- South Dakota is 45th of the 50 states and DC, in the bottom ten for this trade.
- South Dakota pays less than all 6 neighboring states.
- BLS counts about 3,250 welders on payrolls in South Dakota.
- At the state median wage, a welding and fabrication shop needs to bill about $112.33 an hour on the labor rate calculator's starting numbers.
Welder pay in South Dakota, bottom to top
BLS counts welders, cutters, solderers and brazers as one group. It covers people who join or cut metal with welding, cutting, soldering and brazing equipment, by hand or on machines, in shops, plants and on job sites.
| Pay level | Hourly | Yearly | National hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $18.32 | $38,100 | $18.87 |
| 25th percentile | $21.98 | $45,710 | $22.50 |
| Median | $23.77 | $49,440 | $25.84 |
| 75th percentile | $28.54 | $59,360 | $30.29 |
| 90th percentile | $30.47 | $63,380 | $37.28 |
| Average (mean) | $24.99 | $51,980 | $27.29 |
Pay is bunched up in South Dakota. The top tenth earn $30.47 an hour or more, about 1.7 times the $18.32 at the bottom tenth. Nationally that gap is 2 times, so the step from the bottom of the scale to the top is shorter here than in most places.
Both ends trail the national figures. The bottom tenth earn $0.55 an hour less than the bottom tenth nationally, and the top tenth $6.81 less than the national top tenth.
The average, $24.99, is close to the median, so pay sits fairly evenly around the middle.
How South Dakota compares with other states
Over a full year, the South Dakota median of $49,440 is $4,310 less than the national $53,750.
In the state ranking, South Dakota sits 45th, between Oklahoma ($23.90) and Kansas ($23.75). The range runs from $23.06 in Arkansas to $38.87 in Alaska.
Every one of the neighboring states pays welders more than South Dakota. The closest is Nebraska at $25.10, and the biggest gap is with Wyoming.
BLS wages are not adjusted for living costs. Lower pay often comes with lower housing costs, so the gap in take-home value can be smaller than the gap in wages.
Every state ranked, with the national pay range: national welder salary by state.
How many welders work in South Dakota
About 3,250 welders work on payrolls in South Dakota, 0.8% of the 416,210 nationwide, the 34th largest count among the states.
The trade is a bigger part of the local job market than it is nationally: 7.1 of every 1,000 jobs in South Dakota, 2.7 times the national share.
What a welding and fabrication shop in South Dakota should charge
A lower wage helps the price less than you might expect, because the overhead does not shrink with it. Here is a welding and fabrication shop in South Dakota paying the state median of $23.77, on the labor rate calculator's starting numbers: 40-hour weeks, 10 paid days off, 2 unbilled hours a day, 7.65% payroll taxes, $90,000 a year of overhead and 15% profit.
| Step | Math | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Paid hours | 40 × 52 | 2,080 |
| Hours at work | 2,080 − 10 days × 8 | 2,000 |
| Billable hours | 2,000 × 6 ÷ 8 | 1,500 |
| Labor cost | $23.77 × 2,080 × 1.0765 | $53,224 |
| Break-even rate | ($53,224 + $90,000) ÷ 1,500 | $95.48 |
| Rate with 15% profit | $95.48 ÷ 0.85 | $112.33 |
That is $112.33 per billable hour, 4.7 times the wage, and $3.64 less than the $115.97 the same math gives at the national median wage.
Paying the 75th percentile instead, $28.54 in South Dakota, to hire and keep experienced people raises the rate to $120.71.
A cheaper crew saves less than it seems: at the 25th percentile wage of $21.98, the rate only drops to $109.19.
At this wage, overhead is most of the price: $60 of every billed hour goes to it before anyone is paid. Spreading the same overhead over more billable hours, with a second person or less drive time, brings the rate down fastest.
Run it with your own numbers in the labor rate calculator. It is free and shows every step.
Working as a welder in South Dakota
- Running the business. Quotes, invoices, booking and your website in one place: how welding and fabrication shops run on Koira.
- Getting found. The free Koira report checks how your business shows up in search and on maps against shops near you.
Where these numbers come from
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.
The figures are the BLS state estimates for SOC 51-4121, welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers, across all industries, read straight from the May 2025 state data file. They cover wage and salary workers, not the self-employed. Where BLS did not publish a figure, this page leaves it out.
All states in one table: welder salary by state.