Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors Salary - BLS OEWS Wage Benchmarks
SOC 21-1018 · National · May 2024 OEWS Data
Median Annual Salary
$59,197
$28.46/hr
Verified BLS OEWS data · Updated Apr 3, 2025
Source: BLS OEWS · Published Apr 2, 2025
Next refresh: May 15, 2026
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The national median salary for Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors is $59,197 per year ($28.46/hr) according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2024. The middle 50% of earners make between $47,174 and $76,232 annually. Top earners at the 90th percentile reach $98,218 per year. There are approximately 440,380 substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors employed in the United States.
Career Outlook
BLS Employment Projections · 2024-2034
10-year growth
+16.8%
Much faster than average
Annual openings
48K
per year, on avg
Workforce today
484K
as of 2024
Why those openings exist
17% from new growth83% from people leaving the role
Most openings come from replacement, not growth. Retention matters more than recruiting here.
Typical entry requirements
Education
Master's degree
Experience
None
On-the-job training
Internship/residency
Industry Wage Breakdown
Top 5 industries by employment · median annual wage, sector-specific
Industry
Workforce
Median Pay
Outpatient Care Centers
NAICS 621400
93K
$58,780
Offices of Other Health Practitioners
NAICS 621300
80K
$59,570
Individual and Family Services
NAICS 624100
70K
$57,080
Residential Intellectual and Developmental Disability, Mental Health, and Substance Abuse Facilities
NAICS 623200
46K
$49,950
Local Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation)
NAICS 999300
26K
$67,050
Wage range across top 5 industries: $49,950 to $67,050 (34% spread)
Wage Percentiles
Hourly & annualized (2,080 hours)
Percentile
Hourly Rate
Annual Salary
P10
$18.79
$39,083
P25
$22.68
$47,174
P50MEDIAN
$28.46
$59,197
P75
$36.65
$76,232
P90
$47.22
$98,218
Market Context Signal
JOLTS · professional sector
Cooling
Openings Rate
4.2%
Quits Rate
2.0%
Professional & Business Services openings tumbled 318K in March -- the largest single-sector drop in this release. Openings rate fell from 5.5% to 4.2%. Layoffs jumped to 527K (+99K). White-collar demand has cooled abruptly.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the average substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors salary?
The national median salary for Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors is $59,197 per year ($28.46/hr) according to BLS OEWS May 2024 data. The middle 50% earn between $47,174 and $76,232 annually.
How much do top-earning substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors make?
The 90th percentile salary for Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors is $98,218 per year ($47.22/hr). The 75th percentile is $76,232 per year.
What is the entry-level salary for substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors?
Entry-level Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors (10th percentile) earn approximately $39,083 per year ($18.79/hr). The 25th percentile is $47,174 per year.
Wage figures on this page come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2024 release. OEWS surveys roughly 1.1 million establishments annually. It is the most comprehensive employer-reported wage dataset in the United States.
P10 through P90 percentiles represent the wage distribution across all surveyed employers (not self-reported by workers). Geographic adjustments use BLS-derived cost multipliers calibrated from regional wage variation.
Wages are estimates. Individual compensation depends on experience, education, employer size, industry, and negotiation. Use this as benchmark context, not absolute ground truth.
CompSignal is a free labor market intelligence tool built for HR, compensation, and talent acquisition teams. We make BLS data, the same primary source Mercer and Radford cross-reference in their paid surveys, searchable and actionable without an enterprise subscription.
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