SOC 21-1023 · Community and Social Service Occupations · May 2025

How much do Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers make in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH?

In the May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics estimates, released May 15, 2026, the median annual wage for Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH is $63,830. The 10th percentile is $49,280 and the 90th percentile is $102,830. Employment is 4,660.

Median annual wage

$63,830

10th percentile
$49,280
25th percentile
$58,090
Median
$63,830
75th percentile
$78,420
90th percentile
$102,830
Mean
$71,030

Annual wage from the May 2025 OEWS estimates.

A welder at work with a torch
A welder at a bench, 2014. Photograph by Chetan Menaria. Wikimedia Commons · CC0

Percentile spread

For Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers, the published 10th percentile is $49,280 and the 90th percentile is $102,830. The difference is $53,550, which is 83.9% 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 $58,090 to the 75th at $78,420, covers $20,330.

The mean annual wage is $71,030, which sits above the median of $63,830. Median and mean measure different points in the same distribution.

National and state comparison

The Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH median is 5.9% higher than the national median of $60,280 for Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers. In 2024 national prices the local median is $58,957, which is 2.2% lower than that same national median. The national figure is already in national prices because the United States parity is 100.

It is 2.1% higher than the Massachusetts median of $62,500.

Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH covers more than one state. The state comparison uses Massachusetts, the primary state on the BLS area record.

Price-adjusted pay

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH is 108.266, with the United States at 100. The Bureau of Economic Analysis released those parities on February 19, 2026. Dividing the May 2025 median of $63,830 by that parity and multiplying by 100 puts Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers at $58,957 in national prices. The wage year and the price year are different. Compare this wage after prices.

Nearby metros

20 other metropolitan areas within 200 miles publish a annual median for Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers. Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH ranks 13th of 21 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).).

  • Manchester-Nashua, NH is 45 miles away, with a median of $61,990 and employment of 140. That median is 2.9% lower than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $58,671, against $58,957 here.
  • Worcester, MA is 49 miles away, with a median of $60,480 and employment of 960. That median is 5.2% lower than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $58,992, against $58,957 here.
  • Providence-Warwick, RI-MA is 58 miles away, with a median of $59,930 and employment of 1,400. That median is 6.1% lower than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $58,886, against $58,957 here.

Employment share

Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers accounts for 0.17% of wage-and-salary employment in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH (4,660 of 2,703,890). Nationally the occupation is 0.09% of employment (132,810 of 155,495,730). The local share is 2.02 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.

Highest-paying jobs in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH · Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers by metro · How to read these percentiles · Median and mean · When a wage is not published · How the figures are made · Compare this wage after prices

Questions this page answers

How much do Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers make in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH?

In the May 2025 OEWS estimates, released May 15, 2026, the median annual wage for Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH is $63,830. The 10th percentile is $49,280 and the 90th percentile is $102,830. Employment is 4,660.

How does that compare with the national median for Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers?

The local median is 5.9% higher than the national median of $60,280.

What is Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers pay in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH after local prices?

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH is 108.266, with the United States at 100. In those national prices, the May 2025 median of $63,830 is $58,957. The wage is May 2025 and the parity is 2024.

How does Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH compare with nearby metros for Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers?

Manchester-Nashua, NH is the closest metropolitan area within 200 miles with a published annual median, 45 miles away, at $61,990. Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH ranks 13th of 21 metros within 200 miles on that median. Distances use Census Bureau internal points.