How much do Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors make in Ames, IA?

Percentile spread

For Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors, the published 10th percentile is $50,260 and the 90th percentile is $73,510. The difference is $23,250, which is 46.3% of the median. Ten percent of measured wages fall below the 10th percentile and ten percent fall above the 90th. How to read a percentile.

The middle half of the distribution, from the 25th percentile at $50,260 to the 75th at $61,920, covers $11,660.

The mean annual wage is $56,690, which sits above the median of $50,260. Median and mean measure different points in the same distribution.

National and state comparison

The Ames, IA median is 21.9% lower than the national median of $64,330 for Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors. In 2024 national prices the local median is $56,580, which is 12% lower than that same national median. The national figure is already in national prices because the United States parity is 100.

It is 11.1% lower than the Iowa median of $56,540.

Price-adjusted pay

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Ames, IA is 88.830, with the United States at 100. The Bureau of Economic Analysis released those parities on February 19, 2026. Dividing the May 2025 median of $50,260 by that parity and multiplying by 100 puts Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors at $56,580 in national prices. The wage year and the price year are different. Compare this wage after prices.

Nearby metros

14 other metropolitan areas within 200 miles publish a annual median for Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors. Ames, IA ranks 14th of 15 on that median, counting itself. Distance is the great-circle mileage between Census Bureau internal points (U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Gazetteer Files, Core Based Statistical Areas, internal points (INTPTLAT, INTPTLONG).).

• Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA is 32 miles away, with a median of $57,580 and employment of 650. That median is 14.6% higher than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $62,791, against $56,580 here.
• Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA is 72 miles away, with a median of $53,220 and employment of 190. That median is 5.9% higher than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $61,132, against $56,580 here.
• Cedar Rapids, IA is 106 miles away, with a median of $58,800 and employment of 330. That median is 17% higher than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $66,095, against $56,580 here.

Employment share

Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors accounts for 0.72% of wage-and-salary employment in Ames, IA (400 of 55,890). Nationally the occupation is 0.23% of employment (353,310 of 155,495,730). The local share is 3.15 times the national share. That ratio is the location quotient computed from these May 2025 employment counts. It is not copied from the location-quotient column in the BLS bulk file.