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2021 Pharmacist Salary in South Carolina
On an average, South Carolina pharmacist salary is $122,500 per annum which is lower than the national average. Based on your working experience, you can begin your pharmacist career in South Carolina with $86,910 per annum which can jump to $160,750, annually after an experience of 20 years or more. Depending on your work location in SC, you can earn the highest annual salary in Myrtle Beach-Conway. All healthcare industries that employ pharmacists in South Carolina, pay almost similar salaries, with a difference of hardly $3,000 per annum. BLS expects up to 220 job openings for aspiring pharmacists every year all across the state of South Carolina.
Average Salary of Pharmacist in South Carolina
If you are aspiring to become a pharmacist and work in South Carolina, you can earn an average annual salary of $122,500 and if you want to work as a part time pharmacist, you can make an hourly remuneration of $58.89. Pharmacists’ average salary in SC is nearly 2.46% lower than the national average.
| Type | Average Salary |
| Hourly Wage | $58.89 |
| Monthly Salary | $10,210 |
| Annual Salary | $122,500 |
Pharmacist Salary by Experience in SC
Being a pharmacist working in South Carolina, you can expect to earn up to $160,750 or more provided that you back yourself with a working experience of 20+ years. Yep! ‘Nothing ever becomes real till it is experienced.’ As an entry level pharmacist, you can fetch only $86,910 annually which will gradually rise to $110,980 within first five years of experience. 5-9 years and 10-19 years of working experience as a pharmacist in SC will get you an annual income of $126,810 and $146,600 respectively.
| Level of Experience | Hourly | Annual |
| Less than 1 year (Starting) | $41.78 | $86,910 |
| 1-4 years | $53.35 | $110,980 |
| 5-9 years | $60.97 | $126,810 |
| 10-19 years | $70.48 | $146,600 |
| 20 years or more | $77.28 | $160,750 |
Salary Growth
Representing salary growth of 5.24%, South Carolina consistently has shown positive numbers in last three years, adding nearly $6,000 more to the salaries of SC pharmacists. From 2015 to 2017, every alternative year, there was a decent hike in the annual salary of the pharmacists in South Carolina – in 2015 pharmacists’ salary grew at 3.33%, down to 1.86% in 2016, which again fell to 0.47% in 2017. In the last year 2019, the average annual salary of pharmacists was $122,500, marking a negetive growth of 0.33%.
| Year | Average Annual Salary | Growth |
| 2015 | $120,410 | 3.33% |
| 2016 | $122,690 | 1.86% |
| 2017 | $123,270 | 0.47% |
| 2018 | $122,900 | -0.30% |
| 2019 | $122,500 | -0.33% |
| Total | $6,100 | 5.24% |
Employment Growth
Pharmacists’ employment numbers in South Carolina are a bit disappointing. The state is continuously cutting off the jobs of pharmacists owing to the adoption of automation in pharmaceutical sector. In last five years, South Carolina terminated 4.23% of its pharmacists, losing 210 pharmacists from across the state.
| Year | Employment | Growth |
| 2015 | 4,910 | -0.20% |
| 2016 | 4,800 | -2.29% |
| 2017 | 4,750 | -1.05% |
| 2018 | 5,070 | 6.31% |
| 2019 | 5,190 | 2.31% |
| Total | 270 | 5.49% |
Industry Wise Income and Employment
South Carolina general merchandise stores pay the highest annual salary among all pharmaceutical industries and department stores pay the lowest, however there’s merely a difference of $5,750. Retail pharmacies in the state of South Carolina employ the largest number of 2,220 pharmacists whereas SC hospitals employ over 1,290 pharmacists at an average annual salary of $124,320.
| Industry | Employment | Hourly Salary | Annual Salary |
| Retail Pharmacies | 2,220 | $58.00 | $120,660 |
| Hospitals | 1,290 | $59.77 | $124,320 |
| Grocery Stores | 410 | $59.53 | $123,830 |
| Other General Merchandise Stores | 300 | $60.55 | $125,950 |
| Department Stores | 130 | $57.79 | $120,200 |
South Carolina Metro Wise - Salary and Employment
The salary paid by different South Carolina cities varies from $114,790 to $133,780 per annum. If you want to fetch the best annual salary, you should consider working as a pharmacist in Myrtle Beach-Conway, Greenville-Anderson-Mauldin or Sumter. Myrtle Beach-Conway also pays the highest salary to entry level pharmacists. As far as employment is concerned, Greenville-Anderson-Mauldin employs the largest number of 1,170 pharmacists, whereas Sumter employs the least number of 80 pharmacists.
| Area Name | Employment | Hourly | Annual | Starting Salary | Experienced Salary |
| Greenville-Anderson-Mauldin | 1,170 | $61.28 | $127,470 | $100,060 | $160,630 |
| Charleston-North Charleston | 1,130 | $56.56 | $117,640 | $41,100 | $162,170 |
| Columbia | 930 | $55.19 | $114,790 | $89,330 | $148,010 |
| Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach | 430 | $64.32 | $133,780 | $109,720 | $163,590 |
| Spartanburg | 300 | $59.27 | $123,290 | $79,880 | $163,220 |
| Florence | 280 | $59.54 | $123,850 | $61,810 | $163,810 |
| Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Beaufort | 180 | $58.90 | $122,510 | $106,930 | $153,430 |
| Sumter | 80 | $60.72 | $126,300 | $87,310 | $162,580 |
Pharmacist Employment Outlook in SC
Due to excessive cutting down of the pharmacist positions in last five years, South Carolina is hopeful to change employment growth to positive in the coming years, estimating around 220 job opening every year until 2028, it will register a growth rate of 1.17% in negative in next eight years. As South Carolina says, ‘While I breathe, I hope.’ To turn this employment growth in to positive, prominent pharmaceutical companies like Walgreens, Novant, Aiken Reginal Medical Centers and many others will employ aspiring pharmacists all across the state of South Carolina.
| 2018 Employment | 2028 Employment | Percent Change | Projected Annual Job Openings | |
| South Carolina | 5,110 | 5,050 | -1.17% | 220 |
| United States | 314,300 | 314,100 | -0.06% | 14,100 |
Pharmacist South Carolina VS Pharmacist National
The national average salary of pharmacists is 2.46% higher than the average annual salary of the pharmacists working in South Carolina. SC pharmacists earn an average annual income of $122,500 as against the national average at $125,510.
| Type | South Carolina Salary | US Salary | Difference | % Difference |
| Hourly Wage | $58.89 | $60.34 | -$1.45 | -2.46% |
| Monthly Salary | $10,210 | $10,460 | -$250 | -2.45% |
| Annual Salary | $122,500 | $125,510 | -$3,010 | -2.46% |