Start with the answer
Engineering Teachers, Postsecondary pay in Charleston-North Charleston, SC and San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA
The May 2025 BLS OEWS median for Engineering Teachers, Postsecondary is $105,440 per year in Charleston-North Charleston, SC. It is $175,200 per year in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA. Charleston-North Charleston, SC is 39.8% below San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA on the published median.
Both rows use SOC 25-1032 and the same annual wage metric. Median means the middle of each area's published wage spread. It is not one worker's pay. The larger median is not proof that one place gives a better job or a better result. It is one wage fact from one source period.
BLS lists 120 wage and salary jobs in Charleston-North Charleston, SC and 230 in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA. Those are survey job counts, not open posts. Read pay, job scale, local share, and price level as separate facts before you make a choice.
Evidence: bls-oews-may-2025 · Rule: same-soc-same-metric-pair · nominal-median-gap · employment-not-openings