2027 Salary Guide · Healthcare
BLS puts the speech-language pathologist median at $97,870 for May 2025, which projects to about $104,000 in 2027. That single number hides a split. Schools employ 39% of SLPs at a median of $83,120, while SLPs in nursing and residential care facilities earn $109,660.
Setting
BLS publishes SLP pay by employer type. The gap between the lowest- and highest-paying major settings is about $26,500 at the median.
Schools are the largest SLP employer, with 39% of jobs and a median of $83,120 in May 2025. Speech-language pathologists in schools may also need a teaching certification, according to BLS, and school jobs usually follow the academic calendar.
Private therapy practices employ about a quarter of SLPs at a median of $98,910, close to the national figure. Hospitals ($103,690) and nursing and residential care facilities ($109,660) pay the most, and that work leans toward adults: swallowing disorders, stroke and brain injury recovery, and voice problems.
For a job seeker, moving from a school to a medical setting is the largest pay change available without moving city. For a school district, it means competing with medical employers that pay about $20,000 to $26,500 more at the median.
Pay distribution
The middle half of SLPs earned between $77,730 and $114,570 in May 2025. The range is wide for a master's-level job: the top tenth earn more than twice what the bottom tenth earn, partly because school and medical pay differ so much.
Typical for the Speech Language Pathologist title: $77,730 to $114,570 (25th to 75th percentile of Speech-Language Pathologists)
| Percentile | BLS, May 2025 | 2027 planning estimate |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $62,900 | $67,000 |
| 25th percentile | $77,730 | $82,500 |
| Median | $97,870 | $104,000 |
| 75th percentile | $114,570 | $122,000 |
| 90th percentile | $134,160 | $142,500 |
Career path
BLS does not report pay by experience. These stages map the usual SLP path onto the BLS percentiles.
About $62,900 to $77,730 (10th to 25th percentile)
After a master's degree in speech-language pathology, candidates typically complete a clinical fellowship supervised by a certified SLP. Fellows are paid employees, usually at the bottom of the range.
About $77,730 to $114,570 (25th to 75th percentile)
Holds a state license and, usually, professional certification. Where a clinician falls in this band depends mostly on setting: school roles near the bottom, medical roles near the top.
About $114,570 to $134,160+ (75th to 90th percentile)
Medical specialists in swallowing or neuro rehab, department leads, and SLPs in high-paying metros such as New York and the Bay Area.
Local pay
The San Francisco Bay Area ($130,850), San Diego ($119,690) and Denver ($112,090) lead. New York City is the largest market, with about 15,260 SLPs, and has the highest 90th percentile on the list at $167,210. Pittsburgh, Albany and Buffalo sit at the bottom, all near $82,000.
| Metro area | Median | 10th – 90th | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco Bay Area | $130,850 +34% | $97,980 – $163,610 | 1,760 |
| San Diego | $119,690 +22% | $84,200 – $148,510 | 1,590 |
| Denver | $112,090 +15% | $73,900 – $158,720 | 2,480 |
| Los Angeles | $109,740 +12% | $79,490 – $160,430 | 4,800 |
| Seattle | $108,690 +11% | $85,190 – $134,920 | 1,910 |
| New York City | $107,860 +10% | $73,530 – $167,210 | 15,260 |
| Portland | $107,650 +10% | $81,720 – $143,780 | 1,140 |
| Austin | $106,290 +9% | $77,120 – $126,250 | 2,860 |
| Atlanta | $102,860 +5% | $63,360 – $129,170 | 2,410 |
| Boston | $102,810 +5% | $71,310 – $129,950 | 3,720 |
| Metro area | Median | 10th – 90th | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hartford | $101,600 +4% | $67,230 – $123,730 | 780 |
| Miami | $101,590 +4% | $79,940 – $123,820 | 2,930 |
| Baltimore | $101,160 +3% | $64,610 – $125,160 | 1,830 |
| Houston | $100,400 +3% | $69,650 – $135,580 | 3,780 |
| Philadelphia | $100,080 +2% | $66,940 – $132,090 | 3,330 |
| Washington, DC | $99,960 +2% | $72,800 – $135,830 | 3,140 |
| Providence | $99,720 +2% | $68,600 – $127,710 | 1,090 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth | $99,540 +2% | $69,960 – $131,400 | 4,800 |
| Chicago | $98,490 +1% | $62,470 – $124,400 | 7,150 |
| Phoenix | $98,040 +0% | $69,740 – $131,270 | 2,640 |
| Tampa | $96,580 -1% | $76,310 – $121,960 | 1,710 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul | $93,370 -5% | $62,920 – $111,590 | 2,570 |
| Charlotte | $90,960 -7% | $59,230 – $125,380 | 1,260 |
| Detroit | $89,640 -8% | $64,060 – $113,100 | 1,850 |
| Raleigh | $87,400 -11% | $62,900 – $124,090 | 1,050 |
| Nashville | $83,780 -14% | $61,190 – $112,020 | 980 |
| Buffalo | $82,890 -15% | $51,280 – $116,390 | 850 |
| Albany | $82,160 -16% | $62,610 – $121,050 | 690 |
| Pittsburgh | $81,810 -16% | $51,670 – $118,410 | 1,300 |
BLS metro estimates, May 2025. Percent compares the metro median with the national median. "Jobs" is BLS estimated employment in the metro; blank where BLS does not publish it.
Caseload
O*NET's tasks and job titles for this occupation show how varied the work is. BLS does not publish pay by caseload, but these types line up with the higher-paying settings.
Evaluating swallow studies and treating swallowing disorders is core work in hospitals and nursing facilities, the two highest-paying SLP settings.
Language and cognitive therapy after stroke or brain injury, mostly in hospitals, rehab units and home health.
O*NET lists Bilingual Speech-Language Pathologist as a reported job title. Districts and clinics serving multilingual communities recruit for it specifically.
Language delay, articulation and fluency work. This is the largest segment of SLP jobs and the lowest-paying, but it often comes with a school-year schedule.
Outlook
BLS projects SLP jobs to grow 17 percent from 2025 to 2035, one of the faster rates in this guide, with about 12,500 openings a year from roughly 193,400 jobs.
BLS Employment Projections via O*NET OnLine. Projections cover Speech-Language Pathologists as a whole.
Compare
At the median, SLPs earn about $2,460 less than occupational therapists and about $4,890 less than physical therapists, and roughly the same as registered nurses.
| Role | BLS median | 2027 estimate | Outlook |
|---|---|---|---|
| Speech Language Pathologist | $97,870 | $104,000 | Much faster than average |
| Occupational Therapist | $100,330 | $106,500 | Much faster than average |
| Physical Therapist | $102,760 | $109,000 | Much faster than average |
| Registered Nurse | $97,550 | $103,500 | Faster than average |
FAQ
Speech-language pathologists earned a median annual wage of $97,870 in May 2025, according to BLS. The middle half earned between $77,730 and $114,570, and the top tenth more than $134,160. With two years of wage growth at 3.1% a year, the 2027 planning median is about $104,000.
Yes, school SLPs earn less at the median. BLS reports $83,120 for SLPs in schools and $103,690 in hospitals in May 2025, a gap of about $20,570. SLPs in nursing and residential care facilities earned even more, $109,660. School roles usually run on the academic calendar.
The median wage for speech-language pathologists was $47.05 an hour in May 2025, according to BLS data reported by O*NET. Hourly and per-visit pay is common in home health, contract school work and PRN hospital roles.
First-job SLP pay is not reported separately by BLS. The 10th percentile, $62,900, and the 25th percentile, $77,730, are reasonable bounds for a clinical fellowship or first job nationally. Fellows in medical settings or high-cost metros usually start above that range.
BLS says SLPs typically need at least a master's degree in speech-language pathology, and all states require a license. In O*NET's survey, 89% of respondents said new hires need a master's degree. Most also complete a supervised clinical fellowship after the degree.
Careerscape's healthcare recruiters fill school-year contracts and permanent medical SLP roles with pre-screened candidates.
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