South Dakota Plumbing Workers Comp Rates (2026)
South Dakota does not publish its plumbing class figures online. Across the 26 states that do, the median typical premium is about $2.25 per $100 of payroll. Ask a carrier or the state's rating bureau for the current South Dakota figure.
No official South Dakota figure is available online, so the numbers below use the US median of the states that publish one.
South Dakota class code for plumbing
- 5183: Plumbing NOC & Drivers
- 5188 (Sprinkler Installation & Drivers)
Plumbing work involves back strain, cuts, burns from soldering and hot water, and work in crawl spaces and other confined spaces.
What comp costs per plumber in South Dakota
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 1,760 plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters on payrolls in South Dakota (May 2025), the 45th largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $24.82 an hour, 19% below the US median of $30.67.
This trade is a bigger part of the South Dakota job market than it is nationally: plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters hold 1.3 times their national share of jobs there.
At the US median of $2.25 per $100 of payroll (South Dakota does not publish its figure online), comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.56 for every hour worked, or $1,162 a year full time. A 2-person crew comes to roughly $2,323 a year in premium before any experience mod.
Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. South Dakota pay runs from $18.86 an hour at the 10th percentile to $35.81 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.42 an hour on a new hire and $0.81 on a senior hand.
Workers comp requirements in South Dakota
- Coverage required: Not mandatory at any headcount (elective for all employers)
- Owners and sole proprietors: Excluded; may elect coverage
- State fund: Private market (no state fund)
- Waiting period: 7 consecutive days; benefits then compute from the injury date
- Penalty for going without: No statutory fine, but an uninsured employer loses exclusive remedy and faces unlimited civil liability
South Dakota is one of only two states (with Texas) where workers comp is not legally mandatory.
South Dakota vs neighboring states
- Iowa: about $2.13 per $100 of payroll
- North Dakota: about $2.00 per $100 of payroll
- Wyoming: about $2.39 per $100 of payroll
South Dakota does not publish its figure, so the first row is the US median. Among neighbors that publish, North Dakota is the cheapest for plumbing comp at about $2.00 and Wyoming the most expensive at about $2.39 per $100 of payroll.
Working across the line into North Dakota or Wyoming needs separate coverage from that state's fund. A private policy's other-states coverage (item 3.C) does not reach monopolistic states.
What moves a plumbing comp bill
- Plumbing rates sit in the middle of the construction classes; the swing comes from your experience mod. Trench and excavation injuries are the costly claims, so trench-safety training pays back quickly.
- Some states split residential and commercial plumbing into different classes. If you do both, make sure the payroll for each is recorded so the cheaper work is not rated at the higher class.
- Apprentices carry the same class rate as journeymen, but their lower wages mean less premium per hour. Your payroll mix matters as much as the rate.
- Uninsured subs (excavators, drywall patchers) get added to your payroll at audit unless you collect certificates before they start.