Child, Family, and School Social Workers Salaries by State

Mean and median pay, wage percentiles, employment, and top-paying metro areas for child, family, and school social workerss across the U.S. Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 (data.bls.gov OEWS tool /OESServices/combo/table, all-occupation crawl by area).

National mean salary $64,000 ≈ $31/hr
National median salary $59,550
Total employment 392,550 nationwide

Job Outlook, 2024–2034

Source: BLS Employment Projections 2024-2034.

Projected growth +3.4% About as fast as average
Annual openings 35,100 per year (avg)
Employment 2024→2034 399,900 → 413,300 (+13,400)
Typical entry education Bachelor's degree

Salary Map

Brighter tiles = higher average pay; dashed tiles have no data. Click a state for details.

💰 Top 5 Highest-Paying States

  1. Connecticut$80,180
  2. District of Columbia$79,540
  3. New Jersey$78,560
  4. Massachusetts$77,060
  5. Maryland$75,400

📉 5 Lowest-Paying States

  1. Arkansas$46,390
  2. Oklahoma$46,730
  3. Mississippi$47,750
  4. Missouri$51,360
  5. Nebraska$51,650
#StateMeanMedian Hourlyvs. U.S.Employment
1 Connecticut $80,180 $78,970 $39 +25.3% 5,230
2 District of Columbia $79,540 $73,550 $38 +24.3% 2,430
3 New Jersey $78,560 $76,280 $38 +22.8% 7,360
4 Massachusetts $77,060 $75,570 $37 +20.4% 10,900
5 Maryland $75,400 $76,390 $36 +17.8% 4,710
6 Washington $74,100 $74,480 $36 +15.8% 10,720
7 New York $72,150 $65,100 $35 +12.7% 30,170
8 California $71,940 $65,200 $35 +12.4% 60,310
9 Minnesota $70,890 $67,450 $34 +10.8% 6,540
10 Rhode Island $70,810 $69,870 $34 +10.6% 2,450
11 Colorado $70,760 $63,720 $34 +10.6% 8,200
12 New Hampshire $70,740 $71,010 $34 +10.5% 1,700
13 Illinois $70,670 $63,220 $34 +10.4% 19,860
14 Hawaii $69,450 $68,270 $33 +8.5% 1,170
15 Oregon $68,400 $64,130 $33 +6.9% 6,630

Top-Paying Metro Areas

Highest median pay among 514 metro areas.

#Metro areaMedianMeanEmployment
1 San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA $87,600 $89,820 2,120
2 Norwich-New London-Willimantic, CT $81,830 $80,980 450
3 Salisbury, MD $81,520 $79,420 120
4 Longview-Kelso, WA $80,450 $78,050 130
5 Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA $80,430 $76,950 580
6 Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT $79,920 $80,360 2,200
7 Maryland nonmetropolitan area $79,730 $77,230 280
8 Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT $78,970 $79,990 1,140
9 New Haven, CT $78,970 $79,610 810
10 Connecticut nonmetropolitan area $78,800 $80,010 190

Pay by Industry

Highest-paying industries employing child, family, and school social workerss (BLS OEWS, by median).

#IndustryMedianMeanEmployment
1 Insurance Carriers and Related Activities $82,960 $86,690
2 Insurance Carriers $82,960 $86,410
3 Direct Health and Medical Insurance Carriers $82,960 $86,460
4 Sector 52 - Finance and Insurance $82,960 $86,690
5 Junior Colleges, Local Government Owned $79,670 $76,220 420
6 Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools, Local Government Owned $79,630 $81,640 50
7 Home Health Care Services $78,990 $75,370 1,640
8 Elementary and Secondary Schools, State Government Owned $78,670 $85,150 840
9 Junior Colleges $75,060 $74,030 480
10 Specialty (except Psychiatric and Substance Abuse) Hospitals $74,940 $75,250 290
11 Specialty (except Psychiatric and Substance Abuse) Hospitals, Privately Owned $74,940 $76,170 270
12 Educational Support Services, Local Government Owned $74,920 $69,290 1,480

Workforce Deep-Dive

Distribution and demographics from Census ACS (2023, self-reported). Wage figures here are ACS averages and run lower than the authoritative BLS wages above; use them for shape, not exact pay.

Annual wage distribution

< $10K
14,179
$10-20k
3,792
$20-30k
5,094
$30-40k
12,110
$40-50k
15,229
$50-60k
14,892
$60-70k
10,383
$70-80k
6,893
$80-90k
5,817
$90-100k
2,591
$100-110k
2,045
$110-120k
703
$120-130k
763
$130-140k
238
$140-150k
227
$150-160k
84
$160-170k
55
$180-190k
101
$200k+
145

Pay by age band

16-24
$28,929
25-34
$42,429
35-44
$54,941
45-54
$60,187
55-64
$43,799
65+
$36,804

Education level

Bachelors Degree
$43,358
Masters Degree
$58,897
1 or more years of college credit, no degree
$31,599
Associates Degree
$43,182
Regular high school diploma
$32,204
Some college, but less than 1 year
$38,699
GED or alternative credential
$53,860
Professional degree
$68,566
12th grade - no diploma
$83,119
Doctorate degree
$47,962
Grade 8
$12,825
No schooling completed
$78,866
Grade 10
$401,885
Grade 9
$32,158

Full-time vs part-time

Full-time
74,928 · $56,246
Part-time
8,817 · $40,666

Race / ethnicity

White
$48,144
Black
$54,168
Two or More Races
$44,769
Other
$49,991
Asian
$31,487
American Indian
$38,142
American Indian and Alaska Native tribes specified; or American Indian or Alaska Native, not specified and no other races
Alaska Native
$1,529

Top fields of study

Social Work
$51,587
Psychology
$57,930
Criminal Justice And Fire Protection
$44,787
Sociology
$50,820
Family And Consumer Sciences
$45,735
Political Science And Government
$64,607
Business Management And Administration
$42,635
Early Childhood Education
$43,094

Frequently Asked Questions

How much do child, family, and school social workers make in the U.S.?

The median child, family, and school social workers salary in the United States is $59,550 per year (mean $64,000), and about 80% earn between $42,280 and $95,530.

How much do child, family, and school social workers make per hour?

Roughly $31 per hour, based on a mean annual wage of $64,000 and 2,080 work hours per year.

Which state pays child, family, and school social workers the most?

Connecticut has the highest average pay for child, family, and school social workers at $80,180 per year (median $78,970).

What is the job outlook for child, family, and school social workers?

Employment is projected to change +3.4% from 2024 to 2034 (About as fast as average), with about 35,100 openings per year.

What People Search

Common U.S. search queries related to this occupation.

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