Waiters and Waitresses Salary in South Dakota

In South Dakota, waiters and waitresses earn a median $28,990 a year, well below the national median of $35,230 (−18%); the state ranks 35th of 51 states by median. That is 38% less than the median across all occupations in South Dakota ($47,080). Among neighbouring states, Nebraska and North Dakota pay more (up to $33,770 in Nebraska) and Minnesota, Wyoming, Montana and Iowa pay less (down to $21,000 in Iowa). South Dakota employs 7,350 waiters and waitresses, 16.1 per 1,000 jobs, the 46th largest count of any state. A location quotient of 1.10 is close to the national share.

South Dakota vs the United States, May 2025

Waiters and Waitresses: wage percentiles, mean, employment, jobs per 1,000 and location quotient in South Dakota and nationally, May 2025
AreaBasisPercentile wageMeanEmploymentJobs per 1,000Location quotient
10th25thMedian75th90th
South DakotaHourly$13.00$13.42$13.94$14.73$17.93$14.847,35016.071.10
Annual$27,030$27,910$28,990$30,640$37,290$30,860
United StatesHourly$8.70$13.34$16.94$22.65$31.12$19.262,270,910––
Annual$18,100$27,750$35,230$47,110$64,720$40,060
$0$10k$20k$30k$40k10th10th: $27,030$27,03025th25th: $27,910$27,910MedianMedian: $28,990$28,99075th75th: $30,640$30,64090th90th: $37,290$37,290US median
South Dakota annual wage at the 10th, 25th, 50th (median), 75th and 90th percentiles; the line marks the US median. The same numbers are in the table above.
Rank by median
35th of 51 states
Rank by employment
46th of 51 states
Location quotient
1.10
Jobs per 1,000
16.07

Ranks count the 50 states and DC with a published value. The location quotient is the occupation's share of South Dakota's employment divided by its national share; 1.00 means the same share as the nation. Take-home pay at these wages: FastCalc's take-home pay calculator.

Metropolitan areas in South Dakota

3 metropolitan areas and 2 nonmetropolitan areas touching South Dakota publish a row for waiters and waitresses, sorted by median. Areas crossing a state line are listed under every state they touch; a linked metro has its own profile.

AreaMedian hourlyMedian annual10th pct (annual)90th pct (annual)EmploymentJobs per 1,000Location quotient
Sioux Falls, SD-MN$14.38$29,920$28,020$39,0602,55014.260.98
Rapid City, SD$13.95$29,020$27,530$40,6401,43019.321.32
Sioux City, IA-NE-SD$12.71$26,430$15,080$49,7901,03013.770.94
East South Dakota nonmetropolitan area$13.65$28,390$26,780$37,0102,20016.551.13
West South Dakota nonmetropolitan area$13.33$27,730$26,420$31,1201,11017.601.21

Neighbouring states

StateMedian hourlyMedian annualEmploymentLocation quotient
South Dakota$13.94$28,9907,3501.10
Iowa$10.10$21,00022,4100.98
Minnesota$12.25$25,47037,6300.87
Montana$11.23$23,3707,2000.96
North Dakota$14.85$30,8905,2500.84
Nebraska$16.24$33,77013,3100.89
Wyoming$11.50$23,9203,6200.88

See the national page for Waiters and Waitresses (every state ranked) and the South Dakota wage profile (every occupation in the state).

Source and notes

Data: BLS OEWS May 2025, released 2026-05-15. Cross-industry estimates, all ownerships. BLS page: OEWS South Dakota estimates.

  • Annual wages assume 2,080 hours a year at the hourly rate; occupations BLS publishes on one basis only show an en dash (–) on the other.
  • Employment is rounded to the nearest 10 by BLS. Where BLS withholds a cell, nothing is estimated in its place.