Median pay for human service assistants runs from $24,020 in Dothan to $63,870 in Eau Claire — a 2.66× range across 520 metropolitan areas. The national median of $45,930 sits inside that range but describes no particular market.
From $34,200 at the 10th percentile to $63,290 at the 90th is only 1.85×, which is narrow. Pay for human service assistants is set more by structure than by individual outcome — scales, steps, licensure. That makes income predictable and makes the ceiling real: the way to earn materially more is usually to change role or location, not to out-perform within this one.
Eau Claire (WI) leads and Dothan (AL) trails, but the gap is modest. For a role like this the more useful comparison is not between cities but between the 10th and 90th percentile within one — see the band above.
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eau Claire WI | $63,870 | $30.71 | 1.61 | 390 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara CA | $60,650 | $29.16 | 0.61 | 1,930 |
| Fond du Lac WI | $58,940 | $28.34 | 1.46 | 180 |
| Santa Rosa-Petaluma CA | $58,580 | $28.16 | 1.36 | 790 |
| Napa CA | $58,470 | $28.11 | 1.04 | 230 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue WA | $58,090 | $27.93 | 0.67 | 3,910 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont CA | $57,580 | $27.68 | 1.19 | 7,970 |
| Salem OR | $57,560 | $27.67 | 2.27 | 1,200 |
| Western Wisconsin nonmetropolitan area | $56,810 | $27.31 | 1.19 | 430 |
| South Central Wisconsin nonmetropolitan area | $56,200 | $27.02 | 0.72 | 430 |
| Duluth MN-WI | $56,120 | $26.98 | 1.69 | 600 |
| Modesto CA | $55,330 | $26.60 | 1.29 | 710 |
| Wausau WI | $55,330 | $26.60 | 0.56 | 110 |
| Santa Maria-Santa Barbara CA | $55,160 | $26.52 | 1.26 | 710 |
| San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles CA | $54,960 | $26.42 | 0.97 | 330 |
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville CA | $54,870 | $26.38 | 1.39 | 390 |
| Bellingham WA | $54,320 | $26.12 | 0.75 | 190 |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom CA | $53,810 | $25.87 | 1.05 | 3,190 |
| Ithaca NY | $53,550 | $25.74 | 2.3 | 310 |
| Eastern Oregon nonmetropolitan area | $53,320 | $25.64 | 2.82 | 590 |
| Walla Walla WA | $52,990 | $25.48 | 1.3 | 90 |
| Boulder CO | $52,830 | $25.40 | 0.44 | 240 |
| Yuba City CA | $52,750 | $25.36 | 1.86 | 270 |
| Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura CA | $52,180 | $25.09 | 1.04 | 940 |
| Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro OR-WA | $51,710 | $24.86 | 1.74 | 5,930 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dothan AL | $24,020 | $11.55 | 0.7 | 120 |
| West Delta Mississippi nonmetropolitan area | $27,210 | $13.08 | 1.39 | 360 |
| Puerto Rico nonmetropolitan area | $27,270 | $13.11 | 0.8 | 70 |
| Lower West Mississippi nonmetropolitan area | $27,750 | $13.34 | 0.62 | 140 |
| Southeast Alabama nonmetropolitan area | $28,680 | $13.79 | 0.41 | 100 |
| Aguadilla PR | $29,160 | $14.02 | 0.72 | 100 |
| Northeast Louisiana nonmetropolitan area | $29,530 | $14.20 | 0.77 | 130 |
| Gadsden AL | $29,800 | $14.33 | 0.98 | 90 |
| Ponce PR | $29,840 | $14.35 | 1.8 | 320 |
| Lower East Mississippi nonmetropolitan area | $29,910 | $14.38 | 0.75 | 260 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Johnstown PA | $41,450 | $19.93 | 4.41 | 590 |
| Corvallis OR | $45,590 | $21.92 | 4.24 | 460 |
| Connecticut nonmetropolitan area | $44,140 | $21.22 | 3.93 | 740 |
| Waterbury-Shelton CT | $43,750 | $21.03 | 3.77 | 1,710 |
| Ann Arbor MI | $38,530 | $18.52 | 3.41 | 2,110 |
| Lewiston-Auburn ME | $48,110 | $23.13 | 3.35 | 450 |
| Bangor ME | $46,590 | $22.40 | 3.22 | 660 |
| North Coast Region of California nonmetropolitan area | $45,370 | $21.81 | 3.12 | 960 |
| Pocatello ID | $45,380 | $21.82 | 3 | 320 |
| Northern Vermont nonmetropolitan area | $46,060 | $22.14 | 2.84 | 710 |
| Syracuse NY | $47,330 | $22.76 | 2.83 | 2,390 |
| Kingston NY | $47,290 | $22.74 | 2.82 | 470 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York-Newark-Jersey City NY-NJ | $47,860 | $23.01 | 1.33 | 35,540 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim CA | $50,330 | $24.20 | 1.06 | 18,790 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin IL-IN | $47,180 | $22.69 | 1.26 | 16,080 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington PA-NJ-DE-MD | $45,370 | $21.81 | 1.49 | 12,160 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont CA | $57,580 | $27.68 | 1.19 | 7,970 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria DC-VA-MD-WV | $48,370 | $23.26 | 0.88 | 7,790 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington MN-WI | $49,750 | $23.92 | 1.3 | 7,160 |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad CA | $49,500 | $23.80 | 1.48 | 6,400 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton MA-NH | $47,530 | $22.85 | 0.8 | 6,090 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach FL | $45,370 | $21.81 | 0.75 | 5,980 |
| Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro OR-WA | $51,710 | $24.86 | 1.74 | 5,930 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario CA | $48,370 | $23.26 | 1.06 | 5,100 |
Figures come from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics programme, May 2025 release, SOC code 21-1093. OEWS surveys employers, so it reports what is actually paid rather than what job advertisements claim, and it excludes the self-employed. Estimates cover 520 of 528 metropolitan areas — near-complete coverage, which means the ranges above are reliable rather than drawn from a handful of markets. Read the methodology.