How much do welders make an hour in Sumter, SC?

The median hourly wage is $21.41. The middle half earn between $18.35 and $26.53 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)

What do apprentice welders make in Sumter, SC?

BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $16.99 an hour ($35,340 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $18.35.

Do welders make more in Sumter or Charlotte?

Charlotte pays more: the median is $44,540 in Sumter and $56,070 in Charlotte, a 21% difference.

How does Sumter pay compare with the rest of South Carolina?

The Sumter median of $44,540 is 11% less than the South Carolina median of $49,980.

Welder salary in Sumter, SC

Updated September 26, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025

Welders in the Sumter, SC area earn a median of $44,540 a year, or $21.41 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The top 10% earn more than $78,140. Across all of South Carolina, the median is $49,980, so Sumter pays 11% less than the state as a whole.

Median yearly pay$44,540

Bottom 10% under$35,340Top 10% over$78,140

Apprentice starting pay (estimate): $16.99/hr
Jobs in this area: 170
After cost of living: $50,600
Median hourly pay: $21.41/hr
vs U.S. median: −17%
vs South Carolina median: −11%

Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (area 44940, Sumter, SC). Excludes self-employed welders. Cost of living: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024. *Starting pay is estimated from the 10th percentile; BLS does not report pay by license level.

Entry-level to top welder pay

Stage	Yearly pay	Hourly pay
Entry level	$35,340–$38,180$16.99–$18.35/hr
Experienced welder	$44,540$21.41/hr
Top earners	$55,170–$78,140$26.53–$37.57/hr

Estimated from BLS percentiles (10th–25th, median, 75th–90th); BLS does not report pay by license level.

How Sumter, SC compares

Sumter has the lowest welder median of the 10 South Carolina metro areas with published pay.
Welders are more concentrated in the Sumter area than nationally: 4.8 of every 1,000 jobs, 1.8 times the U.S. share.
The 90th-percentile wage, $78,140, is 2.2 times the 10th-percentile wage, $35,340: a measure of how much pay rises with experience and specialty.

Other South Carolina metro areas

Other trades in Sumter, SC

Electrician HVAC technician Plumber

Questions

How much do welders make in Sumter, SC?: Welders in the Sumter, SC area earn a median of $44,540 a year, or $21.41 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The top 10% earn more than $78,140.
How much do welders make an hour in Sumter, SC?: The median hourly wage is $21.41. The middle half earn between $18.35 and $26.53 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)
What do apprentice welders make in Sumter, SC?: BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $16.99 an hour ($35,340 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $18.35.
Do welders make more in Sumter or Charlotte?: Charlotte pays more: the median is $44,540 in Sumter and $56,070 in Charlotte, a 21% difference.
How does Sumter pay compare with the rest of South Carolina?: The Sumter median of $44,540 is 11% less than the South Carolina median of $49,980.

About this data

Wages are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey for May 2025, occupation 51-4121 (Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers), area code 44940 (Sumter, SC). BLS counts wage and salary workers only, so self-employed welders 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 (88.0, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 26, 2026. How we calculate these figures