Data Scientist Salary in South Carolina (2026)
The average Data Scientist in South Carolina earns around $145,000/year. After taxes, your estimated take-home is $102,831/year ($8,569/month).
Take-Home Pay Breakdown
| Category | Amount |
|---|---|
Annual Take-Home Pay | $102,831 |
Monthly Take-Home Pay | $8,569 |
Biweekly Take-Home Pay | $3,955 |
Hourly Take-Home Pay based on 2,080 hrs/year | $49/hr |
Federal Tax | $23,534 |
State Tax | $7,543 |
FICA Taxes | $11,093 |
Effective Tax Rate total taxes ÷ gross salary | 29.08% |
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Read the guideData Scientist Salary Ranges in South Carolina
Not all Data Scientists earn the same — not even close
South Carolina's data scientist market is anchored by BMW Spartanburg (~11K SC employees with substantial manufacturing analytics + connected vehicle telemetry ML for BMW's global X-series production), BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina HQ Columbia (~12K employees with substantial federal healthcare claims + fraud detection + actuarial ML), MUSC Charleston (academic medical center clinical research + cancer research ML), Boeing 787 Charleston (cleared aerospace manufacturing analytics), Sonoco Products HQ Hartsville (Fortune 500 packaging supply chain ML), Michelin North America HQ Greenville (tire manufacturing + telematics ML), plus Prisma Health + Roper healthcare analytics.
Principal Data Scientist / Director
$215,000–$365,000+ TC
BMW Director DS · BCBS Principal · Boeing Director · senior IC + leadership
Senior Data Scientist (Manufacturing)
$135,000–$210,000
BMW + Volvo + Mercedes-Benz Vans + Bosch · manufacturing analytics + yield + quality ML
Senior Data Scientist (Federal Healthcare)
$130,000–$200,000
BCBS SC · TRICARE + CMS claims fraud + risk adjustment + clinical ML specialty
Senior Data Scientist (Aerospace)
$135,000–$215,000
Boeing 787 Charleston · Lockheed Greenville · manufacturing + supply chain + cleared analytics
Senior Data Scientist (Healthcare / MUSC)
$120,000–$185,000
MUSC clinical research · Hollings Cancer Center · clinical + genomics + population health ML
Senior Data Scientist (Packaging / CPG)
$118,000–$180,000
Sonoco Products HQ Hartsville · Michelin NA tires · packaging + tire telematics analytics
Senior Research Scientist (Clemson / USC)
$115,000–$185,000
Clemson University engineering + USC research · academic ML · publication track
Mid-Level Data Scientist (3-6 yrs)
$92,000–$135,000
Functional DS at SC Fortune 500 · transitioning to senior band
Junior Data Scientist (0-3 yrs)
$72,000–$105,000
Clemson MS Data Science + USC Statistics + College of Charleston pipeline · entry band
Senior Data Scientist (Cleared SRS)
$140,000–$220,000
Savannah River Site Aiken · DOE national lab + nuclear weapons · TS/SCI clearance premium
Worth knowing: BMW Manufacturing Co. Spartanburg's manufacturing analytics organization is the country's largest single-OEM automotive manufacturing analytics environment outside Tesla and a feature most national DS surveys understate for SC. BMW Spartanburg (~$11B revenue, ~11K SC employees, BMW Group's largest global plant by output producing X3/X5/X6/X7/XM crossover SUVs for the world plus all of BMW's hybrid and EV SUV production in North America) operates substantial manufacturing analytics + yield + quality + supply chain ML supporting ~450K vehicle annual production. Senior BMW Spartanburg manufacturing DS clear $135-210K TC. BlueCross BlueShield of SC Columbia operates the country's largest US private federal healthcare claims analytics organization — substantial TRICARE + CMS Medicare claims processing analytics at federal contractor scale. The Hollings Cancer Center at MUSC Charleston (one of only 73 NCI-designated cancer centers nationally) operates substantial clinical research data science + cancer genomics ML. Sonoco Products HQ Hartsville (Fortune 500 packaging, ~$7B revenue, founded 1899) operates global supply chain + manufacturing analytics. Clemson University engineering + USC research anchor academic pipeline. SC's 6.5% top bracket catches senior DS at $250K+ TC but is substantially lower than OR/MN's 9.85-9.9% tops. SC has 0% income tax up to $3,460 — first-bracket exempt income.
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More on South Carolina
Salaries by profession, top-paying roles by industry, and an economic breakdown for South Carolina in 2026.
Tax brackets, standard deductions, and take-home estimates for South Carolina in 2026.
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