Histotechnologist Salary (2026), outlook and how to become one

Histotechnologists earn a median of $62,930 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025), 23% above the $50,980 US median across all occupations. That works out at $30.26/hr. The middle half earn between $47,650 and $81,450. The top 10% earn $100,990 or more.

The median hourly wage for histotechnologists is $30.26 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). On a full-year basis the $62,930 annual median works out to about $5,240 a month before tax.

BLS does not publish a starting salary. The nearest measure is the low end of the pay range: the lowest-paid 10% of histotechnologists earn less than $38,910 a year and the bottom quarter less than $47,650 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). New workers often start near that end, but where a particular job starts depends on the employer, the state and the credentials you bring, so read these as the bottom of the range rather than a guaranteed entry wage.

A minority do. $100,000 sits between the 75th percentile ($81,450) and the 90th ($100,990), so roughly 10% to 25% of histotechnologists earn more than that (BLS OEWS, May 2025). No state's median reaches $100,000; the highest is New York at $97,280.

The highest state medians for Histotechnologists are New York ($97,280), Oregon ($83,010), New Hampshire ($81,020) (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

BLS does not split histotechnologists' pay by specialty or employer, but its range shows how far the top end runs: the highest-paid 10% earn more than $100,990, against a median of $62,930 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Location moves pay the most in the published data: the best-paying states are New York ($97,280), Oregon ($83,010), New Hampshire ($81,020).

Yes. BLS reports a bachelor's degree as the typical entry-level education for Histotechnologists, and O*NET rates the preparation needed as considerable preparation. In O*NET's survey of people already doing the job, 42.9% hold bachelor's degree.

It is stable rather than fast-growing: employment is projected to change 2.7% over 2025–2035, about the same as the 3.5% projected across all occupations (BLS EP, 2025–2035). BLS still projects about 20,800 openings a year, mostly from workers retiring or moving to other work.

Clinical laboratory technologists (also known as medical laboratory scientists) and clinical laboratory technicians (also known as medical laboratory technicians) perform medical laboratory tests for the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease. A core O*NET task: embed tissue specimens into paraffin wax blocks, or infiltrate tissue specimens with wax. Employers most often ask for Data base user interface and query software, Electronic mail software, Medical software.

Yes, for most. In O*NET's survey of people in the job, 30% of histotechnologists usually work more than 40 hours a week, 70% work exactly 40 and 0% work fewer. 76% say their schedule is regular and 24% irregular. Source: O*NET 31.0 Database, Work Context.

O*NET scores Histotechnologists highest on the Investigative, Realistic and Conventional interest areas, so the work mixes investigating, analysing and solving problems with ideas and data with hands-on, practical work with tools, machines or the outdoors. On NueCareer's MBTI-to-interest mapping that lines up most closely with ISTJ personalities. Personality is a fit signal, not a gate. The free NueCareer quiz scores your own profile against all 1,731 careers in the bank.

A baccalaureate degree is required on every route. Beyond that, Route 1 adds a NAACLS-accredited programme of variable length, Route 2 adds a year of full-time laboratory experience, and Route 3 adds only 6 months of experience on top of an existing HT(ASCP) certification.

Not a state license. Most states license no laboratory personnel. Of the 11 jurisdictions the ASCP BOC lists (California, Florida, Hawaii, Louisiana, Montana, Nevada, New York, North Dakota, Tennessee, West Virginia and Puerto Rico), New York licenses histotechnologists under Subpart 79-21 with routes including a current HTL(ASCP) or HTL(ASCPi), a Nevada Histotechnologist licence, a NAACLS-accredited bachelor's-or-higher histotechnology programme, or a natural or clinical laboratory science bachelor's plus two years of full-time experience while certified as a New York histotechnician, a West Virginia Histologist or an HT(ASCP). Florida licenses histology technologists, accepting HTL(ASCP), or HT(ASCP) with the qualification in immunohistochemistry, or an associate degree plus a NAACLS programme plus HT(ASCP). Nevada licenses the title Histotechnologist. California has no histotechnology category at all.

The HTL(ASCP) (Technologist in Histotechnology, HTL(ASCP)). Computer adaptive examination, 100 questions in 2 hours 30 minutes, scored 100 to 999 with 400 to pass. Application fee $260. Four domestic routes, all requiring a baccalaureate degree: an accredited HT or HTL programme within 5 years plus 30 semester hours of biology and chemistry; a science major or 30 science hours plus a year of histopathology experience; a valid HT(ASCP) plus 6 months of experience; or 30 science hours plus a 50-week US military histotechnician course within 10 years.

Women make up 67.2% of histotechnologists, against 47.1% of all employed people: more women than in the workforce as a whole. 22.0% are 55 or older, close to the 23.2% across all jobs. The median worker is 39.9 years old (all workers: 42.1). Source: BLS Current Population Survey, 2025 annual averages, for the Census group "Clinical laboratory technologists and technicians".