Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers salary
SOC 31-9096 · BLS OEWS May 2025
What the range looks like
A single median hides most of what a job pays. The bar below is the full national range: the wash spans the 10th to 90th percentile, the solid bar is the middle half, and the tick is the median.
- 10th
- $30,120
- 25th
- $35,660
- Median
- $38,150
- 75th
- $45,710
- 90th
- $49,150
Getting in
- Typical education to enter
- High school diploma or equivalent
- Related work experience
- None
- On-the-job training
- Short-term on-the-job training
Entry requirements describe what is typical, not mandatory. Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34.
Where veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers earn the most
Nominal pay and pay adjusted for local prices rank states differently — a high-wage state with high costs can be worse off in real terms than a middling one. Switch between the two below.
The median wage as published, before local prices are taken into account.
| # | State | Median | Cost of living | Employed | Concentrationvs. national |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rhode Island | $49,770 | 102.3 | 380 | 0.93× |
| 2 | District of Columbia | $49,080 | 109.9 | 240 | 0.41× |
| 3 | Massachusetts | $46,670 | 105.8 | 2,130 | 0.72× |
| 4 | California | $46,260 | 110.7 | 16,080 | 1.08× |
| 5 | New Jersey | $46,160 | 108.8 | 3,270 | 0.94× |
| 6 | Maine | $45,510 | 97.0 | 690 | 1.32× |
| 7 | Minnesota | $45,280 | 98.6 | 1,450 | 0.60× |
| 8 | Maryland | $44,770 | 105.0 | 2,220 | 0.99× |
| 9 | New York | $44,750 | 107.9 | 5,790 | 0.73× |
| 10 | Oregon | $44,370 | 103.4 | 3,170 | 1.98× |
| 11 | Connecticut | $44,250 | 103.6 | 1,390 | 1.01× |
| 12 | Washington | $44,150 | 107.0 | 4,380 | 1.51× |
| 13 | Hawaii | $44,070 | 110.0 | 570 | 1.12× |
| 14 | Colorado | $38,900 | 103.1 | 2,910 | 1.25× |
| 15 | Delaware | $38,610 | 99.8 | — | — |
| 16 | Montana | $38,340 | 94.6 | 550 | 1.32× |
| 17 | Arizona | $38,250 | 100.7 | 3,340 | 1.27× |
| 18 | Michigan | $37,960 | 96.2 | 4,420 | 1.23× |
| 19 | Wyoming | $37,880 | 92.7 | 150 | 0.67× |
| 20 | Florida | $37,830 | 103.4 | 6,790 | 0.84× |
| 21 | Utah | $37,560 | 98.9 | 580 | 0.41× |
| 22 | Idaho | $37,530 | 95.5 | 680 | 0.97× |
| 23 | New Mexico | $37,500 | 92.2 | 520 | 0.73× |
| 24 | Illinois | $37,480 | 100.0 | 3,270 | 0.66× |
| 25 | Virginia | $37,450 | 101.1 | 4,810 | 1.44× |
| 26 | Vermont | $37,290 | 98.0 | 370 | 1.51× |
| 27 | North Dakota | $37,160 | 89.0 | 270 | 0.77× |
| 28 | Pennsylvania | $37,140 | 97.6 | 3,760 | 0.76× |
| 29 | North Carolina | $37,070 | 94.3 | 6,910 | 1.72× |
| 30 | South Carolina | $36,980 | 93.7 | 1,720 | 0.92× |
| 31 | Nevada | $36,920 | 100.0 | 1,380 | 1.09× |
| 32 | New Hampshire | $36,910 | 104.2 | 770 | 1.39× |
| 33 | Wisconsin | $36,850 | 94.1 | 2,200 | 0.92× |
| 34 | Missouri | $36,660 | 90.8 | 2,010 | 0.84× |
| 35 | Alaska | $36,490 | 102.4 | 130 | 0.49× |
| 36 | Indiana | $36,420 | 93.3 | 2,810 | 1.08× |
| 37 | Ohio | $36,340 | 92.8 | 4,640 | 1.03× |
| 38 | Tennessee | $36,320 | 91.9 | 3,530 | 1.32× |
| 39 | Nebraska | $36,100 | 90.1 | 900 | 1.08× |
| 40 | Georgia | $35,850 | 96.3 | 4,570 | 1.15× |
| 41 | Alabama | $35,800 | 88.8 | 1,240 | 0.72× |
| 42 | Iowa | $35,720 | 87.8 | 1,380 | 1.09× |
| 43 | Kansas | $35,680 | 90.1 | 1,570 | 1.34× |
| 44 | Oklahoma | $34,850 | 87.8 | 1,740 | 1.25× |
| 45 | Texas | $34,850 | 97.1 | 8,440 | 0.74× |
| 46 | South Dakota | $34,700 | 88.6 | 250 | 0.67× |
| 47 | Arkansas | $34,570 | 86.9 | 1,460 | 1.38× |
| 48 | Kentucky | $34,140 | 90.2 | 1,840 | 1.13× |
| 49 | West Virginia | $32,350 | 89.5 | 730 | 1.28× |
| 50 | Louisiana | $30,480 | 88.2 | 1,230 | 0.78× |
| 51 | Mississippi | $30,360 | 87.0 | 560 | 0.59× |
Cost of living is the BEA regional price parity for all items, where 100 is the national average. Concentration is the BLS location quotient: how much more of the local workforce does this job than the national average, so 2.00× means twice the national share. It is often the reason wages differ — a place that concentrates an occupation has the employers and the competition for it. States where veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers wages are suppressed by BLS for confidentiality are omitted.
Best paying metro areas for veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers
The 40 highest-paying metros with a published estimate. BLS suppresses roughly half of all occupation-by-metro cells, so a metro absent here has no local figure rather than a low one.
The median wage as published, before local prices are taken into account.
| # | Metro area | Median | Cost of living | Employed | Concentrationvs. national |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $49,400 | 115.6 | 2,150 | 1.11× |
| 2 | San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | $49,210 | 110.4 | 620 | 0.67× |
| 3 | Kahului-Wailuku, HI | $49,200 | 109.4 | 60 | 1.06× |
| 4 | Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA | $47,270 | 107.8 | 350 | 2.11× |
| 5 | Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA | $47,150 | 109.9 | 200 | 2.47× |
| 6 | Salinas, CA | $46,990 | 109.0 | 160 | 1.03× |
| 7 | Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | $46,990 | 106.7 | 1,740 | 1.98× |
| 8 | San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | $46,720 | 111.9 | 1,970 | 1.57× |
| 9 | Vallejo, CA | $46,590 | 108.5 | 130 | 1.12× |
| 10 | New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | $46,160 | 112.6 | 5,560 | 0.72× |
| 11 | Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $46,070 | 113.6 | 4,830 | 0.95× |
| 12 | Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | $45,910 | 104.8 | 1,150 | 0.72× |
| 13 | Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | $45,790 | 108.3 | 1,800 | 0.82× |
| 14 | Napa, CA | $45,710 | 112.6 | 50 | 0.77× |
| 15 | Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | $45,690 | 105.4 | 1,890 | 1.92× |
| 16 | Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $45,640 | 111.1 | 2,400 | 1.42× |
| 17 | Modesto, CA | $45,560 | 104.1 | 230 | 1.45× |
| 18 | Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA | $45,530 | 110.5 | 480 | 1.81× |
| 19 | Yuba City, CA | $45,490 | 104.2 | 50 | 1.24× |
| 20 | Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA | $45,490 | 108.8 | 210 | 1.27× |
| 21 | Naples-Marco Island, FL | $45,470 | 103.2 | 100 | 0.68× |
| 22 | Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $45,320 | 108.9 | 2,740 | 1.07× |
| 23 | Mount Vernon-Anacortes, WA | $45,260 | 102.4 | 80 | 1.96× |
| 24 | Portland-South Portland, ME | $45,150 | 101.9 | 210 | 0.88× |
| 25 | Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | $44,810 | 106.4 | 1,270 | 0.91× |
| 26 | Wenatchee-East Wenatchee, WA | $44,530 | 103.9 | 50 | 1.25× |
| 27 | Salem, OR | $44,460 | 103.6 | 230 | 1.52× |
| 28 | Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO | $44,260 | 105.8 | 1,520 | 1.16× |
| 29 | Bend, OR | $44,190 | 103.6 | 290 | 3.24× |
| 30 | Bellingham, WA | $44,160 | 103.3 | 120 | 1.56× |
| 31 | Trenton-Princeton, NJ | $44,140 | 103.2 | 150 | 0.78× |
| 32 | Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | $44,110 | 104.5 | 1,120 | 1.02× |
| 33 | Urban Honolulu, HI | $44,050 | 111.0 | 440 | 1.20× |
| 34 | Fresno, CA | $44,040 | 102.2 | 230 | 0.60× |
| 35 | Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard, WA | $44,020 | 105.6 | 160 | 2.10× |
| 36 | Redding, CA | $43,930 | 100.7 | 80 | 1.37× |
| 37 | Ithaca, NY | $43,900 | 103.3 | 90 | 2.18× |
| 38 | Chico, CA | $43,830 | 101.2 | 120 | 1.88× |
| 39 | Worcester, MA | $43,510 | 102.5 | 270 | 0.95× |
| 40 | San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA | $43,270 | 108.6 | 170 | 1.76× |
Cost of living is the BEA regional price parity for all items, where 100 is the national average. Concentration is the BLS location quotient: how much more of the local workforce does this job than the national average, so 2.00× means twice the national share. It is often the reason wages differ — a place that concentrates an occupation has the employers and the competition for it. Metro areas where veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers wages are suppressed by BLS for confidentiality are omitted.
Similar occupations
Other jobs in the same field, with what each pays nationally.
- Medical Assistants$45,690
- Dental Assistants$48,070
- Phlebotomists$45,230
- Healthcare Support Workers, All Other$48,430
- Massage Therapists$58,450
- Medical Equipment Preparers$47,700
- Medical Transcriptionists$40,410
- Pharmacy Aides$37,680