Arbitrators, Mediators, and Conciliators
Median $75,530
Occupation · SOC 23-1021
Administrative Law Judges, Adjudicators, and Hearing Officers: pay and where the jobs are
What administrative law judges, adjudicators, and hearing officers earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.
National pay, May 2025
$117,860 median annual wage
- Mean (average) annual wage
- $125,990
- Median hourly wage
- $56.67
- Mean hourly wage
- $60.57
- Employment
- 16,370
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 23-1021.
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How much do administrative law judges, adjudicators, and hearing officers make?
The median annual wage for administrative law judges, adjudicators, and hearing officers was $117,860 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $61,110 and the highest-paid 10% more than $207,480. As an hourly rate, the median is $56.67. About 16,370 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in District of Columbia ($181,060), Indiana ($145,290) and Alabama ($134,810). After taxes and local prices, though, a median paycheck goes furthest in Indiana.
Pay ladder
What each step of the pay range for administrative law judges, adjudicators, and hearing officers looks like per month. Take-home here includes federal tax, Social Security and Medicare for a single filer; add your state in the paycheck calculator.
| Step | Annual | Hourly | Monthly gross | Monthly after federal tax & FICA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $61,110 | $29.38 | $5,093 | $4,273 |
| 25th percentile | $81,140 | $39.01 | $6,762 | $5,493 |
| Median | $117,860 | $56.67 | $9,822 | $7,645 |
| 75th percentile | $159,680 | $76.77 | $13,307 | $10,034 |
| 90th percentile | $207,480 | $99.75 | $17,290 | $12,757 |
Administrative Law Judges, Adjudicators, and Hearing Officers: pay by state
42 states and territories have a published median, sorted from highest to lowest. The last two columns are our estimates: the median after 2026 federal and state taxes, and that take-home restated in national-average prices.
1
$113,914 take-home in national prices
2
$111,554 take-home in national prices
3
$110,290 take-home in national prices
Where a median administrative law judges, adjudicators, and hearing officer paycheck goes furthest after 2026 taxes and BEA price levels.
| State | Employment | Median | 10th pct. | 90th pct. | Median after tax* | In national prices† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | 300 | $181,060 | $107,050 | $207,480 | $122,599 | $111,554 |
| Indiana | 70 | $145,290 | $89,440 | $207,480 | $106,315 | $113,914 |
| Alabama | 70 | $134,810 | $76,160 | $207,480 | $97,963 | $110,290 |
| Maryland | 430 | $133,460 | $62,390 | $203,990 | $96,315 | $91,764 |
| Wisconsin | 60 | $132,250 | $92,660 | $207,480 | $95,317 | $101,299 |
| North Carolina | 260 | $129,960 | $78,890 | $207,480 | $95,417 | $101,157 |
| Missouri | 160 | $129,670 | $74,980 | $207,480 | $94,738 | $104,318 |
| New Jersey | 330 | $128,320 | $87,130 | $184,120 | $92,259 | $84,793 |
| Michigan | 390 | $127,420 | $61,550 | $207,480 | $93,193 | $96,857 |
| Kansas | 40 | $126,570 | $108,890 | $207,480 | $91,514 | $101,605 |
| Louisiana | 140 | $126,440 | $61,110 | $224,240 | $94,281 | $106,886 |
| Minnesota | 120 | $126,360 | $83,280 | $158,390 | $89,991 | $91,249 |
| Iowa | 80 | $123,500 | $78,810 | $143,490 | $91,637 | $104,415 |
| Arizona | 300 | $123,240 | $76,480 | $169,330 | $92,813 | $92,189 |
| New York | 1,400 | $123,170 | $87,130 | $166,320 | $88,783 | $82,266 |
| Oklahoma | 90 | $122,930 | $63,630 | $207,480 | $90,302 | $102,800 |
| Washington | 330 | $122,390 | $98,350 | $181,940 | $93,222 | $87,113 |
| Colorado | 220 | $121,410 | $77,950 | $207,480 | $89,074 | $86,436 |
| Nebraska | 30 | $117,060 | $92,480 | $207,480 | $86,735 | $96,262 |
| Florida | 570 | $115,920 | $73,920 | $207,480 | $90,380 | $87,396 |
| Massachusetts | 270 | $113,750 | $82,620 | $183,350 | $82,862 | $78,352 |
| Tennessee | 380 | $107,740 | $41,740 | $207,480 | $84,625 | $92,114 |
| Hawaii | 50 | $106,480 | $79,860 | $139,480 | $77,060 | $70,086 |
| Illinois | 550 | $104,990 | $59,990 | $180,960 | $77,638 | $77,671 |
| Utah | 190 | $103,380 | $57,390 | $176,050 | $76,957 | $77,842 |
| Texas | 1,300 | $100,400 | $45,450 | $161,700 | $79,461 | $81,871 |
| Pennsylvania | 800 | $98,010 | $67,130 | $160,120 | $74,703 | $76,561 |
| Connecticut | 300 | $95,310 | $78,520 | $154,560 | $70,912 | $68,441 |
| South Carolina | 130 | $94,880 | $55,480 | $207,480 | $71,603 | $76,377 |
| Oregon | 480 | $89,220 | $64,130 | $166,040 | $64,856 | $62,748 |
| Puerto Rico | 40 | $88,530 | $61,970 | $207,480 | — | — |
| Nevada | 170 | $87,240 | $61,480 | $150,510 | $70,203 | $70,218 |
| Montana | 90 | $83,910 | $48,280 | $129,440 | $64,481 | $68,129 |
| New Mexico | 140 | $80,800 | $53,680 | $196,660 | $63,041 | $68,365 |
| Ohio | 690 | $79,000 | $57,530 | $160,370 | $62,678 | $67,559 |
| West Virginia | 90 | $78,870 | $51,570 | $187,990 | $61,592 | $68,820 |
| Maine | 120 | $75,960 | $60,280 | $147,390 | $58,439 | $60,215 |
| Georgia | 490 | $67,990 | $48,930 | $195,190 | $54,017 | $56,096 |
| Mississippi | 110 | $66,310 | $38,910 | $207,480 | $53,540 | $61,573 |
| Idaho | 110 | $65,050 | $59,840 | $115,920 | $52,108 | $54,567 |
| Arkansas | 340 | $63,660 | $45,610 | $121,260 | $51,463 | $59,196 |
| Delaware | 70 | $56,830 | $40,540 | $127,730 | $45,138 | $45,225 |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 23-1021. *Our estimate for a single filer paid biweekly with no pre-tax deductions or local tax, 2026 federal and state rules. †Take-home ÷ BEA Regional Price Parity × 100 (2024 price levels).
Sources
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25nat.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25st.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.