South Dakota · BLS, May 2025 wages

$30-an-hour jobs without a degree in South Dakota

Name: $30-an-hour jobs without a degree in South Dakota, 2025
Creator: Degreeless Jobs
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

50 occupations in South Dakota pay a median of $30 an hour or more and typically need less than a bachelor’s degree to enter. The highest is power distributors and dispatchers at $62.63 an hour.

By the Degreeless Jobs research deskUpdated Sep 7, 2026Sources: BLS

All 50, sorted by hourly median

State medians for employed workers. The 25th to 75th range is annual. Occupations reported on an annual basis only are not included.

Occupations in South Dakota with a median of $30 an hour or more that typically require less than a bachelor's degree
Occupation	Hourly median	Annual median	25th to 75th	Employed	Typical entry education
Power distributors and dispatchersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$62.63	$130,270	$105,240 to $130,270	30	High school diploma or equivalent
Elevator and escalator installers and repairersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$55.92	$116,320	$99,050 to $119,240	—	High school diploma or equivalent
Transportation, storage, and distribution managersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$51.64	$107,410	$88,250 to $123,670	370	High school diploma or equivalent
First-line supervisors of non-retail sales workersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$50.81	$105,680	$84,680 to $131,260	680	High school diploma or equivalent
Electrical and electronics repairers, powerhouse, substation, and relayPostsecondary nondegree award	$48.96	$101,830	$98,180 to $125,550	40	Postsecondary nondegree award
Gas plant operatorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$48.78	$101,450	$99,780 to $101,450	90	High school diploma or equivalent
Funeral home managersAssociate's degree	$48.50	$100,880	$78,670 to $102,350	70	Associate's degree
Control and valve installers and repairers, except mechanical doorHigh school diploma or equivalent	$47.16	$98,090	$76,110 to $102,300	150	High school diploma or equivalent
Radiation therapistsAssociate's degree	$46.86	$97,470	$82,970 to $135,500	—	Associate's degree
Electrical power-line installers and repairersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$46.79	$97,310	$87,490 to $103,280	740	High school diploma or equivalent
Dental hygienistsAssociate's degree	$44.33	$92,210	$83,230 to $96,230	630	Associate's degree
Postmasters and mail superintendentsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$44.01	$91,540	$85,090 to $101,150	100	High school diploma or equivalent
First-line supervisors of police and detectivesHigh school diploma or equivalent	$42.22	$87,810	$75,370 to $119,170	190	High school diploma or equivalent
Avionics techniciansPostsecondary nondegree award	$40.01	$83,220	$75,980 to $84,710	40	Postsecondary nondegree award
Nuclear medicine technologistsAssociate's degree	$39.43	$82,010	$65,420 to $97,720	140	Associate's degree
Diagnostic medical sonographersAssociate's degree	$38.85	$80,820	$66,060 to $89,150	370	Associate's degree
First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$38.85	$80,810	$67,290 to $98,060	1,750	High school diploma or equivalent
Claims adjusters, examiners, and investigatorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$37.93	$78,900	$65,640 to $96,400	1,030	High school diploma or equivalent
Detectives and criminal investigatorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$37.37	$77,730	$63,110 to $110,880	250	High school diploma or equivalent
First-line supervisors of construction trades and extraction workersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$37.35	$77,690	$67,400 to $87,790	2,360	High school diploma or equivalent
First-line supervisors of correctional officersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$37.21	$77,400	$67,470 to $84,040	80	High school diploma or equivalent
Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, except technical and scientific productsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$37.12	$77,210	$61,060 to $95,960	5,220	High school diploma or equivalent
Magnetic resonance imaging technologistsAssociate's degree	$37.03	$77,010	$67,620 to $83,130	210	Associate's degree
First-line supervisors of protective service workers, all otherHigh school diploma or equivalent	$36.73	$76,400	$56,910 to $81,330	40	High school diploma or equivalent
Aircraft mechanics and service techniciansPostsecondary nondegree award	$36.42	$75,750	$63,900 to $83,080	150	Postsecondary nondegree award
Court reporters and simultaneous captionersPostsecondary nondegree award	$36.16	$75,210	$66,870 to $78,540	40	Postsecondary nondegree award
Wind turbine service techniciansPostsecondary nondegree award	$35.49	$73,820	$60,910 to $77,960	180	Postsecondary nondegree award
First-line supervisors of production and operating workersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$35.12	$73,040	$62,220 to $82,010	1,930	High school diploma or equivalent
First-line supervisors of firefighting and prevention workersPostsecondary nondegree award	$34.82	$72,420	$70,930 to $87,410	120	Postsecondary nondegree award
Insurance sales agentsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$34.61	$71,990	$57,870 to $99,600	1,870	High school diploma or equivalent
Rail car repairersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$34.50	$71,750	$71,750 to $76,230	90	High school diploma or equivalent
Crane and tower operatorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$34.13	$71,000	$61,080 to $77,450	120	High school diploma or equivalent
Transportation inspectorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$33.69	$70,080	$48,980 to $92,900	100	High school diploma or equivalent
Medical equipment repairersAssociate's degree	$33.43	$69,530	$57,710 to $84,930	150	Associate's degree
Locomotive engineersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$33.26	$69,180	$69,180 to $69,200	150	High school diploma or equivalent
Respiratory therapistsAssociate's degree	$32.81	$68,240	$62,010 to $79,370	430	Associate's degree
Stationary engineers and boiler operatorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$32.74	$68,090	$48,030 to $73,420	90	High school diploma or equivalent
Cardiovascular technologists and techniciansAssociate's degree	$32.35	$67,290	$55,380 to $80,650	200	Associate's degree
Mobile heavy equipment mechanics, except enginesHigh school diploma or equivalent	$32.08	$66,730	$60,700 to $79,580	830	High school diploma or equivalent
Computer numerically controlled tool programmersPostsecondary nondegree award	$32.04	$66,650	$55,070 to $79,360	80	Postsecondary nondegree award
Radiologic technologists and techniciansAssociate's degree	$31.36	$65,240	$61,490 to $79,770	980	Associate's degree
Real estate sales agentsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$31.33	$65,170	$47,960 to $77,070	640	High school diploma or equivalent
Construction and building inspectorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$31.22	$64,940	$53,480 to $78,410	200	High school diploma or equivalent
Electrical and electronics repairers, commercial and industrial equipmentPostsecondary nondegree award	$31.20	$64,900	$56,750 to $74,990	470	Postsecondary nondegree award
First-line supervisors of transportation and material moving workers, except aircraft cargo handling supervisorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$31.14	$64,780	$52,250 to $75,800	1,340	High school diploma or equivalent
Rail-track laying and maintenance equipment operatorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$31.01	$64,500	$62,940 to $66,130	110	High school diploma or equivalent
Cargo and freight agentsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$30.94	$64,340	$60,390 to $68,830	200	High school diploma or equivalent
Radio, cellular, and tower equipment installers and repairersAssociate's degree	$30.59	$63,620	$54,230 to $73,290	30	Associate's degree
Railroad conductors and yardmastersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$30.16	$62,730	$62,730 to $62,980	90	High school diploma or equivalent
First-line supervisors of office and administrative support workersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$30.06	$62,530	$53,350 to $74,610	1,750	High school diploma or equivalent

Sources and method

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, state estimates. Typical entry education from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025–35 (Table 1.2). An occupation is listed when its typical entry education is below a bachelor’s degree and its South Dakota median hourly wage is $30.00 or more. Medians include experienced workers; entry pay is lower. Read the full method.

All 50, sorted by hourly median

Other states

Sources and method