Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors
Median $64,330
Occupation · SOC 21-1018
Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors: pay and where the jobs are
What substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.
National pay, May 2025
$59,350 median annual wage
- Mean (average) annual wage
- $64,440
- Median hourly wage
- $28.53
- Mean hourly wage
- $30.98
- Employment
- 491,930
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 21-1018.
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How much do substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors make?
The median annual wage for substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors was $59,350 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $38,940 and the highest-paid 10% more than $97,590. As an hourly rate, the median is $28.53. About 491,930 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in Alaska ($80,770), Oregon ($74,590) and New Mexico ($74,100). After taxes and local prices, though, a median paycheck goes furthest in North Dakota.
Pay ladder
What each step of the pay range for substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors 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 | $38,940 | $18.72 | $3,245 | $2,789 |
| 25th percentile | $47,100 | $22.65 | $3,925 | $3,335 |
| Median | $59,350 | $28.53 | $4,946 | $4,156 |
| 75th percentile | $76,530 | $36.80 | $6,378 | $5,222 |
| 90th percentile | $97,590 | $46.92 | $8,133 | $6,457 |
Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors: 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
$64,111 take-home in national prices
2
$63,874 take-home in national prices
3
$63,595 take-home in national prices
Where a median substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselor paycheck goes furthest after 2026 taxes and BEA price levels.
| State | Employment | Median | 10th pct. | 90th pct. | Median after tax* | In national prices† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska | 1,290 | $80,770 | $58,240 | $114,650 | $65,381 | $63,874 |
| Oregon | 8,160 | $74,590 | $49,860 | $102,830 | $55,830 | $54,014 |
| New Mexico | 2,420 | $74,100 | $48,900 | $113,420 | $58,642 | $63,595 |
| Washington | 14,250 | $68,910 | $47,220 | $110,580 | $56,352 | $52,659 |
| North Dakota | 1,290 | $68,630 | $43,270 | $86,630 | $57,032 | $64,111 |
| Arizona | 9,990 | $65,300 | $44,520 | $95,210 | $53,410 | $53,051 |
| Rhode Island | 2,170 | $65,120 | $43,960 | $98,440 | $51,962 | $50,804 |
| Utah | 6,320 | $63,890 | $35,410 | $106,080 | $51,045 | $51,631 |
| Nebraska | 2,170 | $63,770 | $42,400 | $109,610 | $51,397 | $57,043 |
| Connecticut | 7,540 | $63,590 | $44,080 | $99,540 | $50,209 | $48,460 |
| Idaho | 2,990 | $63,360 | $36,400 | $98,760 | $50,840 | $53,239 |
| Wyoming | 910 | $62,980 | $36,960 | $103,150 | $52,784 | $56,947 |
| New Jersey | 14,210 | $62,820 | $40,630 | $104,310 | $50,279 | $46,210 |
| Texas | 21,400 | $62,630 | $37,650 | $95,910 | $52,503 | $54,095 |
| Colorado | 14,920 | $62,390 | $44,060 | $100,020 | $49,999 | $48,518 |
| Wisconsin | 8,340 | $62,220 | $46,510 | $94,640 | $49,989 | $53,126 |
| Vermont | 1,120 | $61,810 | $47,820 | $80,690 | $50,208 | $51,254 |
| Michigan | 10,100 | $61,690 | $38,490 | $94,400 | $49,377 | $51,318 |
| Iowa | 3,530 | $60,880 | $44,450 | $102,890 | $49,435 | $56,329 |
| Illinois | 20,250 | $60,730 | $43,010 | $109,100 | $48,115 | $48,135 |
| District of Columbia | 1,260 | $60,450 | $43,060 | $107,980 | $48,269 | $43,920 |
| Hawaii | 2,110 | $60,090 | $48,460 | $104,790 | $47,399 | $43,109 |
| Maine | 1,930 | $59,970 | $43,310 | $89,220 | $47,696 | $49,146 |
| Massachusetts | 18,190 | $59,890 | $43,180 | $96,200 | $47,252 | $44,679 |
| Virginia | 17,940 | $59,880 | $39,730 | $100,040 | $47,665 | $47,144 |
| Maryland | 9,730 | $59,530 | $44,050 | $91,980 | $47,551 | $45,304 |
| Kansas | 2,600 | $59,470 | $37,910 | $85,860 | $47,445 | $52,677 |
| New York | 26,770 | $59,450 | $42,410 | $90,590 | $47,047 | $43,594 |
| Oklahoma | 5,150 | $59,350 | $35,350 | $92,870 | $47,742 | $54,350 |
| California | 75,610 | $59,250 | $44,640 | $111,080 | $47,423 | $42,831 |
| Montana | 1,820 | $59,000 | $36,840 | $83,640 | $47,570 | $50,262 |
| Georgia | 9,600 | $58,960 | $37,390 | $90,980 | $47,361 | $49,184 |
| Minnesota | 7,110 | $58,780 | $45,250 | $77,320 | $46,677 | $47,330 |
| Ohio | 18,020 | $58,360 | $39,010 | $83,730 | $47,911 | $51,643 |
| Nevada | 1,810 | $57,210 | $42,920 | $98,010 | $48,148 | $48,158 |
| Missouri | 8,130 | $56,910 | $37,650 | $89,400 | $46,170 | $50,838 |
| Florida | 29,750 | $56,790 | $39,430 | $84,410 | $47,811 | $46,232 |
| Delaware | 1,700 | $56,020 | $36,940 | $80,710 | $44,536 | $44,621 |
| North Carolina | 10,300 | $55,490 | $37,440 | $86,010 | $45,061 | $47,771 |
| New Hampshire | 3,690 | $54,840 | $38,480 | $81,050 | $46,244 | $44,395 |
| Kentucky | 7,690 | $54,190 | $35,150 | $83,070 | $43,943 | $48,739 |
| Indiana | 11,890 | $53,760 | $37,580 | $83,200 | $43,820 | $46,952 |
| South Dakota | 1,710 | $53,650 | $39,210 | $67,010 | $45,288 | $51,123 |
| South Carolina | 6,300 | $52,370 | $35,010 | $81,420 | $43,103 | $45,977 |
| Pennsylvania | 30,620 | $52,010 | $36,280 | $81,970 | $42,337 | $43,390 |
| Arkansas | 2,570 | $51,580 | $35,760 | $100,270 | $42,204 | $48,545 |
| Tennessee | 9,040 | $49,580 | $34,950 | $76,620 | $42,018 | $45,736 |
| West Virginia | 2,100 | $49,430 | $36,990 | $73,360 | $40,477 | $45,227 |
| Alabama | Not published | $47,310 | $34,420 | $76,510 | $38,243 | $43,055 |
| Mississippi | 2,090 | $46,990 | $32,770 | $77,310 | $38,789 | $44,609 |
| Puerto Rico | 100 | $46,790 | $30,160 | $47,950 | — | — |
| Louisiana | 6,420 | $37,910 | $29,860 | $65,720 | $31,890 | $36,153 |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 21-1018. *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.