Farm Labor Contractors
Median $58,460
Occupation · SOC 13-1071
Human Resources Specialists: pay and where the jobs are
What human resources specialists earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.
National pay, May 2025
$75,940 median annual wage
- Mean (average) annual wage
- $81,990
- Median hourly wage
- $36.51
- Mean hourly wage
- $39.42
- Employment
- 912,430
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 13-1071.
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How much do human resources specialists make?
The median annual wage for human resources specialists was $75,940 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $47,180 and the highest-paid 10% more than $128,720. As an hourly rate, the median is $36.51. About 912,430 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in District of Columbia ($110,970), Massachusetts ($85,630) and Washington ($84,550). District of Columbia also comes out on top after taxes and local prices.
Pay ladder
What each step of the pay range for human resources specialists 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 | $47,180 | $22.69 | $3,932 | $3,341 |
| 25th percentile | $58,610 | $28.18 | $4,884 | $4,106 |
| Median | $75,940 | $36.51 | $6,328 | $5,188 |
| 75th percentile | $99,380 | $47.78 | $8,282 | $6,562 |
| 90th percentile | $128,720 | $61.89 | $10,727 | $8,271 |
Human Resources Specialists: pay by state
54 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
$73,187 take-home in national prices
2
$69,493 take-home in national prices
3
$63,644 take-home in national prices
Where a median human resources specialist 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 | 6,910 | $110,970 | $65,280 | $170,330 | $80,433 | $73,187 |
| Massachusetts | 27,300 | $85,630 | $57,500 | $145,130 | $64,615 | $61,098 |
| Washington | 22,770 | $84,550 | $57,030 | $136,070 | $67,138 | $62,738 |
| New York | 54,610 | $84,380 | $56,040 | $149,990 | $63,836 | $59,151 |
| Maryland | 15,530 | $83,910 | $54,410 | $139,400 | $64,241 | $61,206 |
| California | 104,000 | $83,500 | $52,770 | $151,410 | $62,966 | $56,870 |
| Connecticut | 9,010 | $82,890 | $51,000 | $134,810 | $62,920 | $60,727 |
| Virginia | 28,540 | $82,090 | $48,530 | $136,660 | $62,674 | $61,990 |
| Colorado | 19,450 | $80,840 | $51,290 | $133,850 | $62,497 | $60,646 |
| New Jersey | 21,690 | $80,690 | $56,420 | $132,770 | $62,116 | $57,089 |
| Minnesota | 17,240 | $78,760 | $50,330 | $127,060 | $60,059 | $60,899 |
| Oregon | 10,620 | $78,060 | $51,480 | $126,280 | $58,013 | $56,127 |
| Vermont | 1,270 | $77,800 | $55,510 | $114,090 | $60,932 | $62,202 |
| Delaware | 2,720 | $77,700 | $50,960 | $132,030 | $59,394 | $59,508 |
| Rhode Island | 3,320 | $77,560 | $51,270 | $128,250 | $60,249 | $58,906 |
| Alaska | 1,420 | $76,990 | $49,910 | $114,330 | $62,721 | $61,276 |
| Illinois | 35,430 | $76,820 | $48,980 | $123,940 | $59,215 | $59,240 |
| North Dakota | 1,710 | $75,630 | $50,520 | $116,990 | $61,820 | $69,493 |
| Hawaii | 2,570 | $73,750 | $49,110 | $113,320 | $56,543 | $51,426 |
| North Carolina | 31,140 | $73,070 | $46,760 | $126,000 | $57,828 | $61,307 |
| Utah | 9,900 | $71,750 | $46,800 | $123,780 | $56,383 | $57,031 |
| Maine | 3,020 | $71,630 | $45,850 | $105,840 | $55,706 | $57,400 |
| Nevada | 6,520 | $71,610 | $47,150 | $119,050 | $59,208 | $59,220 |
| Arizona | 20,230 | $71,390 | $47,290 | $112,900 | $57,662 | $57,274 |
| Kansas | 7,560 | $70,870 | $47,340 | $115,920 | $55,532 | $61,656 |
| New Hampshire | 4,270 | $70,840 | $47,700 | $122,560 | $58,666 | $56,320 |
| Georgia | 32,110 | $70,570 | $44,580 | $125,540 | $55,703 | $57,847 |
| Wisconsin | 17,360 | $70,540 | $47,860 | $105,270 | $55,776 | $59,276 |
| Pennsylvania | 36,960 | $70,450 | $46,610 | $119,850 | $56,179 | $57,577 |
| Ohio | 33,500 | $70,180 | $45,950 | $118,340 | $56,715 | $61,133 |
| Michigan | 25,520 | $69,520 | $46,580 | $110,710 | $55,033 | $57,197 |
| Kentucky | 10,900 | $69,010 | $43,690 | $107,940 | $55,081 | $61,093 |
| Texas | 84,930 | $68,920 | $43,410 | $117,060 | $57,315 | $59,053 |
| New Mexico | 4,090 | $68,050 | $46,620 | $117,170 | $54,671 | $59,288 |
| South Dakota | 1,340 | $67,590 | $50,670 | $104,550 | $56,380 | $63,644 |
| Tennessee | 21,460 | $67,370 | $45,630 | $109,990 | $56,225 | $61,200 |
| Missouri | 17,650 | $66,990 | $44,730 | $110,660 | $53,746 | $59,181 |
| Wyoming | 1,000 | $66,970 | $44,630 | $115,790 | $55,943 | $60,355 |
| West Virginia | 3,130 | $66,860 | $44,490 | $115,920 | $53,693 | $59,994 |
| Iowa | 7,930 | $66,710 | $45,400 | $110,640 | $53,877 | $61,390 |
| Florida | 62,730 | $66,410 | $44,920 | $115,920 | $55,540 | $53,707 |
| Indiana | 17,110 | $65,600 | $44,810 | $106,830 | $52,984 | $56,771 |
| South Carolina | 13,720 | $65,370 | $46,070 | $118,590 | $52,686 | $56,199 |
| Idaho | 3,930 | $64,990 | $43,820 | $102,490 | $52,063 | $54,520 |
| Alabama | 11,080 | $64,940 | $41,890 | $112,880 | $51,633 | $58,130 |
| Montana | 2,340 | $63,790 | $44,990 | $108,180 | $51,192 | $54,088 |
| Nebraska | 7,220 | $61,930 | $42,730 | $98,480 | $50,002 | $55,495 |
| Oklahoma | 9,370 | $61,630 | $39,990 | $103,460 | $49,472 | $56,318 |
| Louisiana | 7,240 | $61,300 | $39,170 | $100,420 | $49,982 | $56,664 |
| Mississippi | 4,850 | $60,300 | $38,500 | $108,950 | $48,951 | $56,296 |
| Virgin Islands | 120 | $60,210 | $47,120 | $86,030 | — | — |
| Guam | 380 | $59,900 | $38,330 | $86,220 | — | — |
| Arkansas | 6,230 | $55,010 | $32,030 | $99,990 | $44,833 | $51,569 |
| Puerto Rico | 4,270 | $40,900 | $27,860 | $72,110 | — | — |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 13-1071. *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.