These are the 5 best companies in SC to work for in 2025, Forbes says
On the hunt for a new job or scoping for potential opportunities?
In August, Forbes released its seventh annual rankings of the best companies to work for in each state, serving as a guide for job seekers across the nation.
To be considered, companies had to meet specific benchmarks based on factors such as employee headcount, years in operation, industry sector, and geographic presence.
In partnership with Statista, a market research firm, Forbes surveyed over 160,000 people employed by a company of at least 500 U.S. employees for the ranking. The survey included questions about the likelihood of an employee recommending their employer, wage parity, work culture, paths to professional advancement and more.
Responses and company benchmarks were then incorporated into a weighted scoring system, with the highest-scoring companies in each state making the final rankings. Overall, 1,417 companies were featured on at least one state list.
In total, 55 companies made Forbes’ ranking for South Carolina. These are the top five:
#1 Honeywell International
Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, Honeywell International is a software industrial company, primarily focused on services that include aerospace technology, building automation, industrial automation for factories, and energy and sustainability solutions.
#2 IBM
IBM, short for International Business Machines Corp., is a technology company based in Armonk, New York. They provide software, cloud services, artificial intelligence tools, consulting, and tech support services across the globe. The company also partners with other major companies like Adobe and Amazon to deliver its services.
#3 Marriott International
Marriott International has over 9,000 properties across 144 countries. Based in Bethesda, Maryland, Marriott is known for its operation and franchise of hotel, residential, and timeshare properties. According to their booking page, there are over 120 Marriott hotel properties across the Palmetto State.
#4 Google
Headquartered in Mountain View, California, Google is an American multinational technology company known for its online advertising, search engine technology, software, hardware, and artificial intelligence services.
#5 Husqvarna
Husqvarna is an engineering and manufacturing company based in Sweden. They specialize in outdoor power products and yard tools, including robotic lawn mowers, garden tractors, chainsaws, and trimmers.
Did any SC based companies make the list?
There were 20 other South Carolina-based companies that were included on Forbes’ list for the Palmetto State. Here’s how they ranked and where each company is headquartered:
- Sonoco, based in Hartsville (#12)
- Rock Hill Schools in York County District 3, based in Rock Hill (#14)
- University of South Carolina, based in Columbia (#16)
- MUSC Health, based in Charleston (#19)
- Michelin Group Automotive, based in Greenville, (#23)
- Roper St. Francis, based in Charleston (#26)
- Fort Mill School District, based in Fort Mill (#28)
- Prisma Health, based in Greenville (#34)
- McLeod Health, based in Florence, (#35)
- Charleston County School District, based in Charleston (#36)
- Aiken County Public School District, based in Aiken (#37)
- Clemson University, based in Clemson (#39)
- AnMed Health, based in Anderson (#41)
- Horry County Schools, based in Conway (#42)
- Richland 01 School District, based in Columbia (#44)
- Sonepar USA, based in Charleston (#45)
- Conway Medical Center, based in Conway (#47)
- Greenville County Schools, based in Greenville (#49)
- Lexington 01 School District, based in Lexington (#53)
- State of South Carolina, based in Columbia (#54)
What does the job market look like in the US now?
The national unemployment rate has remained relatively unchanged in 2025, sitting around 4.3%, with about 7.4 million unemployed people, according to the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Hiring rates have also shown little movement, with the rate of new hires at 3.3% in July.
Even with this employment picture, job openings are still available, but continue to fluctuate across industries. In July, there were 7.2 million open positions, meaning that based on current data, the number of unemployed Americans slightly outnumbers job openings.
How did Forbes make this list?
Forbes partnered with market research firm Statista to survey more than 160,000 employees across the U.S. to identify the top employers in each state. To qualify, respondents had to work for companies with at least 500 employees based in the United States.
The survey asked employees how likely they were to recommend their employer to others, using a scale of zero to ten.
In addition, respondents evaluated their workplaces based on key factors such as wage parity, company culture, opportunities for career advancement, and whether their employers take meaningful action on serious workplace issues like sexual harassment. The survey also asked for employees’ opinions of the workplace for a broad scope of criteria for a company to be evaluated upon.
Responses and company benchmarks were then incorporated into a weighted scoring system, with the highest-scoring companies in each state making the final rankings.
Forbes states that its top employer lists are solely driven by survey results and research.
