Jobs, pay and daily life in Beaufort, from official statistics with source and year on every table.
Click any dot to open that city: jobs, pay, rent, commute, county economy and climate. Dot size follows population; colours follow the state flag.
By AtiveSite · Published 07/11/2026 · Updated 07/11/2026 · Every figure is linked to its source below.
Beaufort is a city in South Carolina with 13,747 residents. The median household earns $61,220 a year and the median rent is $1,212 a month, which is 23.8% of the median household income. It is part of the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC metropolitan area, where BLS counts 81,920 jobs.
How Beaufort compares. Among the 80 largest places in South Carolina, Beaufort is #45 by population, #57 for remote work (#1 = most), #25 for long commutes (#1 = fewest), #26 for college degrees (#1 = most). Its county, Beaufort County, is #15 of 46 counties for average pay ($54,768).
Beaufort has 13,747 residents (ACS 2020–2024), about 0.3% of the population of South Carolina. It covers 25 square miles of land, which works out to roughly 561 people per square mile. The median age is 32.2, 20% younger than the state median (32.2 against 40.2).
The median gross rent is $1,212 a month (rent plus utilities), about the same as the state median ($1,212 against $1,180). Over a year that is 23.8% of the median household income. US housing guidance treats housing as affordable when it takes 30% of income or less, so the typical household is under that line. The median home value is $345,400, which is 5.6 times the median household income ($61,220); a ratio above 5 usually means buying is out of reach without savings or a second income. 61.5% of households own their home, 14% below the state average (61.5% against 71.9%).
The Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC metropolitan area has 81,920 jobs in the BLS wage survey, and the median pay across all occupations is $43,850 a year, 14% below the national median ($43,850 against $50,980). The biggest occupation groups are food preparation and serving related (12,910 jobs, median $31,230); office and administrative support (10,170 jobs, median $43,660); sales and related (9,850 jobs, median $35,990). The area is most specialised in food preparation and serving related (1.8 times) and sales and related (1.4 times), where the share of workers is well above the national share. The best-paying groups with at least 5,000 jobs are office and administrative support ($43,660) and transportation and material moving ($37,020). In 2026M09 the unemployment rate of Beaufort County was 3.5%. 56.7% of residents aged 16 and over are in the labour force. The city lies in Beaufort County; its jobs, pay by industry and GDP are on the county page.
Among workers, 68.6% drive alone, 0.2% use public transit, 4.5% walk, 8.0% work from home. 7.7% of workers commute 45 minutes or more, 48% below the state average (7.7% against 14.7%).
39.6% of adults aged 25 and over hold a bachelor's degree or higher, 23% above the state share (39.6% against 32.1%). 3.9% of residents were born outside the United States, 33% below the state share (3.9% against 5.8%). The poverty rate is 12.5%, 11% below the state rate (12.5% against 14.1%).
The warmest month is Jul, averaging 83°F (28.4°C), and the coolest is Jan at 50°F (10.1°C). About 1,152 mm (45 inches) of precipitation falls in a year; Aug is the wettest month (154 mm) and Nov the driest (59 mm). These values come from NASA satellite-based climatology on a grid of about 50 km, so they describe the wider area, not a weather station in the city.
Closest cities in this guide: Port Royal (7 miles, rent 42% higher); Hilton Head Island (19 miles, rent 22% higher); Bluffton (21 miles, rent 86% higher); Hardeeville (22 miles, rent 16% higher). Rent differences are against Beaufort; use the Compare tab to put any two cities side by side.
Federal jobs in South Carolina (373) →State guide: South CarolinaCountry guideBeaufort CountySouth Carolina rankings
These links go to official sources and open in a new window. The first one is the government's or company's own site as listed in Wikidata (property "official website"); check it before relying on it.
There are 373 federal postings open in South Carolina (USAJOBS, state level; we do not have a city filter for them). Private-sector jobs are not in this feed.
Open federal jobs in South Carolina →
| Occupation ⇅ | Jobs ⇅ | Location quotient ⇅ | Median pay (year) ⇅ | Entry (10th pct.) ⇅ | Top (90th pct.) ⇅ | Median vs US ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail Salespersons | 3,700 | 1.80 | $33,880 | $24,400 | $46,500 | -4% |
| Waiters and Waitresses | 3,390 | 2.84 | $19,830 | $15,870 | $50,010 | -44% |
| Fast Food and Counter Workers | 2,440 | 1.20 | $29,550 | $23,100 | $37,250 | -5% |
| Cashiers | 2,280 | 1.40 | $30,350 | $22,640 | $37,180 | -8% |
| Home Health and Personal Care Aides | 2,220 | 0.98 | $30,900 | $27,240 | $36,100 | -14% |
| Cooks, Restaurant | 1,730 | 2.33 | $36,820 | $27,960 | $46,740 | -2% |
| Customer Service Representatives | 1,640 | 1.20 | $37,590 | $28,460 | $55,570 | -16% |
| Landscaping and Groundskeeping Workers | 1,550 | 3.09 | $37,770 | $31,040 | $47,210 | -4% |
| Office Clerks, General | 1,510 | 1.16 | $38,290 | $20,190 | $59,680 | -15% |
| Stockers and Order Fillers | 1,480 | 0.99 | $36,110 | $30,030 | $45,900 | -3% |
| Registered Nurses | 1,410 | 0.79 | $81,400 | $64,180 | $97,590 | -17% |
| General and Operations Managers | 1,190 | 0.64 | $102,770 | $57,200 | $210,660 | -3% |
| Maintenance and Repair Workers, General | 1,140 | 1.41 | $46,170 | $34,530 | $63,380 | -7% |
| Amusement and Recreation Attendants | 1,140 | 5.42 | $28,300 | $19,010 | $39,690 | -12% |
| Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive | 1,060 | 1.18 | $46,790 | $31,570 | $63,500 | -2% |
| Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners | 1,040 | 2.29 | $34,070 | $26,040 | $41,710 | -4% |
| Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand | 1,000 | 0.65 | $37,040 | $30,400 | $47,160 | -8% |
| Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners | 1,000 | 0.86 | $34,380 | $23,180 | $44,660 | -7% |
| First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers | 980 | 1.53 | $45,450 | $29,850 | $67,230 | +3% |
| First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers | 980 | 1.65 | $49,450 | $33,070 | $79,640 | +2% |
These figures are for the whole Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC metropolitan area, not the city alone.
Median pay across all occupations: $43,850 (US $50,980); unemployment 3.5% (2026M09).
| Industry (residents) ⇅ | Share of employed residents ⇅ |
|---|---|
| Education and health care | 18.4% |
| Professional, scientific, management, administrative | 15.4% |
| Retail trade | 12.9% |
| Manufacturing | 8.7% |
| Construction | 8.3% |
| Other services | 7.8% |
| Arts, entertainment, accommodation, food | 6.8% |
| Transportation, warehousing, utilities | 6.2% |
| Finance, insurance, real estate | 6.0% |
| Public administration | 5.3% |
| Information | 2.0% |
| Wholesale trade | 1.9% |
| Agriculture, forestry, fishing, mining | 0.2% |
Cities have no official GDP or payroll count of their own. These figures are for the county where Beaufort lies and cover the whole county, not only the city.
| County ⇅ | Population ⇅ | GDP (2024) ⇅ | GDP per resident ⇅ | Jobs (QCEW 2024) ⇅ | Employer sites ⇅ | Average annual pay ⇅ | Job change vs 2023 ⇅ | Unemployment rate ⇅ | Labour force ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beaufort County | 195,289 | $12,873 million | $65,917 | 71,044 | 7,748 | $54,768 | +0.3% | 3.5% | 87,479 |
| Industry ⇅ | Jobs ⇅ | Share of private jobs ⇅ | Average annual pay ⇅ | Concentration vs US (location quotient) ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Accommodation and food services | 13,483 | 22.4% | $32,521 | 2.09 |
| Retail trade | 11,570 | 19.2% | $38,313 | 1.63 |
| Health care and social assistance | 7,391 | 12.3% | $59,255 | 0.73 |
| Construction | 4,468 | 7.4% | $70,533 | 1.20 |
| Other services (except public administration) | 4,188 | 7.0% | $48,111 | 1.96 |
| Administrative and waste services | 3,862 | 6.4% | $47,530 | 0.92 |
| Professional and technical services | 3,611 | 6.0% | $94,287 | 0.73 |
| Arts, entertainment, recreation | 3,143 | 5.2% | $36,113 | 2.63 |
| Real estate and rental | 2,340 | 3.9% | $61,854 | 2.12 |
| Finance and insurance | 1,772 | 2.9% | $119,469 | 0.61 |
| Educational services | 1,036 | 1.7% | $47,393 | 0.71 |
| Manufacturing | 1,018 | 1.7% | $68,670 | 0.17 |
| Transportation and warehousing | 839 | 1.4% | $48,461 | 0.28 |
| Wholesale trade | 731 | 1.2% | $102,236 | 0.26 |
| Information | 411 | 0.7% | $88,852 | 0.31 |
| Management of companies | 202 | 0.3% | $112,246 | 0.17 |
| Utilities | 172 | 0.3% | $84,298 | 0.64 |
QCEW counts jobs covered by unemployment insurance; sectors with too few employers are withheld by BLS. Latest-month unemployment is preliminary.
| How residents get to work ⇅ | Share ⇅ |
|---|---|
| Drive alone | 68.6% |
| Public transit | 0.2% |
| Walk | 4.5% |
| Work from home | 8.0% |
| Commute of 45 minutes or more | 7.7% |
Shares are of workers aged 16 and over; they describe residents, wherever they work.
| Indicator ⇅ | Value ⇅ |
|---|---|
| Median household income | $61,220 |
| Income per person | $39,044 |
| Median gross rent per month | $1,212 |
| Yearly rent as share of median household income | 23.8% |
| Median home value | $345,400 |
| Homeowners | 61.5% |
| Poverty rate | 12.5% |
| Price level of the metro area (US = 100) | 98.0 |
| Metro median pay, all occupations | $43,850 |
Estimate for a wage earner: 2026 federal brackets and standard deduction (IRS), Social Security 6.2% up to $184,500, Medicare 1.45% (+0.9% above $200,000 single / $250,000 married), and a state rate you set; graduated states show 0 until you enter your own estimate. It ignores credits, pre-tax deductions, local taxes and benefits. Sources: IRS: tax year 2026 inflation adjustments · SSA wage base per Federal Register notice 2025-19763.
State tax: Graduated, top rate 6.00%.
| Indicator ⇅ | Value ⇅ |
|---|---|
| Median age | 32.2 |
| High school or higher (25+) | 96.5% |
| Bachelor's degree or higher (25+) | 39.6% |
| Born abroad | 3.9% |
| Labour force participation (16+) | 56.7% |
Work permits are federal: see permits and first steps.
| Month ⇅ | Mean temperature (°C) ⇅ | Mean temperature (°F) ⇅ | Precipitation (mm) ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 10.1 | 50 | 63 |
| Feb | 11.9 | 53 | 79 |
| Mar | 15.2 | 59 | 83 |
| Apr | 19.4 | 67 | 75 |
| May | 23.7 | 75 | 90 |
| Jun | 27.1 | 81 | 140 |
| Jul | 28.4 | 83 | 136 |
| Aug | 28.0 | 82 | 154 |
| Sep | 25.8 | 78 | 100 |
| Oct | 21.3 | 70 | 87 |
| Nov | 15.7 | 60 | 59 |
| Dec | 12.3 | 54 | 86 |
Satellite-reanalysis climatology on a grid of roughly 50 km, so it smooths local effects (hills, coast, city heat). It is not a weather-station record.
| City ⇅ | State ⇅ | Distance (straight line) ⇅ | Population ⇅ | Median household income ⇅ | Median rent ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Port Royal | SC | 7 mi | 15,579 | $74,870 | $1,726 |
| Hilton Head Island | SC | 19 mi | 37,911 | $94,657 | $1,479 |
| Bluffton | SC | 21 mi | 33,157 | $111,281 | $2,256 |
| Hardeeville | SC | 22 mi | 10,871 | $78,365 | $1,406 |
| Port Wentworth | GA | 34 mi | 12,892 | $79,731 | $1,812 |
| Wilmington Island | GA | 35 mi | 13,905 | $93,924 | $1,752 |
| Pooler | GA | 40 mi | 28,466 | $91,766 | $1,671 |
| Savannah | GA | 41 mi | 147,898 | $57,137 | $1,382 |
| Summerville | SC | 49 mi | 51,654 | $81,046 | $1,526 |
| James Island | SC | 50 mi | 12,198 | $104,217 | $1,695 |
Straight-line distance in miles, not driving distance.
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vs
13,747 (Census Bureau ACS 2020–2024 5-year estimate).
$1,212 a month (ACS 2020–2024), which is 23.8% of the median household income.
$61,220 (ACS 2020–2024, in 2024 dollars).
3.5% (BLS county, Beaufort County (latest month 2026M09)).
South Carolina. See the state guide for minimum wage, taxes and pay.