The highest-paying jobs in Columbia include a range of industries, including healthcare, technology, and finance. If you’re looking for a high-paying career in the Columbia area, this list will help you narrow down your search to the best-paid professions available.
We cover the 18 highest-paying jobs in Columbia in 2024 using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Most of the high-paying positions in Columbia require extensive experience, but there are also some well-paid entry-level roles for job seekers with the right educational background.
Overall, the highest-paying job in Columbia is Physician, with an average annual salary of $300,122 and an entry-level salary of $154,000.
Whether you’re considering a career change, thinking about moving to Columbia, or a recent graduate planning for your future, this guide to the highest-paying jobs and best-paid industries in Columbia can help you figure out your next move.
Here’s a quick look at the top 10 highest-paying jobs in Columbia, South Carolina:
Detailed list of highest paying jobs in Columbia
| Rank | Job Title | Average Salary | Entry Level Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Physician | $300,122 | $154,000 |
| 2 | Hospitalist Physician | $275,558 | $192,000 |
| 3 | Medical Director | $237,191 | $151,000 |
| 4 | Operator And Truck Driver | $223,805 | $111,000 |
| 5 | Outpatient Psychiatrist | $219,548 | $137,000 |
| 6 | General Internist | $205,966 | $127,000 |
| 7 | Primary Care Physician | $203,012 | $117,000 |
| 8 | Ob/Gyn Physician | $200,852 | $99,000 |
| 9 | Nephrologist | $184,261 | $112,000 |
| 10 | Loan Servicing Specialist | $182,129 | $49,000 |
| 11 | Optometrist | $175,555 | $95,000 |
| 12 | Chief Executive Officer | $174,082 | $93,000 |
| 13 | Driver/Owner Operator | $164,753 | $66,000 |
| 14 | Owner/Operator | $159,708 | $100,000 |
| 15 | Senior Sales Manager | $155,907 | $102,000 |
| 16 | President | $152,274 | $88,000 |
| 17 | Vice President | $149,721 | $97,000 |
| 18 | Vice President, Business Development | $143,695 | $85,000 |
How we determined the highest paid jobs in Columbia for 2024
To figure out the highest-paying jobs in Columbia, we looked at the most recent data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), Foreign Labor Certification Data Center (FLC), Office of Personnel Management (OPM), and others.
Zippia’s data science team then supplements that data by continuously scanning through millions of job postings each day to find published salaries. We match these published salaries to the companies, locations, and job titles in other datasets.
Finally, we calculate a weighted average of these inputs to produce an estimated salary for the particular job title in Columbia.
In total, the team looked at the salary data set for all over 1,000 job titles in Columbia to identify the jobs that get paid the most.
Editor’s Note: Article updated for 2024. This is our eighth time ranking the highest paying jobs in Columbia.
Author
Chris Kolmar is a co-founder of Zippia and the editor-in-chief of the Zippia career advice blog. He has hired over 50 people in his career, been hired five times, and wants to help you land your next job. His research has been featured on the New York Times, Thrillist, VOX, The Atlantic, and a host of local news. More recently, he's been quoted on USA Today, BusinessInsider, and CNBC.
