Healthcare Social Workers Salary: $99,729 Median Pay (2026 stats)
TL;DR
About 185,940 healthcare social workers nationally earn a mean of $99,729. Projections imply about 3.3% annual growth; CA accounts for about 18,470 jobs in our geographic extract.
Key Statistics
Healthcare Social Workers: what the data shows
Common questions about healthcare social workers careers, answered from BLS OEWS and O*NET in this repository.
What is a healthcare social workers?
Healthcare Social Workers is tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics under SOC 21-1022.
U.S. employment in our OEWS extract is about 185,940 workers.
What does a healthcare social workers do?
O*NET work activities rated highest for this occupation include Assisting and Caring for Others, Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships, Getting Information, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates, Documenting/Recording Information, Communicating with People Outside the Organization, and related tasks. See Work Activities for the full list.
How much does a healthcare social workers make?
BLS national median annual wage: $68,090 (May 2024 in our extract).
Mean annual wage in our occupational extract: $99,729 — higher than the median, which often reflects top earners in the distribution.
| Wage percentile | Annual wage |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $53,126 |
| 25th percentile | $69,725 |
| Median (50th) | $95,497 |
| 75th percentile | $125,521 |
| 90th percentile | $145,356 |
What education do you need?
For Healthcare Social Workers, O*NET incumbent surveys in our extract most often report: Some college (29%), High School or Equivalent (27%), Bachelors Degree (22%).
These are education levels of current workers, not minimum legal requirements.
What skills do you need?
O*NET ratings for this occupation emphasize skills such as Social Perceptiveness, Speaking, Service Orientation, Active Listening, Coordination, Critical Thinking, and knowledge areas including Psychology, Therapy and Counseling, Sociology and Anthropology, English Language. See Education & Skills for detail.
Is healthcare social workers in demand?
Historical employment trend in our series implies about 3.3% annual growth (compound rate in the extract).
Five-year projected employment change: 17.4%.
Ten-year projected employment change: 37.9%.
Current U.S. headcount: 185,940.
We report federal series only—compare wages, growth, and openings against your target market.
Where do healthcare social workerss work?
Top industries by employment share in our OEWS industry extract:
| Industry | Employment | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Cross-industry | 185,940 | 17.0% |
| Cross-industry, Private Ownership only | 162,590 | 14.9% |
| Health Care and Social Assistance | 156,060 | 14.3% |
| Hospitals | 108,550 | 9.9% |
| General Medical and Surgical Hospitals | 95,460 | 8.7% |
| Ambulatory Health Care Services | 51,350 | 4.7% |
See Industry for charts.
What degrees lead to this career?
Common majors for Healthcare Social Workers in O*NET:
See Related degrees.
What careers are related?
Other occupations linked through shared degree pathways in our mapping:
| Occupation | U.S. employment | Median wage |
|---|---|---|
| Child, Family, and School Social Workers | 382,960 | $58,570 |
| Social Workers, All Other | 64,940 | $69,480 |
| Social Scientists and Related Workers, All Other | 36,970 | $100,340 |
| Social Work Teachers, Postsecondary | 13,350 | $76,210 |
| Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers | 125,910 | $60,060 |
| Registered Nurses | 3,282,010 | $93,600 |
| Healthcare Support Workers, All Other | 103,650 | $46,050 |
Employment
Employment and salary information for the Healthcare Social Workers workforce.
Employment Over Time
185,940 Workforce in 2023
The Healthcare Social Workers workforce has been growing over time.
Historical employment trends for Healthcare Social Workers.
Yearly Wage Ranking
$99,729 Average Wage
In 2023, Healthcare Social Workers earned an average of $99,729.
Wage ranking compared to other occupations.
Wage Distribution
This chart shows the distribution of average salaries by income buckets for Healthcare Social Workers.
Salary distribution for Healthcare Social Workers.
Employment Growth Projections
3.3% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR)
91,511 Projected Employment (5 years)
Projected growth: 17.4%
107,474 Projected Employment (10 years)
Projected growth: 37.9%
This occupation is projected to grow at 3.3% annually, indicating strong future demand.
Historical employment trends and future projections for Healthcare Social Workers.
Industry
Information on the industries that employ Healthcare Social Workers and on wages for those in the field.
Occupations by Industries
This graphic shows the share of Healthcare Social Workers employed by various industries.
Industry distribution for Healthcare Social Workers.
Wage Trends by Industry
9.9% Average Annual Wage Growth Rate
Historical wage growth trends by industry for Healthcare Social Workers.
Geographic Distribution
Employment and wage information by geographic location for Healthcare Social Workers.
Metropolitan employment on this page is from the California OEWS extract. Area names omit state codes; all listed metros are in California, so the state chart shows California totals (not a multi-state ranking).
Top States by Employment
Top States by Employment:
- CA: 18,470 employees, $100,610 avg wage
Top 10 states by employment for Healthcare Social Workers.
Top Metropolitan Areas
Top Metropolitan Areas:
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale MD: 6,230 employees, $98,126 avg wage
- Anaheim-Santa Ana-Irvine MD: 1,720 employees, $97,935 avg wage
- Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario MSA: 1,630 employees, $97,798 avg wage
- Oakland-Fremont-Berkeley MD: 1,530 employees, $107,407 avg wage
- San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad MSA: 1,520 employees, $89,323 avg wage
- Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom MSA: 1,020 employees, $104,176 avg wage
- San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City MD: 1,020 employees, $115,399 avg wage
- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara MSA: 790 employees, $113,575 avg wage
- Fresno MSA: 620 employees, $96,955 avg wage
- Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura MSA: 370 employees, $93,812 avg wage
Top 10 metropolitan statistical areas by employment for Healthcare Social Workers.
Diversity
Demographic information on Healthcare Social Workers in the US.
Gender and Age
The workforce of Healthcare Social Workers in 2023 was 185,940 people, with 62.0% women and 38.0% men.
Gender and age distribution for Healthcare Social Workers.
Races
Racial and ethnic shares when present in the career dataset. If the chart area shows a notice instead, occupational race/ethnicity fields are not yet populated for this extract.
Race and ethnicity distribution for Healthcare Social Workers.
Education & Skills
Data on higher education choices and required skills for Healthcare Social Workers.
Majors
The most common majors achieved by Healthcare Social Workers in 2023 were Business Administration, Social Work, Psychology.
Common majors for Healthcare Social Workers.
Education Levels
The main educational levels achieved by Healthcare Social Workers workers.
Education level distribution for Healthcare Social Workers.
Skills
Healthcare Social Workers need many skills, but most especially Social Perceptiveness, Speaking, Service Orientation, Active Listening, Coordination.
Required skills for Healthcare Social Workers.
Knowledge & Abilities
Knowledge areas and abilities required for Healthcare Social Workers.
Knowledge Areas
The most important knowledge areas for Healthcare Social Workers include Psychology, Therapy and Counseling, Sociology and Anthropology, English Language, Customer and Personal Service.
Knowledge areas required for Healthcare Social Workers.
Abilities
Key abilities needed for Healthcare Social Workers include Oral Expression, Written Comprehension, Deductive Reasoning, Oral Comprehension, Speech Recognition.
Required abilities for Healthcare Social Workers.
Work Activities
Common work activities performed by Healthcare Social Workers.
Daily Activities
Healthcare Social Workers spend their time on activities such as Assisting and Caring for Others, Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships, Getting Information, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates, Documenting/Recording Information.
Most important work activities for Healthcare Social Workers.
About
Healthcare Social Workers
The average yearly wage for Healthcare Social Workers was $99,729 in 2023.
SOC Code
21-1022 - Healthcare Social Workers
Insights and Analysis
Compensation snapshot: Healthcare Social Workers reports an average salary of $99,729.
Labor market presence: The current workforce is approximately 185,940 workers, indicating sustained demand.
Forward outlook: Projected annual growth is 3.3%, which should inform long-term career planning.
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology
Data for this profile is sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS), and O*NET Online.
All wage figures represent annual averages and may vary by location, industry, and experience level.