Pay · 21-1015
Rehabilitation Counselors earn $46,850 a year at the midpoint
The middle of the pay scale for rehabilitation counselors is $46,850. A typical start is nearer $38,770; the top tenth earn about $77,170.
National figures for rehabilitation counselors, 21-1015, from the 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.
- Read the spread, not the middle. The median is the midpoint across everyone in the occupation, most of them years into the work. A beginner starts nearer the 10th to 25th percentile, which is why the spread is published alongside it.
- What the figure counts. The figure counts base pay plus tips, commissions and production bonuses. It leaves out the self-employed, unpaid family workers, private household workers, and the value of benefits or profit sharing.
- The annual figure is arithmetic. For hourly occupations the annual figure is the hourly rate times 2080 hours. It is a calculation, not observed earnings: part time is the norm in retail and food service.
- Where you live moves it more than your resume does. National figures. A state or metro area can sit far from the national number, and that gap is usually larger than any difference a resume makes.
- Not in these numbers. Growth and annual openings are not in this dataset. They come from the separate Employment Projections tables, where an opening is a modelled ten year average and not a posted vacancy.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, 2025. Retrieved through the BLS Public Data API on 2026-08-13. bls.gov/oes “BLS.gov cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from BLS.gov.”
Rehabilitation counselor earnings, from starting pay to the top 10%
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An estimate from survey percentiles, not an offer. Employer, industry, shift and credentials move pay within and beyond this range. Full wage page for this job →
Rehabilitation counselor wages by state
The 48 states where the most people do this work, of 51 with a published figure: their medians range by 1.79 times. Figures are the 2025 survey.
| State | Median a year | Where most start | 10th to 90th | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Dakota | $63,050 | $58,190 | $58,190 — $76,120 | 210 |
| Kentucky | $58,540 | $33,000 | $33,000 — $77,790 | 790 |
| Washington | $58,050 | $46,050 | $46,050 — $84,500 | 5,440 |
| Connecticut | $56,340 | $39,510 | $39,510 — $97,140 | 2,410 |
| Georgia | $55,000 | $34,900 | $34,900 — $85,510 | 740 |
| Oregon | $54,970 | $42,650 | $42,650 — $83,510 | 1,630 |
| Idaho | $54,550 | $29,450 | $29,450 — $75,710 | 820 |
| Alabama | $54,040 | $35,230 | $35,230 — $80,110 | 540 |
| Maine | $51,150 | $38,550 | $38,550 — $74,410 | 330 |
| Vermont | $50,030 | $40,750 | $40,750 — $82,180 | 310 |
| Texas | $49,990 | $30,070 | $30,070 — $72,800 | 1,840 |
| New Jersey | $49,730 | $39,700 | $39,700 — $92,670 | 1,630 |
| Illinois | $49,350 | $37,280 | $37,280 — $75,020 | 4,140 |
| South Dakota | $49,350 | $41,190 | $41,190 — $76,680 | 370 |
| Delaware | $48,840 | $39,200 | $39,200 — $73,560 | 340 |
| Hawaii | $48,720 | $38,820 | $38,820 — $71,000 | 150 |
| Pennsylvania | $48,650 | $36,230 | $36,230 — $77,220 | 4,130 |
| Arizona | $48,330 | $37,130 | $37,130 — $60,670 | 1,750 |
| New Mexico | $48,240 | $37,300 | $37,300 — $77,010 | 210 |
| West Virginia | $48,050 | $28,810 | $28,810 — $64,240 | 470 |
| Minnesota | $48,010 | $37,660 | $37,660 — $81,840 | 3,020 |
| Louisiana | $47,990 | $34,130 | $34,130 — $128,130 | 280 |
| New York | $47,960 | $37,130 | $37,130 — $76,600 | 3,810 |
| Colorado | $47,840 | $36,460 | $36,460 — $89,510 | 980 |
| Virginia | $47,530 | $28,850 | $28,850 — $97,240 | 2,890 |
| Massachusetts | $47,320 | $38,770 | $38,770 — $101,760 | 5,760 |
| Nebraska | $47,050 | $37,040 | $37,040 — $68,040 | 480 |
| Rhode Island | $47,020 | $46,670 | $46,670 — $85,800 | 420 |
| Wisconsin | $46,530 | $32,930 | $32,930 — $69,990 | 2,390 |
| Tennessee | $46,060 | $35,320 | $35,320 — $59,800 | 1,590 |
| Florida | $45,990 | $34,410 | $34,410 — $67,980 | 3,110 |
| North Carolina | $45,890 | $30,440 | $30,440 — $59,600 | 3,820 |
| Montana | $45,240 | $37,410 | $37,410 — $59,900 | 330 |
| Missouri | $45,180 | $37,260 | $37,260 — $62,600 | 2,020 |
| Michigan | $44,580 | $31,040 | $31,040 — $72,400 | 3,340 |
| California | $44,480 | $35,940 | $35,940 — $69,260 | 13,690 |
| Indiana | $44,390 | $30,450 | $30,450 — $62,520 | 2,030 |
| Utah | $43,900 | $35,400 | $35,400 — $85,050 | 650 |
| Ohio | $42,620 | $31,650 | $31,650 — $78,210 | 3,690 |
| New Hampshire | $42,600 | $34,630 | $34,630 — $57,300 | 430 |
| Kansas | $41,980 | $30,930 | $30,930 — $57,430 | 1,370 |
| Mississippi | $41,500 | $29,270 | $29,270 — $71,960 | 470 |
| Maryland | $40,860 | $36,590 | $36,590 — $67,630 | 3,300 |
| Nevada | $40,120 | $34,400 | $34,400 — $62,550 | 570 |
| Iowa | $39,630 | $34,370 | $34,370 — $58,220 | 2,170 |
| Oklahoma | $38,260 | $27,200 | $27,200 — $57,320 | 1,570 |
| South Carolina | $35,990 | $30,900 | $30,900 — $55,310 | 980 |
| Arkansas | $35,210 | $24,580 | $24,580 — $70,670 | 600 |
Examples
Resumes written for this line of work.
Real sheets, filled in end to end — for this job and the ones beside it.
- Rehabilitation Counselor Resume Template Community & Social Service
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Writing a resume for rehabilitation counselors
Name the job in the builder and the duties, skills and credentials it is screened on are written in for you.
- Developed rehabilitation plans that fit clients' aptitudes, education levels, physical abilities, and career goals.
- Conferred with clients to discuss their options and goals so that rehabilitation programs and plans for accessing needed services can be developed.
- Prepared and maintained records and case files, including documentation, such as clients' personal and eligibility information, services provided, narratives of client contacts, or relevant correspondence.
This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. The owner of tiersi.com has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.
Rehabilitation counselor pay rate, hourly to yearly
Starts at this job’s median. Change the rate or the hours; a full-time year is 40 hours for 52 weeks.
No. 592 of 788 by median pay
Better paid than 25% of the occupations in the survey.
- 590 Roustabouts, Oil and Gas $46,960
- 591 Grounds Maintenance Workers, All Other $46,860
- 592 Rehabilitation Counselors $46,850
- 593 Self-Enrichment Teachers $46,800
- 594 Correspondence Clerks $46,800
What people often ask
What is a rehabilitation counselor’s yearly income?
A rehabilitation counselor makes a median of $46,850 a year (2025 survey). The middle half earn between $38,770 and $59,260.
What is a rehabilitation counselor’s hourly pay rate?
The median pay rate is $22.52 an hour; the average is $51,820 a year.
What is the starting pay for a rehabilitation counselor?
Starting pay is usually near the 25th percentile, $38,770 a year, and sometimes as low as the 10th, $35,060.
Which state pays rehabilitation counselors the most?
Wyoming, with a median of $67,640 a year.
How many people work as rehabilitation counselors?
About 94,740 in the United States — number 592 of 788 occupations by median pay.
Jobs that pay about the same
Median pay within $170 of what rehabilitation counselors earn — $46,850 a year — but not always the same spread.
- $50 less Self-Enrichment Teachers $46,800median a year 10th percentile: $30,050 90th percentile: $92,840
- $110 more Roustabouts, Oil and Gas $46,960median a year 10th percentile: $36,420 90th percentile: $64,530
- $170 less Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters $46,680median a year 10th percentile: $35,650 90th percentile: $63,720