South Dakota Paystub Generator

Reading a South Dakota pay stub, line by line

A South Dakota pay stub carries three involuntary deductions, all federal. There is no state income tax, no state payroll program you pay into, and no city tax. Here is what each line means in 2026:

Federal income tax. Withheld per your federal W-4 — the only withholding form a South Dakota new hire fills out. The Department of Revenue puts it plainly: South Dakota "is one of seven states that does not impose a state income tax."

Social Security (6.2% up to $184,500 in 2026). On a $60,000 salary this line takes $3,720 a year. From January 1, 2027: Social Security 6.2% up to $192,300.

Medicare (1.45%, plus 0.9% on wages over $200,000). $870 a year on $60,000 — together with Social Security, the whole $4,590 payroll-tax bill.

Why there is no "SD SUI" line. Reemployment Assistance (unemployment) contributions are paid by your employer on the first $15,000 of your wages, and SDCL §61-5-36 says they may not be deducted "in whole or in part" from your pay.

What you will NOT see: a South Dakota income tax line, a state withholding ID, an SDI or family-leave deduction, or a Sioux Falls or Rapid City city tax. If a stub shows a state or local tax taken from South Dakota wages, it is wrong.

South Dakota paycheck facts — 2026

What you actually take home in South Dakota (2026 estimates)

Estimated for a single filer taking the standard deduction. With no state or local tax and no employee-paid state programs, the only deductions in this table are federal income tax, Social Security, and Medicare:

The whole effective rate is federal. South Dakota takes nothing from wages, so a $60,000 earner here keeps the same amount as in any other no-income-tax state on this site.

Full-time at $11.85 grosses $24,648 — only $8,548 of it is above the $16,100 federal standard deduction, so most of that stub is Social Security and Medicare.

Methodology: 2026 federal brackets and $16,100 standard deduction (IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32), FICA per SSA. South Dakota has no state or local income tax and no employee-paid state programs. Estimates only — your withholding depends on your W-4, credits, and pre-tax benefits.

What South Dakota jobs pay (BLS, May 2025)

South Dakota's median hourly wage across all occupations is $22.63 — about 8% under the national median of $24.51 — but none of it goes to a state income tax.

South Dakota's workforce in numbers

• 935,094 residents, civilian labor force of 487,119, unemployment 2.0% (Census 2025 estimate; BLS, July 2026)
• 75,686 self-employed (nonemployer) businesses (Census, 2023) — about one for every 12 residents, and 2.6 times the number of businesses with employees
• 383,805 people on employer payrolls at 29,106 establishments, earning $20.7 billion a year (Census County Business Patterns, 2023)
• Mean annual wage: $57,610; 457,380 jobs (BLS OEWS, May 2025)

South Dakota pay rules — the answers people actually need

Fired or laid off: next regular payday. SDCL §60-11-10 makes your wages due "not later than the next regular stated pay day for which those hours would have normally been paid" — or as soon thereafter as you return all company property in your possession. Hand back the laptop, keys, and uniform and the clock is the next payday.

Quit: the same rule. SDCL §60-11-11 applies the identical next-payday-or-property-returned deadline to anyone who resigns without a written contract for a definite period. There is no faster deadline for a firing.

Pay frequency: at least once a month. SDCL §60-11-9 requires wages at least once each calendar month, or on regular paydays the employer designates in advance, paid by check, cash, or direct deposit unless you agree to another method.

Is a pay stub required? No. South Dakota's wage-payment chapter (SDCL ch. 60-11) contains no wage-statement or itemized-deduction rule. That makes a self-made pay stub a common way for workers and the self-employed to document income.

Minimum wage: $11.85, tipped $5.925. If you earn tips, your employer may pay a cash wage of half the minimum (SDCL §60-11-3.1) but must make up any shortfall each pay period and keep a record of your tips. Disputed wages: the employer must still pay the amount it concedes, and cashing that check does not waive the rest (§60-11-13).

Minimum wage in South Dakota — one statewide rate (2026)

South Dakota sets one statewide minimum wage: $11.85 an hour from January 1, 2026, with a $5.925 cash wage for tipped employees. The Department of Labor and Regulation lists no separate city or county rate, and no South Dakota city levies an income or payroll tax on wages.

The rate rises each January 1 by the August-to-August consumer price index, rounded up to the nearest five cents, and by law can never go down. The 2027 rate must be posted by October 15, 2026. The statute itself still reads $8.50 — the 2015 starting point — so ignore any site quoting that number.

South Dakota vs. neighboring states — $60,000 take-home

South Dakota and Wyoming are the two no-income-tax states in this group; every other neighbor takes a state income-tax line from a $60,000 paycheck. If you live in South Dakota but work across the border, the work state may withhold its own tax — check with that state's revenue department.

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