Psychiatric Aides Salary: $51,699 Median Pay (2026 stats)
TL;DR
About 34,900 psychiatric aides nationally earn a mean of $51,699. Employment in the series shown rose about 55% from the first to the last year; projections imply about 17.0% annual growth.
Key Statistics
Psychiatric Aides: what the data shows
Common questions about psychiatric aides careers, answered from BLS OEWS and O*NET in this repository.
What is a psychiatric aides?
Psychiatric Aides is tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics under SOC 31-1133.
U.S. employment in our OEWS extract is about 34,900 workers.
What does a psychiatric aides do?
O*NET work activities rated highest for this occupation include Getting Information, Assisting and Caring for Others, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates, Documenting/Recording Information, Training and Teaching Others, Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings, and related tasks. See Work Activities for the full list.
How much does a psychiatric aides make?
BLS national median annual wage: $41,590 (May 2024 in our extract).
Mean annual wage in our occupational extract: $51,699 — higher than the median, which often reflects top earners in the distribution.
| Wage percentile | Annual wage |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $37,383 |
| 25th percentile | $38,762 |
| Median (50th) | $44,192 |
| 75th percentile | $61,891 |
| 90th percentile | $77,132 |
What education do you need?
For Psychiatric Aides, 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 Speaking, Social Perceptiveness, Service Orientation, Monitoring, Active Listening, Critical Thinking, and knowledge areas including Psychology, Customer and Personal Service, Therapy and Counseling, English Language. See Education & Skills for detail.
Is psychiatric aides in demand?
Historical employment trend in our series implies about 17.0% annual growth (compound rate in the extract).
Five-year projected employment change: 119.6%.
Ten-year projected employment change: 382.3%.
Current U.S. headcount: 34,900.
We report federal series only—compare wages, growth, and openings against your target market.
Where do psychiatric aidess work?
Top industries by employment share in our OEWS industry extract:
| Industry | Employment | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Hospitals | 36,570 | 15.8% |
| Cross-industry | 34,900 | 15.1% |
| Psychiatric and Substance Abuse Hospitals | 28,200 | 12.2% |
| Health Care and Social Assistance | 26,780 | 11.6% |
| Cross-industry, Private Ownership only | 17,680 | 7.7% |
| Federal, State, and Local Government, including State and Local Government Schools and Hospitals and the U.S. Postal Service (OEWS Designation) | 17,220 | 7.5% |
See Industry for charts.
What degrees lead to this career?
Common majors for Psychiatric Aides 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Sales & Office Occupations | 1,441,580 | — |
| Eligibility Interviewers, Government Programs | 156,260 | $51,500 |
| Cement Masons and Concrete Finishers | 205,230 | $54,660 |
| Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers | 12,460 | $65,480 |
| Plant and System Operators, All Other | 15,950 | $61,710 |
| Genetic Counselors | 3,510 | $98,910 |
| Substance Abuse and Behavioral Disorder Counselors | — | — |
Employment
Employment and salary information for the Psychiatric Aides workforce.
Employment Over Time
34,900 Workforce in 2023
The Psychiatric Aides workforce has been growing over time.
Historical employment trends for Psychiatric Aides.
Yearly Wage Ranking
$51,699 Average Wage
In 2023, Psychiatric Aides earned an average of $51,699.
Wage ranking compared to other occupations.
Wage Distribution
This chart shows the distribution of average salaries by income buckets for Psychiatric Aides.
Salary distribution for Psychiatric Aides.
Employment Growth Projections
17.0% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR)
19,676 Projected Employment (5 years)
Projected growth: 119.6%
43,211 Projected Employment (10 years)
Projected growth: 382.3%
This occupation is projected to grow at 17.0% annually, indicating strong future demand.
Historical employment trends and future projections for Psychiatric Aides.
Industry
Information on the industries that employ Psychiatric Aides and on wages for those in the field.
Occupations by Industries
This graphic shows the share of Psychiatric Aides employed by various industries.
Industry distribution for Psychiatric Aides.
Wage Trends by Industry
1.9% Average Annual Wage Growth Rate
Total, All Industry: -0.2% growth (Current: $62,313)
Historical wage growth trends by industry for Psychiatric Aides.
Geographic Distribution
Employment and wage information by geographic location for Psychiatric Aides.
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: 1,540 employees, $47,555 avg wage
Top 10 states by employment for Psychiatric Aides.
Top Metropolitan Areas
Top Metropolitan Areas:
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale MD: 830 employees, $45,905 avg wage
- Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario MSA: 320 employees, $52,604 avg wage
- Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom MSA: 220 employees, $45,354 avg wage
- San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad MSA: 170 employees, $48,953 avg wage
Top 10 metropolitan statistical areas by employment for Psychiatric Aides.
Diversity
Demographic information on Psychiatric Aides in the US.
Gender and Age
The workforce of Psychiatric Aides in 2023 was 34,900 people, with 62.0% women and 38.0% men.
Gender and age distribution for Psychiatric Aides.
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 Psychiatric Aides.
Education & Skills
Data on higher education choices and required skills for Psychiatric Aides.
Majors
The most common majors achieved by Psychiatric Aides in 2023 were Business Administration, Business, Social Sciences.
Common majors for Psychiatric Aides.
Education Levels
The main educational levels achieved by Psychiatric Aides workers.
Education level distribution for Psychiatric Aides.
Skills
Psychiatric Aides need many skills, but most especially Speaking, Social Perceptiveness, Service Orientation, Monitoring, Active Listening.
Required skills for Psychiatric Aides.
Knowledge & Abilities
Knowledge areas and abilities required for Psychiatric Aides.
Knowledge Areas
The most important knowledge areas for Psychiatric Aides include Psychology, Customer and Personal Service, Therapy and Counseling, English Language, Administrative.
Knowledge areas required for Psychiatric Aides.
Abilities
Key abilities needed for Psychiatric Aides include Oral Expression, Oral Comprehension, Problem Sensitivity, Written Comprehension, Deductive Reasoning.
Required abilities for Psychiatric Aides.
Work Activities
Common work activities performed by Psychiatric Aides.
Daily Activities
Psychiatric Aides spend their time on activities such as Getting Information, Assisting and Caring for Others, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates, Documenting/Recording Information, Training and Teaching Others.
Most important work activities for Psychiatric Aides.
About
Psychiatric Aides
The average yearly wage for Psychiatric Aides was $51,699 in 2023.
SOC Code
31-1133 - Psychiatric Aides
Insights and Analysis
Compensation snapshot: Psychiatric Aides reports an average salary of $51,699.
Labor market presence: The current workforce is approximately 34,900 workers, indicating sustained demand.
Forward outlook: Projected annual growth is 17.0%, 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.