Speech Language Pathologist Pay in the Southeastern U.S.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) published reports earlier this year indicating that almost 173,910 speech language pathologists (SLPs) were employed in the United States as of May 2024.  More than 40,400 of those employed in the U.S. as SLPs resided in the twelve-state Southeastern region of the country.  The Southeast region is one of the weakest regions in the country for speech language pathologist pay.  Outside of Virginia, Florida, and Georgia, all states in the region registered SLP annual mean wage levels below the national average.  This included four Southeastern states that ranked among the ten worst states in the country for SLP annual mean wages.  A closer look at BLS data from May 2024 reveals the following about speech language pathologist pay in the Southeastern U.S.:

Speech Language Pathologist Pay in the Southeastern U.S.

State	# Employed	Annual Mean Wages	Wage Rank*
AL	1,840	$77,430	46th
AR	2,740	$84,430	34th
FL	8,990	$92,770	20th
GA	4,190	$91,960	21st
KY	2,520	$86,260	30th
LA	3,110	$75,960	47th
MS	1,510	$78,270	45th
NC	5,160	$89,980	23rd
SC	2,150	$88,410	26th
TN	3,510	$83,200	41st
VA	3,850	$96,180	17th
WV	920	$85,410	31st
U.S.	173,910	$91,089	-------

(*) annual mean wage ranking among the 50 states and the District of Columbia

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OES. Data extracted on April 9, 2025