GeraJobs / US Wage Premium / Charleston County, SC
Charleston County, South Carolina — Wages & Employment (2023)
Ranked #317 of 3,141 US counties by the Gera Local Wage Premium US (89.5, US = 100) — computed from real BLS QCEW 2023 establishment data.
What is the average wage in Charleston County, SC?
Charleston County, SC has a GLWP-US of 89.5 (rank #317 of 3,141), below the US average. Average weekly wage: $1246 (~$64,792/year, US = $1392/wk). Its highest-concentration sector is Real Estate & Rental and Leasing (LQ 1.50x). Source: BLS QCEW 2023.
Gera Local Wage Premium US
Charleston County's wage premium vs US average (rank #317 of 3,141). Below the US average.
How this is calculated$1,246
Avg weekly wage (2023)
$64,792
Approx annual pay
89.5
GLWP-US (US = 100)
#317 / 3,141
National rank
274,104
Average employment
$1,392
US avg weekly wage
Charleston County vs US average — wage comparison
| Metric | Charleston County | US Average | Premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Avg weekly wage | $1,246 | $1,392 | -$146 |
| Approx annual pay | $64,792 | $72,384 | -$7,592 |
| GLWP-US index | 89.5 | 100.0 | -10.5 |
Source: BLS QCEW 2023, all industries, all ownership types. Annual pay = weekly wage × 52 (derived). GLWP-US = (county wage / US $1392/wk) × 100.
Charleston County — top industries by employment concentration
Location Quotient (LQ) > 1.0 means the industry is more concentrated here than the US average. Private sector, BLS QCEW 2023.
| Industry (NAICS sector) | LQ | Avg Wk Wage (sector) |
|---|---|---|
| Real Estate & Rental and Leasing | 1.50x | $1,419 |
| Accommodation & Food Services | 1.44x | $623 |
| Administrative & Support Services | 1.23x | $868 |
| Professional, Scientific & Technical Services | 1.09x | $1,950 |
| Arts, Entertainment & Recreation | 1.08x | $611 |
LQ = (county sector employment share) / (US sector employment share). Source: BLS QCEW 2023, agglvl_code=74, own_code=5 (private sector).
Charleston County — GLWP-US breakdown
GLWP-US
89.5
US = 100
National Rank
#317
of 3,141 counties
Wage Premium
$146
vs US avg/wk
GLWP-US = 89.5 (rank #317 of 3,141, below the US average). Formula: ($1246/wk ÷ $1392/wk) × 100 = 89.5.
Explore US County Wage Premiums — Interactive
US average = $$1,392/wk (GLWP-US 100). Showing top 50 results.
| Rank | County | State | GLWP-US | Avg Wk Wage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #311 | Berkeley County | SC | 89.7 | $1,249 |
| #317 | Charleston County | SC | 89.5 | $1,246 |
| #436 | Fairfield County | SC | 84.2 | $1,172 |
| #451 | Aiken County | SC | 83.8 | $1,167 |
| #452 | Lancaster County | SC | 83.8 | $1,166 |
| #458 | Richland County | SC | 83.6 | $1,164 |
| #461 | Greenville County | SC | 83.5 | $1,162 |
| #547 | Calhoun County | SC | 81.8 | $1,138 |
| #613 | York County | SC | 80.5 | $1,120 |
| #711 | Spartanburg County | SC | 78.2 | $1,089 |
| #778 | Darlington County | SC | 77.3 | $1,076 |
| #801 | Chester County | SC | 77.0 | $1,072 |
| #929 | Oconee County | SC | 75.3 | $1,048 |
| #941 | Allendale County | SC | 75.1 | $1,046 |
| #1,055 | Lexington County | SC | 73.7 | $1,026 |
| #1,205 | Jasper County | SC | 71.9 | $1,001 |
| #1,238 | Marlboro County | SC | 71.6 | $997 |
| #1,290 | Pickens County | SC | 71.0 | $988 |
| #1,301 | Beaufort County | SC | 70.9 | $987 |
| #1,350 | Dorchester County | SC | 70.5 | $982 |
| #1,360 | Sumter County | SC | 70.4 | $980 |
| #1,384 | Greenwood County | SC | 70.2 | $977 |
| #1,480 | Florence County | SC | 69.3 | $964 |
| #1,489 | Williamsburg County | SC | 69.2 | $963 |
| #1,519 | Edgefield County | SC | 69.0 | $960 |
| #1,566 | Laurens County | SC | 68.7 | $956 |
| #1,638 | Anderson County | SC | 68.1 | $948 |
| #1,691 | Georgetown County | SC | 67.6 | $941 |
| #1,833 | Hampton County | SC | 66.5 | $925 |
| #2,021 | Chesterfield County | SC | 64.9 | $904 |
| #2,022 | Newberry County | SC | 64.9 | $903 |
| #2,054 | Abbeville County | SC | 64.7 | $900 |
| #2,055 | Lee County | SC | 64.7 | $901 |
| #2,064 | Union County | SC | 64.6 | $899 |
| #2,144 | Orangeburg County | SC | 64.0 | $891 |
| #2,172 | Colleton County | SC | 63.7 | $887 |
| #2,193 | Kershaw County | SC | 63.5 | $884 |
| #2,217 | Horry County | SC | 63.3 | $881 |
| #2,374 | Cherokee County | SC | 62.0 | $863 |
| #2,427 | Saluda County | SC | 61.6 | $857 |
| #2,529 | Marion County | SC | 60.5 | $842 |
| #2,589 | Bamberg County | SC | 59.9 | $834 |
| #2,752 | Barnwell County | SC | 58.0 | $808 |
| #2,874 | Clarendon County | SC | 56.1 | $781 |
| #2,958 | McCormick County | SC | 54.7 | $761 |
| #2,962 | Dillon County | SC | 54.6 | $760 |
Source: BLS QCEW 2023 Annual Single File, US public domain. GLWP-US = (county avg weekly wage ÷ US avg $1,392/wk) × 100. Top sector LQ = employment location quotient (private sector). Computed by GeraJobs.
Charleston County wages — FAQ
- What is the GLWP-US score for Charleston County, SC?
- Charleston County, SC has a Gera Local Wage Premium US (GLWP-US) of 89.5 (US average = 100), ranking #317 of 3,141 US counties. This puts it below the US average. Source: BLS QCEW 2023.
- What is the average weekly wage in Charleston County, South Carolina?
- The BLS QCEW 2023 data shows the annual average weekly wage in Charleston County, South Carolina is $1246, equating to approximately $64,792/year. The US average is $1392/wk ($72,384/year). GLWP-US: 89.5 (US = 100).
- How many people are employed in Charleston County?
- In 2023, Charleston County, South Carolina had an annual average employment of 274,104 workers covered by unemployment insurance, per the BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages. This covers private-sector and government workers across all industries.
- What industries are most concentrated in Charleston County?
- Based on BLS QCEW 2023 employment Location Quotients, the most concentrated private-sector industries in Charleston County, South Carolina are: Real Estate & Rental and Leasing (LQ 1.50x, avg $1419/wk); Accommodation & Food Services (LQ 1.44x, avg $623/wk); Administrative & Support Services (LQ 1.23x, avg $868/wk); Professional, Scientific & Technical Services (LQ 1.09x, avg $1950/wk); Arts, Entertainment & Recreation (LQ 1.08x, avg $611/wk). An LQ above 1.0 means the county has a higher share of that industry than the US overall.
- How does Charleston County's wage compare to South Carolina overall?
- Charleston County has a GLWP-US of 89.5 vs the US average of 100. To see how Charleston County compares to other counties in South Carolina, explore the full GeraJobs US Wage Premium rankings. The GLWP-US is computed from BLS QCEW 2023 establishment data covering all industries and ownership types.
How the Gera Local Wage Premium US is calculated
GLWP-US = (county avg weekly wage / US avg weekly wage) × 100. US average $1392/wk in 2023 → US = 100 by construction. Data: BLS QCEW 2023 annual singlefile, all industries, all ownership. Suppressed cells excluded. No imputation. Full methodology · Licence: US public domain.
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Other counties in South Carolina by GLWP-US
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Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, QCEW 2023 Annual Single File (data.bls.gov/cew/data/files/2023/csv/2023_annual_singlefile.zip). US public domain. Area title from BLS area_titles.csv. FIPS: 45019. No figure is modelled or estimated.