How Much Do School Counselors Make?
School counselors earn a national median salary of $65,140 per year, according to May 2024 data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Salaries range from $43,580 at the 10th percentile to $105,870 at the 90th. California leads all states with a $94,320 median. Where you work — state, district, and school level — shapes your actual earnings more than almost anything else.
The range is wide. A first-year counselor in rural Oklahoma might earn $51,000. A veteran counselor in the San Francisco Bay Area can clear $100,000. Those aren’t outliers — they’re both typical for their geography and experience level. This page breaks down what’s driving those differences.
What Do School Counselors Earn?
The May 2024 BLS data covers 342,350 school and career counselors nationwide. Here’s how pay breaks out across the full range:
| Percentile | Annual Salary |
|---|---|
| 10th | $43,580 |
| 25th | $51,690 |
| Median (50th) | $65,140 |
| 75th | $83,490 |
| 90th | $105,870 |
The mean (average) salary is $71,520 — higher than the median, which signals that a cluster of well-compensated counselors in high-cost states like California and Washington is pulling the average up. One figure that often surprises people: school counselors working at public K-12 schools earn a median of $76,960, well above the occupation-wide median. That’s the setting where most counselors work, and it’s where the pay picture is strongest.
School Counselor Salary by Setting: K-12 vs. Higher Education
Where you work matters enormously — and not just which state you’re in. The employment setting itself creates a wide salary gap.
| Employment Setting | Median Annual Salary |
|---|---|
| Public K-12 schools | $76,960 |
| Private K-12 schools | $62,090 |
| State/local colleges and universities | $60,170 |
| Private colleges and universities | $57,800 |
| Other private educational services | $57,610 |
Public K-12 counselors earn roughly 28-33% more than their counterparts in higher education. The reasons are structural. K-12 counselors are placed on district salary schedules negotiated through collective bargaining agreements in many states, and nearly all states require a master’s degree for K-12 certification, which means counselors automatically qualify for higher salary lanes on those schedules. College and university counselors often lack that credential floor or the union-backed pay structures.
If you’re deciding between a K-12 career and a role at a community college or university counseling center, the pay tradeoff is real. The work is different too — K-12 counselors carry broader responsibilities across academic, career, and social/emotional development — but the compensation difference is significant enough to factor into the decision.
School Counselor Salary by State
Salaries vary considerably from state to state. California is the highest-paying state by a wide margin — the $94,320 median is nearly $30,000 above the national figure. At the other end, Oklahoma’s $51,140 median is the lowest in the country.
| State | Median Annual Salary |
|---|---|
| California | $94,320 |
| Washington | $83,930 |
| District of Columbia | $80,280 |
| Alaska | $80,020 |
| Massachusetts | $78,840 |
| New Jersey | $77,940 |
| New Mexico | $76,490 |
| Maryland | $74,970 |
| Oregon | $74,000 |
| Delaware | $72,450 |
| Rhode Island | $71,590 |
| Connecticut | $70,400 |
| New York | $69,900 |
| New Hampshire | $68,410 |
| Virginia | $67,350 |
| Louisiana | $67,070 |
| Hawaii | $66,720 |
| Nebraska | $66,650 |
| Texas | $65,660 |
| Wyoming | $65,070 |
| Nevada | $64,960 |
| Kentucky | $64,390 |
| Georgia | $63,990 |
| Colorado | $63,900 |
| Wisconsin | $63,690 |
| Michigan | $63,240 |
| Minnesota | $63,230 |
| Utah | $62,500 |
| Ohio | $61,960 |
| Pennsylvania | $61,460 |
| Illinois | $61,210 |
| Vermont | $60,920 |
| Alabama | $60,530 |
| Idaho | $60,340 |
| North Dakota | $60,330 |
| Arkansas | $60,110 |
| Mississippi | $59,630 |
| Montana | $59,480 |
| Maine | $59,160 |
| Tennessee | $59,090 |
| Kansas | $58,430 |
| Arizona | $57,940 |
| South Carolina | $57,400 |
| North Carolina | $57,100 |
| Indiana | $56,470 |
| Iowa | $55,910 |
| West Virginia | $55,420 |
| Florida | $54,080 |
| Missouri | $53,790 |
| South Dakota | $52,450 |
| Oklahoma | $51,140 |
A few things stand out in the data. California’s median isn’t just the highest — it’s in a different tier entirely, nearly $10,000 above the next state. Washington and Massachusetts follow at roughly $78,000–$84,000. States in the South and Midwest tend to cluster between $55,000 and $65,000.
Keep in mind that the cost of living matters here. A $77,940 median in New Jersey goes considerably less far than a $63,900 median in Colorado. Whether the high-salary states offer better purchasing power depends heavily on housing costs and regional expenses.
California is the highest-paying state for school counselors.
With 44,160 employed counselors as of May 2024, California’s statewide median reaches $94,320 — the highest in the nation by a substantial margin. Most of the highest-paying metro areas for school counselors nationwide are in California.
The top-paying California metros (May 2024 BLS data) include:
- El Centro, CA — median $134,820
- Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA — median $102,130
- San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA — median $100,960
- Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA — median $100,020
- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA — median $99,570
- Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA — median $99,540
- Fresno, CA — median $99,190
- Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA — median $98,800
Outside California, Washington state is the next strongest market. The Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard metro has a $109,390 median, among the highest in the country. Washington’s statewide median of $83,930 ranks second nationally.
Do School Counselors Make More Than Teachers?
This is one of the most common questions prospective counselors ask, and the honest answer is: roughly the same, with a modest edge to counselors once education level is factored in.
The May 2024 BLS medians sit close together:
- School counselors: $65,140
- High school teachers: $64,580
- Middle school teachers: $62,970
- Elementary school teachers: $62,340
At the median, counselors earn about $560–$2,800 more than teachers, depending on the comparison. But this head-to-head has a significant catch: nearly all states require school counselors to hold a master’s degree, while many teachers enter with a bachelor’s degree. When you compare counselors to teachers at the same education level, the gap either narrows or flips.
A look at specific districts, based on publicly available salary schedules, shows how variable this really is.
Central Unified School District — Fresno, California
| Step 1 | Step 6 | |
|---|---|---|
| School Counselor Salary | $78,597.97 | $112,979.79 |
| Teacher Salary Class I | $62,282.10 | $77,226.40 |
Dallas Independent School District — Dallas, Texas
The base teaching schedule in Dallas is 187–191 days per year. Salaries below reflect Steps 1 and 7 for those schedules.
| Step 1 | Step 7 | |
|---|---|---|
| School Counselor, 187/191 Days | $53,672 | $120,538 |
| Teacher Class I, 187/191 Days | $62,500 | $65,520 |
New York City District 75 — New York City, New York
| Step 1A | Step 8B | |
|---|---|---|
| School Counselor MA+30 | $73,515 | $102,932 |
| Teacher BAC1 | $61,070 | $81,022 |
The Dallas data illustrates something worth noting: in some districts, teachers at Step 1 actually start higher than counselors. The counselor’s advantage comes at the career midpoint and beyond, where experience and step progression create a much larger gap. In Fresno and New York, counselors earn more at every level.
Contrary to what one might think, school counselors working at public elementary and secondary schools earned more on average than their counterparts at private schools.
One more variable: contract length. Many counselors work 10.5- to 12-month contracts, while teachers typically work 10 months. A counselor’s higher annual salary sometimes reflects a longer work year rather than a higher daily rate.
Does a Master’s Degree Affect School Counselor Salary?
In education, the short answer is yes — reliably and often significantly.
Nearly all states require a master’s degree for school counselor licensure, which means you’re likely pursuing one regardless. But the degree does more than satisfy the credentialing requirement. District salary schedules in most states have separate lanes for bachelor’s degree holders and master’s degree holders, with the master’s lane starting several thousand dollars higher and widening over time. Some districts also have MA+30 or MA+60 lanes for counselors who continue taking graduate courses after completing their degree.
The practical implication: if you’re choosing between programs or considering whether additional credits are worth the cost, look at the salary schedule for the district where you plan to work before enrolling. The financial return on a master’s degree in school counseling is built directly into the pay structure of the job. For a look at program options, see our guide to master’s in school counseling programs.
What’s Happening With School Counselor Pay Right Now
The demand picture is creating upward pressure on counselor salaries in some markets, even as funding changes create uncertainty in others.
According to the American School Counselor Association, the national student-to-counselor ratio most recently stood at approximately 372:1 — the lowest since ASCA began tracking it. That’s an improvement, but ASCA recommends a 250:1 ratio, and only a handful of states currently meet it. The gap means ongoing demand for counselors in most of the country.
At the same time, the expiration of ESSER III pandemic funds in September 2024 — with liquidation deadlines extending into 2025 — removed a significant source of counselor hiring money. Many districts that added positions during the pandemic are now facing budget decisions about whether to maintain those roles. Some federal school safety and mental health funding programs have also faced legal and administrative uncertainty since 2024, creating additional disruption in some districts.
Some states are responding with targeted pay actions. Arkansas, Texas, Tennessee, and North Carolina are among the states that have recently added salary bonuses or supplements for educators, including counselors. These are state-by-state and year-by-year decisions, so the funding landscape varies considerably depending on where you work.
If you’re weighing whether to enter the field, the path to becoming a school counselor starts with understanding the steps to licensure in your state. Requirements vary, and your graduate program should align with the state where you plan to practice.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the starting salary for a school counselor?
Entry-level school counselors typically earn between $43,000 and $55,000 per year, depending on the state and district. The 10th percentile nationally is $43,580 (May 2024, BLS). Starting salaries are higher in California and the Northeast, where district salary schedules often start at $65,000 or above for master’s-level positions. Rural districts and states in the South and Midwest tend to have lower starting figures.
How much do school counselors make per hour?
Using the national median of $65,140, that comes to roughly $31 per hour based on a standard 2,080-hour work year — though that calculation doesn’t reflect the actual contract structure of most school positions. The BLS reports a mean hourly wage of $34.38 for the occupation. Many counselors work 10-month or 10.5-month contracts, so the effective hourly rate depends on actual days worked.
Do school counselors make more in public or private schools?
Significantly more in public schools. Public K-12 counselors earn a median of $76,960, compared to $62,090 at private K-12 schools — a gap of roughly $15,000. Public school pay is generally higher because of collective bargaining agreements and state salary schedules that are typically better funded than private school compensation structures. The difference is consistent across most states.
Is school counseling a financially stable career?
For most people, yes. The BLS projects approximately 31,000 annual job openings through the mid-2030s, driven primarily by retirements and turnover rather than new position creation. Demand is particularly strong in states with high student-to-counselor ratios and in districts working toward ASCA-recommended staffing levels. The federal funding shifts of 2024-25 introduced some uncertainty, but K-12 counseling positions at the state and local level have generally remained stable. You can learn more about career pathways and the difference between guidance counselors and school counselors if you’re still exploring the field.
- National median is $65,140 — The May 2024 BLS figure for school and career counselors. The mean is $71,520, pulled up by high-paying states like California and Washington.
- Setting matters as much as state — Public K-12 counselors earn a $76,960 median, roughly $15,000–$19,000 more than counselors in higher education settings.
- California leads by a wide margin — A $94,320 statewide median and most of the highest-paying metros nationally. Washington ($83,930) and Massachusetts ($78,840) follow.
- Counselors and teachers earn near-parity at the national median — But the comparison shifts when accounting for the near-universal master’s degree requirement for counselors and differences in contract length.
- Demand remains strong despite funding shifts — Record-low student-to-counselor ratios signal ongoing need, even as ESSER III expiration and other funding changes create some budget uncertainty in certain districts.
If you’re comparing master’s programs, start with the state where you plan to practice. Licensing requirements vary, and your program should align with the state’s credentialing process before you enroll.
