Pay by state · 52 states
Speech-Language Pathologist Salary by State (2026)
Speech-Language Pathologists earn the most in California at $118,970 a year and the least in Puerto Rico at $49,800 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). The national median is $97,870. All 52 states and territories with reported data are ranked below, with a cost-of-living adjusted column.
- Highest median
- $118,970California
- National median
- $97,870BLS OEWS, May 2025
- Lowest median
- $49,800Puerto Rico
- States reporting
- 52of 54 OEWS areas
All states
Speech-Language Pathologist salary in every state
Sort by any column. Employment is the number of speech-language pathologists OEWS estimates in that state; blank cells are estimates BLS suppressed because the sample was too small.
| # | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CACalifornia | $118,970 | $98,920 | $135,070 | 16,930 | $107,451 |
| 2 | COColorado | $110,750 | $94,590 | $136,890 | 4,420 | $107,470 |
| 3 | DCDistrict of Columbia | $109,380 | $96,180 | $130,620 | 390 | $99,526 |
| 4 | WAWashington | $105,550 | $96,100 | $124,010 | 3,570 | $98,633 |
| 5 | NVNevada | $104,510 | $83,200 | $119,630 | 1,270 | $104,532 |
| 6 | RIRhode Island | $104,000 | $92,260 | $111,610 | 720 | $101,682 |
| 7 | DEDelaware | $102,760 | $87,210 | $114,620 | 690 | $102,958 |
| 8 | AKAlaska | $102,670 | $84,310 | $108,700 | 340 | $100,304 |
| 9 | OROregon | $102,660 | $85,810 | $127,700 | 1,600 | $99,322 |
| 10 | NJNew Jersey | $101,560 | $82,680 | $128,910 | 6,840 | $93,341 |
| 11 | MAMassachusetts | $101,310 | $83,090 | $119,100 | 5,290 | $95,795 |
| 12 | NYNew York | $100,610 | $78,570 | $131,190 | 15,310 | $93,226 |
| 13 | CTConnecticut | $100,110 | $80,960 | $114,400 | 2,390 | $96,622 |
| 14 | FLFlorida | $99,990 | $83,120 | $105,460 | 10,080 | $96,689 |
| 15 | TXTexas | $99,910 | $79,230 | $118,490 | 19,120 | $102,940 |
| 16 | MDMaryland | $99,190 | $79,370 | $114,260 | 3,510 | $94,504 |
| 17 | NMNew Mexico | $98,690 | $78,940 | $123,920 | 1,250 | $107,025 |
| 18 | AZArizona | $97,800 | $81,020 | $114,400 | 3,390 | $97,142 |
| 19 | HIHawaii | $97,560 | $75,020 | $107,950 | 270 | $88,730 |
| 20 | GAGeorgia | $96,760 | $73,990 | $108,030 | 4,030 | $100,485 |
| 21 | VAVirginia | $96,250 | $77,830 | $116,790 | 4,460 | $95,199 |
| 22 | ILIllinois | $95,080 | $76,590 | $108,330 | 9,040 | $95,120 |
| 23 | OHOhio | $93,300 | $77,250 | $105,500 | 7,270 | $100,567 |
| 24 | PAPennsylvania | $92,960 | $72,440 | $107,990 | 6,570 | $95,273 |
| 25 | UTUtah | $91,560 | $66,490 | $106,850 | 1,460 | $92,612 |
| 26 | SCSouth Carolina | $90,530 | $68,750 | $106,920 | 2,190 | $96,566 |
| 27 | MNMinnesota | $89,380 | $78,310 | $100,650 | 3,890 | $90,630 |
| 28 | MOMissouri | $89,280 | $71,520 | $103,240 | 3,230 | $98,308 |
| 29 | MIMichigan | $89,120 | $76,070 | $101,410 | 4,730 | $92,624 |
| 30 | INIndiana | $87,360 | $75,380 | $106,080 | 3,310 | $93,604 |
| 31 | NCNorth Carolina | $86,460 | $71,160 | $103,020 | 5,600 | $91,661 |
| 32 | TNTennessee | $84,630 | $64,730 | $101,760 | 3,320 | $92,119 |
| 33 | OKOklahoma | $84,470 | $60,600 | $105,710 | 1,870 | $96,160 |
| 34 | IDIdaho | $84,380 | $76,310 | $99,360 | 1,210 | $88,362 |
| 35 | NENebraska | $84,350 | $74,540 | $99,360 | 1,310 | $93,615 |
| 36 | ARArkansas | $83,580 | $65,070 | $112,140 | 2,430 | $96,139 |
| 37 | KYKentucky | $83,550 | $70,250 | $104,120 | 2,610 | $92,670 |
| 38 | NHNew Hampshire | $83,040 | $75,190 | $100,820 | 720 | $79,720 |
| 39 | WIWisconsin | $83,000 | $72,370 | $99,530 | 2,940 | $88,209 |
| 40 | MEMaine | $82,660 | $73,930 | $99,060 | 640 | $85,173 |
| 41 | VTVermont | $82,090 | $78,270 | $98,760 | 430 | $83,801 |
| 42 | WYWyoming | $82,040 | $68,710 | $109,540 | 240 | $88,509 |
| 43 | IAIowa | $81,050 | $70,470 | $95,970 | 1,540 | $92,352 |
| 44 | WVWest Virginia | $80,970 | $67,640 | $108,290 | 880 | $90,472 |
| 45 | KSKansas | $80,120 | $65,010 | $99,650 | 1,690 | $88,955 |
| 46 | MTMontana | $78,740 | $65,010 | $93,490 | 490 | $83,195 |
| 47 | MSMississippi | $78,130 | $62,080 | $97,860 | 1,790 | $89,853 |
| 48 | NDNorth Dakota | $75,240 | $61,520 | $85,920 | 630 | $84,578 |
| 49 | ALAlabama | $73,660 | $63,760 | $88,990 | 2,060 | $82,929 |
| 50 | LALouisiana | $69,610 | $60,790 | $90,660 | 3,000 | $78,917 |
| 51 | SDSouth Dakota | $65,680 | $62,400 | $82,560 | 410 | $74,143 |
| 52 | PRPuerto Rico | $49,800 | $47,850 | $59,220 | 150 | N/A |
Method
How the cost-of-living adjustment works
The adjusted column divides each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity (RPP) and multiplies by 100. RPPs measure how much a fixed basket of goods, services and rents costs in one state relative to the national average, so the result restates local pay in national-average dollars.
For Speech-Language Pathologists, that changes the ranking: California leads on raw pay at $118,970, while Colorado leads once prices are taken into account at $107,470.
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities by State, 2024 (public domain). The adjustment is NueCareer's calculation, not a BLS or BEA published statistic.
Questions
Speech-Language Pathologist pay by state: FAQ
Which state pays Speech-Language Pathologists the most?
California reports the highest median wage for Speech-Language Pathologists at $118,970 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025), followed by Colorado ($110,750) and District of Columbia ($109,380).
Which state pays Speech-Language Pathologists the least?
Puerto Rico reports the lowest median for Speech-Language Pathologists at $49,800 a year, $69,170 below the highest-paying state (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Where do Speech-Language Pathologists earn the most after cost of living?
Dividing each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity puts Colorado first at $107,470 in national-average dollars, from a raw median of $110,750. BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024.