Best US Cities for Therapist (Counselor)s
Top US cities for Therapist (Counselor)s ranked by estimated median salary, with cost-of-living-adjusted earning power.
| # | City | Estimated salary | Cost mult. | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Francisco, CA | $66,100 | 1.45× | +$16,100 |
| 2 | Honolulu, HI | $64,700 | 1.30× | +$14,700 |
| 3 | Oakland, CA | $63,200 | 1.35× | +$13,200 |
| 4 | Boston, MA | $62,300 | 1.22× | +$12,300 |
| 5 | Irvine, CA | $61,800 | 1.30× | +$11,800 |
| 6 | Scottsdale, AZ | $61,100 | 1.18× | +$11,100 |
| 7 | Miami, FL | $59,200 | 1.12× | +$9,200 |
| 8 | San Diego, CA | $59,100 | 1.21× | +$9,100 |
| 9 | New York City, NY | $58,800 | 1.32× | +$8,800 |
| 10 | Yonkers, NY | $58,800 | 1.20× | +$8,800 |
| # | City | Salary | Hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Francisco, CA | $66,100 | $32/hr |
| 2 | Honolulu, HI | $64,700 | $31/hr |
| 3 | Oakland, CA | $63,200 | $30/hr |
| 4 | Boston, MA | $62,300 | $30/hr |
| 5 | Irvine, CA | $61,800 | $30/hr |
| 6 | Scottsdale, AZ | $61,100 | $29/hr |
| 7 | Miami, FL | $59,200 | $28/hr |
| 8 | San Diego, CA | $59,100 | $28/hr |
| 9 | New York City, NY | $58,800 | $28/hr |
| 10 | Yonkers, NY | $58,800 | $28/hr |
| 11 | Anchorage, AK | $58,800 | $28/hr |
| 12 | Seattle, WA | $58,300 | $28/hr |
| 13 | Long Beach, CA | $58,300 | $28/hr |
| 14 | Anaheim, CA | $58,300 | $28/hr |
| 15 | Chula Vista, CA | $57,300 | $28/hr |
| 16 | Baltimore, MD | $57,100 | $27/hr |
| 17 | Philadelphia, PA | $56,200 | $27/hr |
| 18 | Henderson, NV | $56,200 | $27/hr |
| 19 | Los Angeles, CA | $56,100 | $27/hr |
| 20 | Portland, OR | $56,000 | $27/hr |
| 21 | Newark, NJ | $56,000 | $27/hr |
| 22 | Sacramento, CA | $56,000 | $27/hr |
| 23 | Riverside, CA | $56,000 | $27/hr |
| 24 | Orlando, FL | $55,800 | $27/hr |
| 25 | Raleigh, NC | $55,500 | $27/hr |
| 26 | Worcester, MA | $55,500 | $27/hr |
| 27 | Denver, CO | $55,300 | $27/hr |
| 28 | Stockton, CA | $54,500 | $26/hr |
| 29 | Aurora, CO | $54,500 | $26/hr |
| 30 | Hialeah, FL | $54,500 | $26/hr |
| 31 | Houston, TX | $54,300 | $26/hr |
| 32 | Las Vegas, NV | $54,200 | $26/hr |
| 33 | Minneapolis, MN | $54,200 | $26/hr |
| 34 | Plano, TX | $54,200 | $26/hr |
| 35 | New Orleans, LA | $53,700 | $26/hr |
| 36 | Phoenix, AZ | $53,600 | $26/hr |
| 37 | Tampa, FL | $53,600 | $26/hr |
| 38 | Gilbert, AZ | $53,600 | $26/hr |
| 39 | Salt Lake City, UT | $53,600 | $26/hr |
| 40 | Wilmington, DE | $53,000 | $25/hr |
| 41 | St. Paul, MN | $53,000 | $25/hr |
| 42 | Boise, ID | $53,000 | $25/hr |
| 43 | Fresno, CA | $53,000 | $25/hr |
| 44 | Nashville, TN | $52,700 | $25/hr |
| 45 | St. Louis, MO | $52,700 | $25/hr |
| 46 | Colorado Springs, CO | $52,700 | $25/hr |
| 47 | St. Petersburg, FL | $52,700 | $25/hr |
| 48 | Madison, WI | $52,700 | $25/hr |
| 49 | Winston-Salem, NC | $52,700 | $25/hr |
| 50 | Jacksonville, FL | $52,200 | $25/hr |
| 51 | Memphis, TN | $52,200 | $25/hr |
| 52 | Mesa, AZ | $52,200 | $25/hr |
| 53 | Tucson, AZ | $51,800 | $25/hr |
| 54 | Birmingham, AL | $51,800 | $25/hr |
| 55 | Glendale, AZ | $51,800 | $25/hr |
| 56 | Spokane, WA | $51,800 | $25/hr |
| 57 | Pittsburgh, PA | $51,500 | $25/hr |
| 58 | Tallahassee, FL | $51,500 | $25/hr |
| 59 | Chicago, IL | $51,400 | $25/hr |
| 60 | Austin, TX | $51,400 | $25/hr |
| 61 | Frisco, TX | $51,400 | $25/hr |
| 62 | Milwaukee, WI | $51,300 | $25/hr |
| 63 | Albuquerque, NM | $51,300 | $25/hr |
| 64 | Chandler, AZ | $51,100 | $25/hr |
| 65 | San Antonio, TX | $51,000 | $25/hr |
| 66 | Grand Rapids, MI | $51,000 | $25/hr |
| 67 | Detroit, MI | $50,700 | $24/hr |
| 68 | Cincinnati, OH | $50,700 | $24/hr |
| 69 | Lexington, KY | $50,700 | $24/hr |
| 70 | Buffalo, NY | $50,700 | $24/hr |
| 71 | Greensboro, NC | $50,700 | $24/hr |
| 72 | Knoxville, TN | $50,700 | $24/hr |
| 73 | Atlanta, GA | $50,600 | $24/hr |
| 74 | Reno, NV | $50,600 | $24/hr |
| 75 | Charleston, SC | $50,600 | $24/hr |
| 76 | El Paso, TX | $50,400 | $24/hr |
| 77 | Cleveland, OH | $50,400 | $24/hr |
| 78 | Indianapolis, IN | $50,100 | $24/hr |
| 79 | Louisville, KY | $50,100 | $24/hr |
| 80 | Virginia Beach, VA | $50,000 | $24/hr |
| 81 | Chesapeake, VA | $50,000 | $24/hr |
| 82 | North Las Vegas, NV | $50,000 | $24/hr |
| 83 | Dallas, TX | $49,700 | $24/hr |
| 84 | Bakersfield, CA | $49,700 | $24/hr |
| 85 | Toledo, OH | $49,500 | $24/hr |
| 86 | Lubbock, TX | $49,500 | $24/hr |
| 87 | Norfolk, VA | $49,500 | $24/hr |
| 88 | Charlotte, NC | $49,200 | $24/hr |
| 89 | Wichita, KS | $49,000 | $24/hr |
| 90 | Fort Wayne, IN | $49,000 | $24/hr |
| 91 | Mobile, AL | $49,000 | $24/hr |
| 92 | Fort Worth, TX | $48,900 | $24/hr |
| 93 | Garland, TX | $48,900 | $24/hr |
| 94 | Arlington, TX | $48,600 | $23/hr |
| 95 | Columbus, OH | $47,800 | $23/hr |
| 96 | Kansas City, MO | $47,800 | $23/hr |
| 97 | Corpus Christi, TX | $47,800 | $23/hr |
| 98 | Omaha, NE | $47,300 | $23/hr |
| 99 | Oklahoma City, OK | $47,000 | $23/hr |
| 100 | Lincoln, NE | $47,000 | $23/hr |
Does location actually decide Therapist (Counselor) pay?
Therapist (Counselor) work is usually hybrid, so the metro you choose still largely determines what you earn. Pay ranges from $47,000 in Lincoln to $66,100 in San Francisco — a spread of 41%.
Licensing adds friction the ranking does not show. Therapist (Counselor) requires State license (LMFT) required; needs supervised postdegree clinical hours plus exam, and licenses are issued state by state. Moving for a higher salary can mean re-credentialing, which takes time and sometimes additional exams — check reciprocity with the destination board before treating a pay gap as attainable.
Highest-paying is not the same as best-off
The nominal ranking and the useful ranking are not the same. In San Francisco, $66,100 against $3,000/month rent leaves roughly $30,100 a year after housing. In Lincoln, $47,000 against $950 leaves about $35,600. The bottom of the pay list beats the top once rent is subtracted — which is the whole reason to look past headline salary.
Why these metros and not others
What puts a metro near the top here is employer density, not price level. San Francisco (Salesforce, Google); Honolulu (U.S. Pacific Fleet/Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Queen's Health Systems); Oakland (Kaiser Permanente (HQ), Port of Oakland). Where healthcare employers compete for the same candidates, offers rise above what the local cost of living alone would predict.
Salaries are modelled from BLS national medians adjusted for local price level at a wage elasticity below 1 — pay rises with local costs but not proportionally. See our methodology.