New Africa // Shutterstock
1 / 50#50. Receptionists and information clerks
- Median annual wage: $36,220
- Median hourly wage: $17.41
- Total employment: 1,140 people (15.91 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Lowest-paying jobs in Rapid City
Uncertainty clouds the current job market. On one hand, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports unemployment rates at 4.2% as of May 2025—and that hasn't changed much in the past year, a typical indicator of a positive economy. At the same time, average weekly earnings have increased by 3.9% over the 12 months ending May 2025 to reach $1,243.03.
However, the American economy may soon shift. The Trump administration's federal budget cuts have eliminated tens of thousands of jobs, and constant changes in import tariffs leave companies unable to plan for their future employment needs.
With these factors in mind, minimum or low-wage jobs are increasingly unsustainable for most. In 2025, a full-time job at the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour puts a worker under the poverty threshold, according to the Economic Policy Institute. While states can opt to have higher minimum wages, 20 states are at or below the federal minimum as of 2025.
Salaries can also vary by gender, race, and educational attainment. According to a March 2025 report from the Pew Research Center, women's earnings are about 85% of men's, and women also remain overrepresented in low-paying jobs. Meanwhile, April 2025 BLS data shows that Hispanic workers' median earnings lag behind those of other race and ethnicity groups, and full-time workers without a high school diploma earned the least compared to their more educated counterparts.
It's important to note, though, that low pay doesn't always equal low job satisfaction. Some people feel drawn to a particular field, seek a certain work environment, or aim for work-life balance. No matter the reason, Stacker used BLS data to find the 50 lowest-paying jobs in Rapid City. Jobs are ranked by their median annual pay as of May 2024, so any jobs without annual compensation figures available were excluded from this analysis.
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kanemme6 // Shutterstock
2 / 50#48. Tire repairers and changers (tie)
- Median annual wage: $36,080
- Median hourly wage: $17.34
- Total employment: 80 people (1.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
PeopleImages.com - Yuri A // Shutterstock
3 / 50#48. Home health and personal care aides (tie)
- Median annual wage: $36,080
- Median hourly wage: $17.35
- Total employment: 550 people (7.71 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
VGstockstudio // Shutterstock
4 / 50#47. Reservation and transportation ticket agents and travel clerks
- Median annual wage: $35,910
- Median hourly wage: $17.26
- Total employment: 70 people (0.97 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Ground Picture // Shutterstock
5 / 50#46. Stockers and order fillers
- Median annual wage: $35,900
- Median hourly wage: $17.26
- Total employment: 1,680 people (23.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Dragon Images // Shutterstock
6 / 50#45. Social and human service assistants
- Median annual wage: $35,870
- Median hourly wage: $17.25
- Total employment: 200 people (2.75 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Standret // Shutterstock
7 / 50#44. Counter and rental clerks
- Median annual wage: $35,550
- Median hourly wage: $17.09
- Total employment: 170 people (2.3 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Drazen Zigic // Shutterstock
8 / 50#43. Cooks, institution and cafeteria
- Median annual wage: $35,360
- Median hourly wage: $17.00
- Total employment: 260 people (3.56 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Olena Yakobchuk // Shutterstock
9 / 50#42. Automotive and watercraft service attendants
- Median annual wage: $35,300
- Median hourly wage: $16.97
- Total employment: 150 people (2.14 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Tyler Olson // Shutterstock
10 / 50#41. Phlebotomists
- Median annual wage: $35,280
- Median hourly wage: $16.96
- Total employment: 90 people (1.27 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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11 / 50#40. Cooks, restaurant
- Median annual wage: $35,150
- Median hourly wage: $16.90
- Total employment: 350 people (4.89 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
12 / 50#39. Miscellaneous assemblers and fabricators
- Median annual wage: $34,910
- Median hourly wage: $16.79
- Total employment: 240 people (3.37 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Andrey_Popov // Shutterstock
13 / 50#38. Lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective service workers
- Median annual wage: $34,420
- Median hourly wage: $16.55
- Total employment: 70 people (1.0 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Africa Studio // Shutterstock
14 / 50#37. Shuttle drivers and chauffeurs
- Median annual wage: $34,330
- Median hourly wage: $16.51
- Total employment: 90 people (1.25 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Shakirov Albert // Shutterstock
15 / 50#36. Floral designers
- Median annual wage: $34,050
- Median hourly wage: $16.37
- Total employment: 40 people (0.58 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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16 / 50#35. Tour and travel guides
- Median annual wage: $33,740
- Median hourly wage: $16.22
- Total employment: 100 people (1.41 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
17 / 50#34. Forest and conservation workers
- Median annual wage: $33,600
- Median hourly wage: $16.15
- Total employment: 60 people (0.89 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Indypendenz // Shutterstock
18 / 50#33. Mail clerks and mail machine operators, except postal service
- Median annual wage: $33,480
- Median hourly wage: $16.10
- Total employment: 50 people (0.69 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Tyler Olson // Shutterstock
19 / 50#32. Library technicians
- Median annual wage: $32,650
- Median hourly wage: $15.70
- Total employment: 60 people (0.78 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
20 / 50#31. Retail salespersons
- Median annual wage: $32,570
- Median hourly wage: $15.66
- Total employment: 2,870 people (39.87 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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DSBfoto // Shutterstock
21 / 50#30. Janitors and cleaners, except maids and housekeeping cleaners
- Median annual wage: $32,450
- Median hourly wage: $15.60
- Total employment: 1,600 people (22.26 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
22 / 50#29. Substitute teachers, short-term
- Median annual wage: $32,360
- Median hourly wage: $15.56
- Total employment: 130 people (1.85 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
ORION PRODUCTION // Shutterstock
23 / 50#28. Veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers
- Median annual wage: $31,750
- Median hourly wage: $15.27
- Total employment: 50 people (0.65 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jason Person // Shutterstock
24 / 50#27. Cooks, short order
- Median annual wage: $31,200
- Median hourly wage: $15.00
- Total employment: 450 people (6.24 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Nejron Photo // Shutterstock
25 / 50#26. Cleaners of vehicles and equipment
- Median annual wage: $30,980
- Median hourly wage: $14.90
- Total employment: 310 people (4.29 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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26 / 50#25. Cooks, fast food
- Median annual wage: $30,400
- Median hourly wage: $14.61
- Total employment: 200 people (2.75 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
27 / 50#24. Preschool teachers, except special education
- Median annual wage: $30,370
- Median hourly wage: $14.60
- Total employment: 160 people (2.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Pressmaster // Shutterstock
28 / 50#23. Animal caretakers
- Median annual wage: $30,270
- Median hourly wage: $14.55
- Total employment: 270 people (3.81 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
DenisProduction.com // Shutterstock
29 / 50#22. Food preparation workers
- Median annual wage: $30,220
- Median hourly wage: $14.53
- Total employment: 620 people (8.65 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Virrage Images // Shutterstock
30 / 50#21. Refuse and recyclable material collectors
- Median annual wage: $30,130
- Median hourly wage: $14.49
- Total employment: 30 people (0.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Loveischiangrai // Shutterstock
31 / 50#20. Landscaping and groundskeeping workers
- Median annual wage: $29,980
- Median hourly wage: $14.41
- Total employment: 500 people (6.92 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Dmitry Kalinovsky // Shutterstock
32 / 50#19. Laundry and dry-cleaning workers
- Median annual wage: $29,910
- Median hourly wage: $14.38
- Total employment: 180 people (2.52 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
MAVV // Shutterstock
33 / 50#18. Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse
- Median annual wage: $29,730
- Median hourly wage: $14.29
- Total employment: 40 people (0.53 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
PeopleImages.com - Yuri A // Shutterstock
34 / 50#17. Coaches and scouts
- Median annual wage: $29,630
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: 150 people (2.1 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Martin Smith // Shutterstock
35 / 50#16. Parking attendants
- Median annual wage: $29,610
- Median hourly wage: $14.23
- Total employment: Not available
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36 / 50#15. Hotel, motel, and resort desk clerks
- Median annual wage: $29,390
- Median hourly wage: $14.13
- Total employment: 570 people (7.87 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Dean Drobot // Shutterstock
37 / 50#14. Cashiers
- Median annual wage: $29,320
- Median hourly wage: $14.10
- Total employment: 2,250 people (31.34 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Dragon Images // Shutterstock
38 / 50#12. Hosts and hostesses, restaurant, lounge, and coffee shop (tie)
- Median annual wage: $29,220
- Median hourly wage: $14.05
- Total employment: 150 people (2.02 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BlueSkyImage // Shutterstock
39 / 50#12. Fast food and counter workers (tie)
- Median annual wage: $29,220
- Median hourly wage: $14.05
- Total employment: 2,640 people (36.66 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
40 / 50#11. Waiters and waitresses
- Median annual wage: $29,140
- Median hourly wage: $14.01
- Total employment: 1,320 people (18.39 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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41 / 50#10. Dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers
- Median annual wage: $29,060
- Median hourly wage: $13.97
- Total employment: 480 people (6.68 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Hunter Bliss Images // Shutterstock
42 / 50#9. Mixing and blending machine setters, operators, and tenders
- Median annual wage: $29,000
- Median hourly wage: $13.94
- Total employment: 40 people (0.5 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
santypan // Shutterstock
43 / 50#8. Bartenders
- Median annual wage: $28,490
- Median hourly wage: $13.70
- Total employment: 590 people (8.27 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Alexander Oganezov // Shutterstock
44 / 50#7. Amusement and recreation attendants
- Median annual wage: $28,270
- Median hourly wage: $13.59
- Total employment: 300 people (4.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
45 / 50#6. Maids and housekeeping cleaners
- Median annual wage: $28,130
- Median hourly wage: $13.52
- Total employment: 920 people (12.74 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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SviatlanaLaza // Shutterstock
46 / 50#5. Packers and packagers, hand
- Median annual wage: $28,030
- Median hourly wage: $13.48
- Total employment: 70 people (1.0 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
wavebreakmedia // Shutterstock
47 / 50#4. Dishwashers
- Median annual wage: $27,520
- Median hourly wage: $13.23
- Total employment: 270 people (3.73 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Krakenimages.com // Shutterstock
48 / 50#3. Childcare workers
- Median annual wage: $26,580
- Median hourly wage: $12.78
- Total employment: 360 people (4.99 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Tyler Olson // Shutterstock
49 / 50#1. Ushers, lobby attendants, and ticket takers (tie)
- Median annual wage: $26,480
- Median hourly wage: $12.73
- Total employment: 60 people (0.84 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Paul.J.West // Shutterstock
50 / 50#1. Teaching assistants, except postsecondary (tie)
- Median annual wage: $26,480
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: 600 people (8.39 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
This story features data reporting by Wade Zhou, writing by Jill Jaracz, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 364 metros.
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