How much do welders make an hour in Rapid City, SD?

The median hourly wage is $24.85. The middle half earn between $21.30 and $30.36 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)

What do apprentice welders make in Rapid City, SD?

BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $18.43 an hour ($38,340 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $21.30.

Do welders make more in Rapid City or Sioux City?

Sioux City pays more: the median is $51,690 in Rapid City and $58,230 in Sioux City, a 11% difference.

How does Rapid City pay compare with the rest of South Dakota?

The Rapid City median of $51,690 is 5% more than the South Dakota median of $49,440.

Welder salary in Rapid City, SD

Updated September 26, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025

Welders in the Rapid City, SD area earn a median of $51,690 a year, or $24.85 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. One in ten earns more than $71,000. That's 5% more than the South Dakota median of $49,440.

Median yearly pay$51,690

Bottom 10% under$38,340Top 10% over$71,000

Apprentice starting pay (estimate): $18.43/hr
Jobs in this area: 200
After cost of living: $57,970
Median hourly pay: $24.85/hr
vs U.S. median: −4%
vs South Dakota median: +5%

Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (area 39660, Rapid City, SD). 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	$38,340–$44,300$18.43–$21.30/hr
Experienced welder	$51,690$24.85/hr
Top earners	$63,160–$71,000$30.36–$34.13/hr

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

How Rapid City, SD compares

Rapid City has the lowest welder median of the 3 South Dakota metro areas with published pay.
Welders hold about the same share of jobs in the Rapid City area as nationally: 2.8 of every 1,000 jobs.
The 90th-percentile wage, $71,000, is 1.9 times the 10th-percentile wage, $38,340: a measure of how much pay rises with experience and specialty.

Other South Dakota metro areas

Other trades in Rapid City, SD

Electrician HVAC technician Lineman Plumber

Questions

How much do welders make in Rapid City, SD?: Welders in the Rapid City, SD area earn a median of $51,690 a year, or $24.85 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. One in ten earns more than $71,000.
How much do welders make an hour in Rapid City, SD?: The median hourly wage is $24.85. The middle half earn between $21.30 and $30.36 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)
What do apprentice welders make in Rapid City, SD?: BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $18.43 an hour ($38,340 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $21.30.
Do welders make more in Rapid City or Sioux City?: Sioux City pays more: the median is $51,690 in Rapid City and $58,230 in Sioux City, a 11% difference.
How does Rapid City pay compare with the rest of South Dakota?: The Rapid City median of $51,690 is 5% more than the South Dakota median of $49,440.

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 39660 (Rapid City, SD). 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 (89.2, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 26, 2026. How we calculate these figures