High paying social service jobs in Washington

Every social service occupation below is ranked by its median annual wage in Washington. Read the percentile range, not just the median: the gap between the 10th and 90th inside a single social service job is usually wider than the gap between two different ones, so where you land in a field matters more than which field you pick.

Cost of living: prices in Washington run 7.0% above the national average (2024), so a Washington salary is worth about 0.93× its face value in national terms. That scales every wage here by the same factor — it changes what the numbers mean, not their order. To see where a job pays a real premium, use jobs that pay more in Washington.

Wages: BLS OEWS, May 2025 · Cost of living: BEA regional price parities, 2024

Find social service jobs in Washington

OccupationMedian, Washington · Employed

1Probation Officers and Correctional Treatment Specialists$82,750
Bachelor's degree
$69,600 – $104,2602,150
2Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors$82,670
Master's degree
$57,980 – $125,9506,610
3Healthcare Social Workers$78,570
Master's degree
$48,390 – $124,3605,180
4Health Education Specialists$77,420
Bachelor's degree
$52,910 – $95,6801,750
5Child, Family, and School Social Workers$74,480
Bachelor's degree
$48,750 – $98,10010,720
6Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers$70,460
Master's degree
$46,790 – $102,6803,490
7Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors$68,910
Master's degree
$47,220 – $110,58014,250
8Community and Social Service Specialists, All Other$64,340
Bachelor's degree
$42,640 – $99,3404,800
9Rehabilitation Counselors$58,050
Master's degree
$46,050 – $84,5005,440
10Community Health Workers$57,070
High school diploma or equivalent
$43,820 – $80,6802,640
11Social and Human Service Assistants$54,770
High school diploma or equivalent
$43,180 – $72,7707,590

Bars run from the 10th to the 90th percentile; the middle half is shaded darker, and the tick is the median.

#	Occupation	MedianWashington	10th–90th percentilemiddle half shaded darker	Employed
1	Probation Officers and Correctional Treatment SpecialistsBachelor's degree	$82,750	$69,600 – $104,260	2,150
2	Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and AdvisorsMaster's degree	$82,670	$57,980 – $125,950	6,610
3	Healthcare Social WorkersMaster's degree	$78,570	$48,390 – $124,360	5,180
4	Health Education SpecialistsBachelor's degree	$77,420	$52,910 – $95,680	1,750
5	Child, Family, and School Social WorkersBachelor's degree	$74,480	$48,750 – $98,100	10,720
6	Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social WorkersMaster's degree	$70,460	$46,790 – $102,680	3,490
7	Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health CounselorsMaster's degree	$68,910	$47,220 – $110,580	14,250
8	Community and Social Service Specialists, All OtherBachelor's degree	$64,340	$42,640 – $99,340	4,800
9	Rehabilitation CounselorsMaster's degree	$58,050	$46,050 – $84,500	5,440
10	Community Health WorkersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$57,070	$43,820 – $80,680	2,640
11	Social and Human Service AssistantsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$54,770	$43,180 – $72,770	7,590

Ranked among the occupations common enough to employ roughly one in every three thousand workers in Washington. The rarer ones are real jobs — but a 1,190-person occupation at the top of a list answers a different question than the one most readers are asking.

More for Washington

Metro areas in Washington

Pay varies more between metros than between states — the spread inside one state is often wider than the gap between two.

By field in Washington

Without a degree

The same fields, narrowed to what you can enter without one. Fields missing here have too few such occupations in Washington to rank honestly.

High paying social service jobs in Washington

More for Washington

Metro areas in Washington

By field in Washington

Without a degree

High paying social service jobs in each state