Research Summary. After extensive research by the Zippia data science team, we identified these details of social worker salary by state for the United States:
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Oregon has the highest social worker salary of $67,057
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South Dakota has the lowest social worker salary of $42,906
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The national average salary for social workers is $50,102
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The national hourly pay for social workers is $24.09
You can read more on the specific methodology.
Highest-Paid Social Workers By State
| Rank | State | Average Social Worker Salary | 10th Percentile | 90th Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oregon | $67,057 | $44,000 | $101,000 |
| 2 | Alaska | $64,923 | $56,000 | $75,000 |
| 3 | California | $60,592 | $40,000 | $91,000 |
| 4 | Washington | $59,863 | $40,000 | $89,000 |
| 5 | Nevada | $57,212 | $37,000 | $86,000 |
| 6 | Connecticut | $56,958 | $40,000 | $80,000 |
| 7 | Vermont | $56,220 | $41,000 | $76,000 |
| 8 | Rhode Island | $55,730 | $39,000 | $77,000 |
| 9 | Idaho | $53,676 | $35,000 | $80,000 |
| 10 | Arizona | $53,588 | $36,000 | $79,000 |
| 11 | New Hampshire | $53,534 | $38,000 | $73,000 |
| 12 | Utah | $53,356 | $35,000 | $80,000 |
| 13 | New Jersey | $53,256 | $37,000 | $75,000 |
| 14 | New Mexico | $53,253 | $35,000 | $79,000 |
| 15 | Massachusetts | $52,520 | $37,000 | $72,000 |
| 16 | Minnesota | $51,676 | $37,000 | $71,000 |
| 17 | New York | $51,304 | $36,000 | $72,000 |
| 18 | Hawaii | $49,983 | $42,000 | $58,000 |
| 19 | Wyoming | $49,845 | $34,000 | $73,000 |
| 20 | North Dakota | $49,816 | $36,000 | $67,000 |
| 21 | Texas | $49,561 | $33,000 | $73,000 |
| 22 | Colorado | $49,541 | $33,000 | $73,000 |
| 23 | Delaware | $49,348 | $34,000 | $70,000 |
| 24 | West Virginia | $49,219 | $34,000 | $69,000 |
| 25 | Maryland | $48,815 | $34,000 | $69,000 |
| 26 | Maine | $48,772 | $36,000 | $65,000 |
| 27 | Mississippi | $48,746 | $33,000 | $71,000 |
| 28 | Louisiana | $48,509 | $32,000 | $71,000 |
| 29 | Wisconsin | $48,160 | $34,000 | $67,000 |
| 30 | Illinois | $48,072 | $34,000 | $67,000 |
| 31 | Ohio | $48,035 | $33,000 | $67,000 |
| 32 | South Carolina | $47,915 | $33,000 | $69,000 |
| 33 | Pennsylvania | $47,835 | $33,000 | $67,000 |
| 34 | North Carolina | $47,712 | $33,000 | $68,000 |
| 35 | Michigan | $47,563 | $33,000 | $66,000 |
| 36 | Montana | $46,145 | $32,000 | $66,000 |
| 37 | Iowa | $45,893 | $32,000 | $64,000 |
| 38 | Arkansas | $45,141 | $31,000 | $65,000 |
| 39 | Oklahoma | $44,745 | $30,000 | $65,000 |
| 40 | Florida | $44,733 | $30,000 | $65,000 |
| 41 | Kansas | $44,637 | $30,000 | $64,000 |
| 42 | Virginia | $44,452 | $31,000 | $63,000 |
| 43 | Indiana | $44,259 | $31,000 | $62,000 |
| 44 | Kentucky | $44,118 | $30,000 | $62,000 |
| 45 | Georgia | $44,104 | $30,000 | $63,000 |
| 46 | Alabama | $44,051 | $30,000 | $64,000 |
| 47 | Missouri | $43,758 | $30,000 | $62,000 |
| 48 | Tennessee | $43,700 | $30,000 | $62,000 |
| 49 | Nebraska | $43,648 | $30,000 | $62,000 |
| 50 | South Dakota | $42,906 | $30,000 | $60,000 |
Methodology: Social Worker Salary By State
To better understand social worker pay by state, Zippia has aggregated data across a multitude of channels including the BLS, FLC, and OPM. We then supplement that data with actual listed salaries from job posts. Finally, the data science team calculates a weighted average of these inputs to create an average pay for social workers by state.
We took the average annual salary data for social workers from these estimates and ranked every state on this criteria with the state with the highest salary ranking as highest average salary for social workers.
Social Worker Salary By State FAQs
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What is the highest-paid state for social workers?
The highest-paid state for social workers is Oregon with an average salary of $67,057 per year.
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What city pays social workers the most?
Portland, OR pays social workers the most with an average salary of $67,065 per year.
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What is the worst state for social workers?
The worst state for social workers is South Dakota with an average salary of $42,906 per year.
Author
Chris Kolmar is a co-founder of Zippia and the editor-in-chief of the Zippia career advice blog. He has hired over 50 people in his career, been hired five times, and wants to help you land your next job. His research has been featured on the New York Times, Thrillist, VOX, The Atlantic, and a host of local news. More recently, he's been quoted on USA Today, BusinessInsider, and CNBC.
