Health Education Specialists
Median $64,070
Occupation · SOC 21-1094
Community Health Workers: pay and where the jobs are
What community health workers earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.
National pay, May 2025
$51,850 median annual wage
- Mean (average) annual wage
- $56,180
- Median hourly wage
- $24.93
- Mean hourly wage
- $27.01
- Employment
- 61,660
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 21-1094.
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See where your pay falls among community health workers nationally and in your state. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
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How much do community health workers make?
The median annual wage for community health workers was $51,850 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $38,810 and the highest-paid 10% more than $77,180. As an hourly rate, the median is $24.93. About 61,660 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in New Hampshire ($66,680), District of Columbia ($62,510) and North Dakota ($59,610). After taxes and local prices, though, a median paycheck goes furthest in North Dakota.
Pay ladder
What each step of the pay range for community health workers 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 | $38,810 | $18.66 | $3,234 | $2,780 |
| 25th percentile | $45,640 | $21.94 | $3,803 | $3,238 |
| Median | $51,850 | $24.93 | $4,321 | $3,653 |
| 75th percentile | $62,540 | $30.07 | $5,212 | $4,369 |
| 90th percentile | $77,180 | $37.11 | $6,432 | $5,261 |
Community Health Workers: pay by state
52 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
$56,292 take-home in national prices
2
$53,511 take-home in national prices
3
$49,180 take-home in national prices
Where a median community health worker paycheck goes furthest after 2026 taxes and BEA price levels.
| State | Employment | Median | 10th pct. | 90th pct. | Median after tax* | In national prices† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Hampshire | 200 | $66,680 | $43,430 | $77,010 | $55,739 | $53,511 |
| District of Columbia | 280 | $62,510 | $51,010 | $93,070 | $49,790 | $45,305 |
| North Dakota | 90 | $59,610 | $44,800 | $76,210 | $50,077 | $56,292 |
| Colorado | Not published | $59,260 | $45,450 | $76,790 | $47,636 | $46,225 |
| Hawaii | 240 | $58,450 | $37,700 | $84,750 | $46,214 | $42,031 |
| New York | 5,800 | $58,130 | $44,310 | $87,980 | $46,063 | $42,682 |
| California | 9,500 | $58,050 | $46,320 | $88,590 | $46,546 | $42,039 |
| Nevada | 670 | $57,730 | $41,980 | $95,200 | $48,566 | $48,576 |
| Washington | 2,640 | $57,070 | $43,820 | $80,680 | $47,244 | $44,148 |
| Delaware | 280 | $55,850 | $35,810 | $74,530 | $44,409 | $44,495 |
| New Jersey | 1,330 | $55,790 | $39,640 | $83,600 | $45,048 | $41,402 |
| Utah | 580 | $55,700 | $35,480 | $74,880 | $44,935 | $45,451 |
| Massachusetts | 2,970 | $55,560 | $42,910 | $74,840 | $44,009 | $41,613 |
| New Mexico | 610 | $54,830 | $38,210 | $73,110 | $44,825 | $48,610 |
| Wyoming | 140 | $54,020 | $39,520 | $79,600 | $45,585 | $49,180 |
| Connecticut | 290 | $53,560 | $43,120 | $74,120 | $42,752 | $41,262 |
| Oregon | 1,980 | $53,350 | $45,000 | $73,760 | $41,265 | $39,923 |
| Rhode Island | 520 | $53,100 | $45,370 | $76,310 | $42,887 | $41,931 |
| Idaho | 270 | $52,050 | $39,500 | $94,280 | $42,352 | $44,350 |
| Alaska | 400 | $52,000 | $38,780 | $77,210 | $43,702 | $42,695 |
| Nebraska | 160 | $51,780 | $38,550 | $72,970 | $42,309 | $46,956 |
| Vermont | 170 | $51,500 | $44,010 | $62,320 | $42,269 | $43,150 |
| Wisconsin | 630 | $51,210 | $39,010 | $71,450 | $41,691 | $44,307 |
| Pennsylvania | 1,970 | $50,710 | $38,960 | $80,830 | $41,333 | $42,362 |
| Georgia | 490 | $50,680 | $34,100 | $73,130 | $41,121 | $42,704 |
| Ohio | 1,910 | $50,650 | $35,950 | $75,380 | $41,928 | $45,194 |
| Maryland | 3,030 | $50,550 | $36,190 | $79,290 | $40,762 | $38,836 |
| Montana | 330 | $49,780 | $38,470 | $79,580 | $40,595 | $42,892 |
| Michigan | 1,890 | $49,380 | $37,720 | $74,610 | $40,009 | $41,582 |
| Illinois | 2,040 | $49,240 | $39,040 | $65,540 | $39,452 | $39,468 |
| Arizona | 1,140 | $48,950 | $39,310 | $75,010 | $40,681 | $40,408 |
| Virginia | 620 | $48,910 | $34,440 | $79,990 | $39,481 | $39,050 |
| Missouri | 1,820 | $48,770 | $36,990 | $64,330 | $40,012 | $44,058 |
| Texas | 4,210 | $48,720 | $36,250 | $64,290 | $41,327 | $42,580 |
| Maine | 360 | $48,670 | $41,770 | $61,360 | $39,436 | $40,634 |
| Kentucky | 980 | $48,230 | $33,310 | $71,980 | $39,362 | $43,659 |
| South Carolina | 540 | $47,970 | $38,110 | $70,230 | $39,859 | $42,517 |
| Indiana | 1,310 | $47,960 | $38,400 | $68,620 | $39,331 | $42,142 |
| Iowa | 390 | $47,780 | $37,690 | $71,360 | $39,407 | $44,903 |
| Minnesota | 1,260 | $47,560 | $42,610 | $69,160 | $38,459 | $38,997 |
| North Carolina | 1,680 | $47,560 | $36,160 | $68,380 | $39,006 | $41,352 |
| Kansas | 240 | $47,300 | $37,940 | $63,650 | $38,346 | $42,574 |
| Louisiana | 210 | $46,450 | $35,360 | $59,440 | $38,495 | $43,642 |
| Oklahoma | 600 | $45,790 | $34,520 | $67,630 | $37,457 | $42,641 |
| South Dakota | 270 | $45,700 | $39,230 | $60,630 | $38,900 | $43,912 |
| Florida | 1,220 | $45,420 | $31,350 | $69,630 | $38,675 | $37,398 |
| Arkansas | Not published | $44,890 | $38,680 | $69,720 | $37,076 | $42,647 |
| Alabama | 270 | $43,340 | $33,470 | $62,790 | $35,228 | $39,661 |
| Tennessee | 520 | $42,310 | $34,180 | $58,960 | $36,176 | $39,377 |
| Mississippi | 410 | $39,520 | $30,930 | $70,890 | $33,086 | $38,050 |
| West Virginia | 310 | $37,950 | $29,480 | $56,840 | $31,694 | $35,414 |
| Puerto Rico | 670 | $36,900 | $22,650 | $49,620 | — | — |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 21-1094. *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.