Healthcare Social Workers: salary, outlook & degrees
Provide individuals, families, and groups with the psychosocial support needed to cope with chronic, acute, or terminal illnesses. Services include advising family caregivers. Provide patients with information and counseling, and make referrals for other services. May also provide case and care management or interventions designed to promote health, prevent disease, and address barriers to access to healthcare.
Middle half $56,710–$82,240. 187,630 jobs.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
68% hold a bachelor's or higher. Those with one: $60,855.
Census ACS 2020-2024 microdata, workers with at least a high school diploma; EducationGuide calculation
About 16,900 openings a year, including replacements.
BLS Employment Projections 2025-35
Extensive preparation (usually a graduate degree).
BLS; O*NET 31.0 job zone
Degrees that lead to this career
What workers ages 25-34 in this job studied, among those with a bachelor's or higher. This is what people actually did, not a requirement.
| Field of bachelor's degree | Share | Degree pages |
|---|---|---|
| Social Work | 27% | Social Work |
| Psychology | 18% | Psychology |
| Sociology | 6% | Sociology |
| Criminal Justice And Fire Protection | 4% | Criminal Justice · Security / Homeland Security |
| Nursing | 4% | Nursing |
| Family And Consumer Sciences | 4% | Human Development and Family Studies · Foods, Nutrition, and Related Services |
| Communications | 2% | Communications · Communication, Journalism, and Related Programs, Other |
| Community And Public Health | 2% | Public Health |
| History | 2% | History |
| Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies | 2% | Multi / Interdisciplinary Studies, Other · Interdisciplinary Studies |
Census ACS 2020-2024 microdata (ages 25-34, employed, bachelor's or higher; top 10 fields); EducationGuide calculation.
Education workers say the job requires
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers (“required level of education”); small samples, so treat shares as approximate.
Pay by state and metro
| State | Median wage |
|---|---|
| District of Columbia | $94,100 |
| California | $89,660 |
| Hawaii | $85,420 |
| Oregon | $84,350 |
| New Jersey | $82,690 |
| Vermont | $81,140 |
| Connecticut | $79,900 |
| Washington | $78,570 |
| Nevada | $78,470 |
| New Hampshire | $78,260 |
| Utah | $78,150 |
| Massachusetts | $76,440 |
| Maryland | $76,440 |
| Rhode Island | $75,390 |
| Idaho | $74,500 |
| Minnesota | $73,970 |
| New York | $73,070 |
| Maine | $71,610 |
| Texas | $69,990 |
| Michigan | $67,600 |
| Wisconsin | $66,910 |
| Virginia | $66,550 |
| New Mexico | $65,930 |
| Florida | $64,820 |
| Delaware | $64,620 |
| Indiana | $64,580 |
| Kansas | $64,440 |
| Illinois | $64,270 |
| Kentucky | $64,080 |
| Arizona | $64,030 |
| Ohio | $63,610 |
| Colorado | $63,480 |
| North Carolina | $63,280 |
| Iowa | $63,050 |
| North Dakota | $62,860 |
| Georgia | $62,420 |
| Nebraska | $62,420 |
| Wyoming | $62,260 |
| Mississippi | $62,250 |
| Alaska | $62,000 |
| Pennsylvania | $61,900 |
| Tennessee | $61,240 |
| Louisiana | $61,080 |
| South Carolina | $60,840 |
| West Virginia | $60,140 |
| Alabama | $60,000 |
| Missouri | $59,870 |
| South Dakota | $57,510 |
| Montana | $57,090 |
| GU | $56,990 |
| Oklahoma | $56,120 |
| Arkansas | $55,640 |
| PR | $36,050 |
Florida metro areas
- Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach$64,510
- Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater$64,790
- Jacksonville$66,300
- Cape Coral-Fort Myers$69,960
- North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota$68,230
- Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach$68,140
- Gainesville$69,330
- Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville$64,080
Virginia metro areas
- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria$80,710
- Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk$63,880
- Richmond$71,690
- Kingsport-Bristol$49,570
- Roanoke$60,430
- Charlottesville$68,370
- Lynchburg$61,190
- Winchester$63,110
California metro areas
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim$79,830
- San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont$99,640
- San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad$82,630
- Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario$85,360
- Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom$97,070
- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara$107,170
- Fresno$84,860
- Bakersfield-Delano$77,450
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025: median annual wage, all workers in the job. Metro areas: the largest by employment.
What the work takes
Top skills
- Speaking
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Listening
- Critical Thinking
- Writing
Knowledge used
- Psychology
- Therapy and Counseling
- Sociology and Anthropology
- English Language
- Customer and Personal Service
Work styles
- Cooperation
- Empathy
- Sincerity
- Dependability
- Social Orientation
People in this job tend to have Social (helping), Investigative (analytical) interests.
O*NET 31.0 (U.S. Department of Labor, CC BY 4.0): skills and knowledge by importance; work styles; interest high points.
Healthcare Social Workers: questions
How much do healthcare Social Workers make?
Healthcare Social Workers earn a U.S. median $67,880 a year; the middle half earn $56,710 to $82,240 (BLS, May 2025). Workers ages 25-34 in this job earn a median $54,991 (Census ACS 2020-2024).
Is healthcare Social Workers a growing field?
BLS projects growth of 8.5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 16,900 openings a year, including replacements.
What degree do you need to be a healthcare Social Worker?
BLS lists the typical entry education as master's degree. In O*NET's survey, 100% of workers say a bachelor's or higher is required. Among workers ages 25-34 with a bachelor's, the most common field of degree is social Work (27%).
How much do healthcare Social Workers make in Florida?
The median in Florida is $64,820 a year (BLS, May 2025), compared with $67,880 nationally.
Sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2025-35); O*NET 31.0 (U.S. Department of Labor, CC BY 4.0); U.S. Census Bureau ACS microdata. SOC 21-1022. Method
Data: JSON · Markdown · all careers
Cite this: “Healthcare Social Workers: salary, outlook and degrees,” EducationGuide.com, https://educationguide.com/careers/healthcare-social-workers.