How South Carolina taxes a paycheck
South Carolina's 2022 tax cut (Act 228) collapsed six brackets into three and set the top rate on a path from 7% to 6%: 6.5% in 2022, 6.4% in 2023, 6.2% in 2024 and 6.0% for 2025 and 2026. A single filer pays nothing on the first $3,640 of taxable income, 3% to $18,230 and 6% above, with the same thresholds for married couples. Bills to replace the schedule with a flat rate near 3.99% passed one chamber in 2025 and remain under debate.
South Carolina starts from federal taxable income, so the standard deduction follows the federal amount as of the state's conformity date. The Tax Foundation's 2026 table shows $8,350 single and $16,700 married, the pre-2025 federal figure; if South Carolina conforms to the 2026 federal deduction of $16,100 and $32,200, tax on a $60,000 salary falls by about $465. The calculator uses the published figure. A $4,930 deduction applies per dependent. There are no local income taxes.
How much taxes are taken out of paychecks in South Carolina?
On a $60,000 salary in 2026, a single filer in South Carolina pays about $5,020 in federal income tax, $4,590 in Social Security and Medicare, and about $2,440 in South Carolina income tax, leaving roughly $47,950 a year or $1,844 every two weeks. The state share is 4.1% of gross under the published deduction.
At $150,000 the tax is about $7,840, an effective rate of 5.2%, since everything above $18,230 of taxable income is at 6%.
South Carolina compared with its neighbours
South Carolina borders North Carolina (flat 3.99%) and Georgia (flat 5.19%). On a $60,000 single salary the state tax is about $2,440 in South Carolina, $1,890 in North Carolina and $2,490 in Georgia. South Carolina's 6% top rate is the highest in the Southeast, but its zero and 3% brackets keep the bill close to Georgia's at ordinary salaries.
The Charlotte metro spans the state line into York and Lancaster counties, and the difference there is about $550 a year at $60,000 in North Carolina's favour, growing to about $2,360 at $150,000.
Withholding forms and filing status in South Carolina
South Carolina employers withhold from Form SC W-4, which asks for filing status and allowances; the tables apply the three brackets after the standard deduction. Because the brackets are the same for single and joint filers, a two-earner couple reaches 6% on a combined $18,230 of taxable income and the joint return's advantage is the doubled deduction. South Carolina offers a two-wage-earner credit of up to $350 on the return to offset that.
South Carolina has no reciprocal agreements. North Carolina and Georgia residents working in South Carolina pay South Carolina tax on those wages and credit it at home; Charlotte-area commuters into York County do the reverse. The 6% rate is set in statute; the flat-tax bills debated in 2025 would replace it over several years if enacted.