranks 8th of 10 South Carolina metro areas for carpenter pay.
Carpenters are less concentrated in the Columbia area than nationally: 2.2 of every 1,000 jobs, 0.52 times the U.S. share.

Other South Carolina metro areas

Other trades in Columbia, SC

Electrician HVAC technician Welder Lineman Plumber Diesel mechanic Elevator mechanic Heavy equipment operator Auto mechanic Roofer Ironworker

Questions

Do carpenters make more in Columbia or Augusta?: Augusta pays more: the median is $48,070 in Columbia and $58,930 in Augusta, a 18% difference.

About this data

Wages are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey for May 2025, occupation 47-2031 (Carpenters), area code 17900 (Columbia, SC). BLS counts wage and salary workers only, so self-employed carpenters and business owners aren't included. The cost-of-living figure divides the median by the Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parity for 2024 (93.7, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 27, 2026. How we calculate these figures