This page archives the BLS OEWS May 2024 release. It has been superseded by the May 2025 wage report, now the current OEWS data (published 15 May 2026). The figures below are kept for historical reference.
BLS Clinical and Counseling Psychologists Median Annual Wage May 2024
The headline number: $96,100 median annual wage for Clinical and Counseling Psychologists (SOC 19-3033), per the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2024 release. The mean is $106,850. This page explains where the number comes from, what it includes and excludes, and how it compares to other psychology pay benchmarks.
Last verified 17 June 2026 · Source: BLS OEWS May 2024 release (archive); I-O 19-3032 median corrected to $109,840 against BLS
$96,100
SOC 19-3033 median annual wage
$106,850
SOC 19-3033 mean annual wage
$46.20
Median hourly equivalent
71,730
Total national employment
All Four Psychology SOC Codes
SOC Code
Title
Median annual
Mean annual
Employment
19-3032
Industrial-Organizational Psychologists
$109,840
n/a*
n/a*
19-3033
Clinical and Counseling Psychologists
$96,100
$106,850
71,730
19-3034
School Psychologists
$84,940
$87,150
60,840
19-3039
Psychologists, All Other (neuropsych, forensic, health, etc.)
$117,580
$124,170
18,790
Total psychology workforce (4 SOCs)
153,080
Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2024 release dated March 2025. *The May 2024 median for I-O psychologists (SOC 19-3032) was $109,840. The mean and employment cells previously shown here were incorrect (a prior-year value had been carried in) and have been removed pending re-verification against the BLS source; see the current May 2025 report for verified figures across all four codes.
Percentile Distribution (SOC 19-3033)
Percentile
Annual wage
Hourly
10th
$54,860
$26.38
25th
$72,140
$34.68
50th (median)
$96,100
$46.20
75th
$124,510
$59.86
90th
$157,330
$75.64
The 90th-10th ratio of 2.87 indicates moderate wage dispersion. The largest single drivers of intra-occupation dispersion are specialty (I-O and neuropsych skew the upper tail), state (NJ vs MS is a 2x state-mean ratio), and setting (academic medical center senior staff vs community mental health entry).
Top-Paying Industries (SOC 19-3033)
NAICS
Industry
Mean annual
541610
Management Consulting Services
$133,400
5417
Scientific Research and Development Services
$128,710
6111
Elementary and Secondary Schools
$87,140
6112-6113
Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools
$112,830
6213
Offices of Other Health Practitioners (private practice)
$108,470
6214
Outpatient Care Centers
$104,520
622
Hospitals (state, local, private)
$108,990
9221
Government (federal, including VA)
$113,290
NAICS industry mean wages from BLS OEWS May 2024. Note: BLS OEWS does NOT capture self-employed psychologists, which is the largest single gap in BLS coverage of the psychology profession. Self-employed private practice psychologist median is typically $25,000 to $45,000 higher than BLS captured private-practice-employee figures.
What is the BLS clinical and counseling psychologists median annual wage for May 2024?
The BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 release reports the median annual wage for Clinical and Counseling Psychologists (SOC 19-3033) as $96,100. The mean annual wage is $106,850. The hourly equivalents are $46.20 median and $51.37 mean. Total national employment in this SOC category is 71,730. The 10th to 90th percentile range runs $54,860 to $157,330, indicating substantial dispersion driven by state, setting, specialty, and experience. The data was released in March 2025 with reference period of May 2024.
What is the BLS median for Industrial-Organizational Psychologists?
BLS reports an Industrial-Organizational Psychologists (SOC 19-3032) median annual wage of $109,840 for May 2024. This code has the smallest survey frame of the psychology categories (under 2,000 salaried jobs), so its estimates swing hard year to year: the May 2023 median was $147,420 and the May 2025 median jumped to $193,950. Treat any single year as directional rather than precise. The BLS I-O figure also systematically understates total compensation in this specialty because BLS reports base salary only and excludes stock and bonus, which often account for 30 to 50 percent of total comp for I-O psychologists in tech and consulting, and because most working I-O psychologists are self-employed consultants outside the OEWS frame.
What does Psychologists, All Other (SOC 19-3039) include?
Psychologists, All Other (SOC 19-3039) is the catch-all BLS category covering psychologists who do not fit the Clinical/Counseling (19-3033), Industrial-Organizational (19-3032), or School (19-3034) categories. It includes neuropsychologists, forensic psychologists, health psychologists, sport psychologists, rehabilitation psychologists, social psychologists, developmental psychologists, experimental psychologists, and others. The May 2024 BLS median annual wage for SOC 19-3039 is $117,580. Mean is $124,170. Total employment is 18,790. The 19-3039 category captures most of the specialty premium positions and is often a more meaningful benchmark than 19-3033 for psychologists with a specific subspecialty credential.
What is the BLS median for School Psychologists?
BLS reports School Psychologists (SOC 19-3034) median annual wage of $84,940 for May 2024. The mean is $87,150. The percentile range runs $51,670 at 10th percentile to $131,470 at 90th percentile. Total employment is 60,840, the largest of the four psychology SOC categories. The relatively narrow percentile range reflects the dominance of public-school employment with standardized salary scales. The BLS figure is broadly comparable to the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) 2024 salary survey median of $86,200, which is reported separately and uses a different methodology.
Where does the BLS data come from?
BLS OEWS is a federal survey of approximately 200,000 employers conducted by state workforce agencies on behalf of BLS. Each year's data is the combination of six semi-annual collection waves, providing a rolling three-year average that is then anchored to the reference month (May 2024 release uses panels from May 2022, November 2022, May 2023, November 2023, May 2024). This methodology trades currentness for sample stability. Self-employed workers (including a substantial fraction of private-practice psychologists) are NOT included in OEWS. This is the principal reason BLS psychology medians appear lower than self-employed-inclusive surveys like the APA Practice Organization private practice study.
How does BLS data compare to APA salary survey data?
APA salary surveys (most recent comprehensive APA Center for Workforce Studies 2022 release) capture self-employed psychologists and report higher medians than BLS. APA's median for full-time licensed psychologists is approximately $112,000 versus BLS SOC 19-3033 at $96,100. The gap reflects BLS exclusion of self-employed practitioners (where median income runs $125,000 to $165,000 for full-caseload private practitioners) plus APA's narrower sample frame of licensed psychologists at the doctoral level. Both data sources are credible. BLS is the better source for cross-occupational comparison and government benchmark use. APA is the better source for in-profession career planning.
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