By: Kendall Upton
Updated: January 22, 2026
Human Services Degree and Career Guide
How much do human services professionals make?
Human services professionals earn a wide range of salaries depending on their role, level of education, employer type and the specific community needs they serve.
Human services professionals encompass a wide range of jobs in the human services field.
“The primary purpose of the human services professional is to assist individuals and communities to function as effectively as possible in the major domains of living,” the National Organization for Human Services (NOHS) states.
Because of the numerous positions that fall into this category of professionals, human services workers have a wide range of salaries.
In This Article
Salaries for human services professionals
The median annual salary for social and human service assistants is $45,120 according to the 2024 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). This translates to about $22 per hour.
Salaries for this particular job title can vary widely, with the 10th percentile earning $33,280 and the 90th percentile earning $63,850.
How do salaries compare to similar careers?
Social and human service assistants are not the only job titles that fall under the umbrella of human services. There are many other closely related positions which may pay more or less depending on their particular job scope. By considering the median annual wages of these careers holistically, it can provide a better sense of your earning potential in the human services field:
Social workers often work alongside human services professionals and tend to earn about the same as or a little more depending on their credentials and the specialty they work in.
Where can human services professionals work?
Human services professionals work in a wide range of settings depending on the nature of their job:
- Community-based settings:
- Social and human services agencies, community health clinics, schools and more.
- Mental healthcare settings:
- Outpatient and inpatient mental health clinics, private mental health practices, hospitals and more.
- Residential settings:
- Nursing homes, assisted living facilities, skilled nursing facilities, settlement houses and other group homes.
- Correctional settings
- Jails, prisons and juvenile detention facilities.
“Working conditions vary,” NOHS states. “Human services workers in social service agencies generally spend part of the time in the office and the rest of the time in the field. Most work a 40-hour week. Some evening and weekend work may be necessary, but compensatory time off is usually granted.”
Although some human services jobs are salaried, there are many which are paid hourly. This is even more common if they work in a setting that requires shift work. Hourly employees are typically eligible for overtime and holiday pay, while salaried employees usually are not.
Learn more about human services salaries in your state
For a more detailed breakdown of human services salaries where you live, check out your state below:
What factors affect salary?
Many factors affect an individual’s earning potential, making it difficult to pinpoint exactly what you could earn as a human services worker. Consider some of these factors and the role they play in human services salaries.
Location
Location has an immense impact on the earning potential for any job. Areas with a high cost of living tend to have jobs that pay more, for instance. But high demand for workers in certain areas, regardless of their cost of living, can also increase salaries.
Washington D.C., California, Washington, New Jersey and Minnesota are the top five states with the highest median annual wage for social and human service assistants according to the BLS.
For a more granular look at the top-paying metropolitan areas, check out the table below.
Education and experience
Your educational background and professional experience could have a significant effect on your earning potential as a human services worker. Though you could enter the field with an associate or bachelor’s degree, advancing your education with a master’s degree or doctorate in human services, for instance, could qualify you for managerial or executive positions that pay more.
Advanced degrees may also allow you to pivot into higher-level positions that allow you to impact policymaking decisions in your field.
Industry and work environment
Certain types of employers can also affect salaries. Of the industries with the highest employment of human service assistants, local and state government jobs have the highest median annual wage according to the BLS.
Other employers—like insurance carriers and trade schools—have an even higher median annual wage, but it’s important to keep in mind that they employ only a small fraction of the total workforce.
Human services job outlook
Jobs in the human services industry tend to be in consistently high demand. This bodes well for people who want to feel secure that jobs should be dependably available.
“Opportunities for qualified applicants are expected to be excellent, not only because of projected rapid growth in the occupation, but because of substantial replacement needs. Turnover among counselors in group homes is reported to be especially high,” NOHS states.
The BLS estimates that the employment of social and human service assistants will grow 6.4% through 2034, faster than the average across all occupations. Job opportunities within elder care services may be particularly high.
“Employment prospects should be favorable in facilities and programs that serve the elderly, mentally impaired or developmentally disabled,” NOHS states. “Adult day care, a relatively new concept, is expected to expand significantly due to very rapid growth in the number of people of advanced age, together with growing awareness of the value of day programs for adults in need of care and supervision.”