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METRO RESEARCH / CBSA 24860

Salary and cost of living in Greenville

Compare occupational wages, regional price levels, housing and travel-to-work indicators across the Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC metro area.

At a glance

For the Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC metro area (CBSA 24860), BEA 2024 all-items regional price parity is 93.3 (U.S. = 100). Census ACS 2020–2024 estimates median gross rent at $1,150 per month and a 45+ minute commute share of 11.7% among workers who commute. These are metro estimates, not current asking rents, neighborhood figures or an individual commute forecast.

Sources: BLS wages (May 2025) · BEA price parity (2024) · Census ACS (2020–2024) · metro areas, not city limits · How we calculate

ALL-ITEMS PRICE INDEX93.3U.S. average = 100, BEA 2024
MEDIAN GROSS RENT$1,150/moCensus ACS 2020–2024
45+ MIN COMMUTE SHARE11.7%Non-home commuters, ACS 5-year

How Greenville compares with the other 74 metros

Each measure below is ranked across the 75 curated metros, where 1st means the highest value. A high or low rank describes the number, not whether the metro is a better or worse place to live.

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Greenville context measures
MeasureGreenvilleMiddle value of 75 metrosRank (1st = highest)
BEA 2024 all-items price parity (U.S. = 100)93.398.461st of 75
ACS median gross rent per month$1,150$1,43059th of 75
ACS median household income$71,240$83,46065th of 75
ACS share of commuters with 45+ minute trips11.7%13.2%48th of 75

The metros with the closest BEA price parity are Louisville (93.1), Greensboro (92.9), Columbia (93.7). Similar price levels do not imply similar wages, rents or job markets; compare them with the city comparison pages or the interactive tool.

Where pay ranks highest and lowest in Greenville

For each occupation reported in at least 50 metros, we ranked Greenville’s price-adjusted median against the other metros reporting the same occupation. These ranks compare published medians for one occupation at a time; they are not measures of openings or of how an employer will pay.

Highest relative to other metros

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Greenville highest-ranking occupations
OccupationAdjusted medianRank
Computer Network Architects$172,8181st of 74
Architects, Except Landscape and Naval$110,5407th of 75
Civil Engineers$110,26210th of 75
Medical Assistants$48,10214th of 75
Occupational Therapists$109,73614th of 75

Lowest relative to other metros

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Greenville lowest-ranking occupations
OccupationAdjusted medianRank
Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters$54,56873rd of 75
Medical and Health Services Managers$108,02173rd of 75
Technical Writers$72,81869th of 72
Writers and Authors$53,59265th of 68
Office Clerks, General$38,63471st of 75

Occupation wages in the Greenville metro area

The Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC metropolitan statistical area spans its officially defined counties. Its published labor, price and housing figures describe the region, not just Greenville city limits or individual neighborhoods. The BLS geographic unit is Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC (CBSA 24860), rather than the limits of Greenville city. Salary medians cannot be directly compared to a specific employer or neighborhood.

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Show all 79 occupations, alphabetically

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All 79 occupations in Greenville
OccupationAnnual median wageAdjusted median*Employment estimate
Accountants and Auditors$76,870$82,4252,890
Architects, Except Landscape and Naval$103,090$110,540290
Architectural and Civil Drafters$62,480$66,995280
Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics$48,120$51,5982,310
Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks$49,600$53,1853,770
Carpenters$50,090$53,7101,340
Child, Family, and School Social Workers$50,910$54,589880
Civil Engineers$102,830$110,2621,170
Compliance Officers$75,690$81,160680
Computer Network Architects$161,170$172,818390
Computer Programmers$99,520$106,712130
Computer Systems Analysts$99,830$107,0451,120
Computer and Information Systems Managers$161,180$172,829870
Construction Laborers$44,380$47,5873,250
Customer Service Representatives$39,010$41,8299,430
Data Scientists$91,490$98,102660
Dental Hygienists$85,290$91,454600
Electrical Engineers$101,620$108,964690
Electricians$60,210$64,5611,670
Electronics Engineers, Except Computer$101,710$109,061200
Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education$60,680$65,0654,390
Environmental Engineers$93,930$100,71870
Financial Managers$145,610$156,1331,880
Financial and Investment Analysts$89,040$95,475800
First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers$74,850$80,2592,640
First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers$47,990$51,4583,360
General and Operations Managers$106,750$114,4655,780
Graphic Designers$58,500$62,728490
Healthcare Social Workers$62,870$67,414490
Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers$53,080$56,9165,240
Hotel, Motel, and Resort Desk Clerks$29,730$31,879800
Human Resources Specialists$66,870$71,7032,430
Industrial Engineers$101,300$108,6212,670
Information Security Analysts$108,050$115,859260
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand$38,520$41,30411,960
Lawyers$124,970$134,0021,290
Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses$61,960$66,4381,680
Light Truck Drivers$38,570$41,3572,170
Loan Officers$61,990$66,470790
Machinists$57,970$62,1601,050
Maintenance and Repair Workers, General$49,500$53,0774,610
Management Analysts$86,330$92,5691,700
Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists$71,910$77,1072,430
Marketing Managers$148,480$159,211720
Mechanical Engineers$101,570$108,9111,800
Medical Assistants$44,860$48,1022,550
Medical and Health Services Managers$100,740$108,0211,650
Middle School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education$58,360$62,5781,840
Network and Computer Systems Administrators$95,740$102,659650
Nurse Practitioners$119,280$127,9001,120
Occupational Therapists$102,340$109,736400
Office Clerks, General$36,030$38,6348,410
Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators$48,980$52,5201,130
Personal Financial Advisors$97,090$104,107420
Pharmacists$135,580$145,379900
Pharmacy Technicians$45,590$48,8851,270
Physical Therapists$101,020$108,321940
Physician Assistants$123,310$132,222440
Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters$50,890$54,568960
Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers$57,780$61,9561,910
Project Management Specialists$94,780$101,6303,600
Public Relations Specialists$63,310$67,885470
Radiologic Technologists and Technicians$68,700$73,665770
Registered Nurses$81,400$87,2839,730
Respiratory Therapists$78,390$84,055400
Retail Salespersons$30,840$33,06911,830
Sales Managers$129,090$138,4191,770
Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products$60,840$65,2374,430
Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Technical and Scientific Products$101,890$109,254590
Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education$64,060$68,6902,700
Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive$46,120$49,4534,870
Software Developers$121,790$130,5922,070
Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers$96,960$103,967210
Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors$54,760$58,7181,070
Technical Writers$67,910$72,818180
Training and Development Specialists$60,610$64,9901,330
Web Developers$75,390$80,839110
Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers$49,130$52,6811,760
Writers and Authors$49,980$53,592130

The table lists the 12 occupations with the highest BLS estimated employment in this metro, not an attractiveness ranking; the full list is expandable and its columns can be sorted. The price-adjusted wage equals the BLS May 2025 annual occupational median × 100 ÷ the BEA 2024 all-items regional price parity. Census rent, household income and commuting figures are ACS 2020–2024 five-year estimates. They describe different populations and do not determine take-home pay, employment prospects or individual rent. ACS gross rent includes contract rent plus estimated utility and fuel costs.

Occupational wage distribution examples

These occupations are selected by the highest BLS estimated employment within our curated career set for this metro—not by pay or predicted demand. Annual wage percentiles are descriptive estimates and can be suppressed independently.

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Occupation / 10th
Occupation10th25thMedian75th90th
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand$30,270$36,010$38,520$42,360$48,880
Retail Salespersons$22,780$27,750$30,840$36,350$46,160
Registered Nurses$68,530$78,060$81,400$96,580$100,630
Customer Service Representatives$29,540$35,060$39,010$47,130$59,400
Office Clerks, General$20,540$27,930$36,030$44,590$54,250
General and Operations Managers$57,470$75,300$106,750$160,810$222,130

The employment estimate indicates modeled occupational employment, not current job openings. Missing percentiles remain Unavailable. Each job classification has a different population and wage distribution.

Understanding the local context

BEA reports a 2024 all-items regional price parity of 93.260. It reflects the general price level of goods and services in this metro compared with 100 nationwide. The Census ACS reports median gross rent of $1,150 (MOE ±$16) and median household income of $71,240 (MOE ±$820) over 2020–2024.

ACS gross rent includes estimated utilities and is not an asking-rent median. Household income covers all household earnings, so it is not comparable to one worker’s wage. The 45+ minute commute share is 11.7% of workers who travel to work, excluding people who work from home.

Neither the rent nor household-income median exceeds our 30% relative-MOE quality-warning threshold; estimates still have uncertainty.

Using Greenville figures in a real moving budget

The BEA index places the broad metropolitan price level approximately 6.7% below the U.S. reference. At the published ACS median gross rent of $1,150 per month, twelve months of that survey benchmark would total $13,800. This is simple annualization of a survey median, not a current listing price or a budget recommendation.

The 11.7% long-commute share does not tell you how long a trip from a specific neighborhood to a specific employer will take. Gather a real offer and recent rental quotes first, then enter the unadjusted gross offer in the worksheet.

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