Mid-level HR Specialist salary in Washington, DC

Based on 37 certified H-1B filings at DOL wage level II in the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV metro area, FY2025–FY2026. Includes Herndon, Arlington, Mclean, Ashburn, Rockville.

Also listed as: Recruiter

Median salary$78,208
Middle 50%$78.1k–$82.3k
vs. all levels here−2%comparison median $80,000
Filings37FY2025–FY2026 · latest two fiscal years

Salary range

Box: middle 50% of filings. Whiskers: 10th–90th percentile. 99% of filings are between $72,941 and $125,800.
PercentileSalary
10th$78,146
25th$78,146
50th (median)$78,208
75th$82,250
90th$89,865

Salary by year

Median salary

$60k $75k $90k FY2020: median $70,000 (16 filings) FY2022: median $72,000 (34 filings) FY2023: median $73,000 (16 filings) FY2024: median $74,100 (21 filings) FY2025: median $78,200 (29 filings) FY20 FY21 FY22 FY23 FY24 FY25 FY26

Filings per year

FY2020: 16 filings FY20 FY2021: 9 filings FY21 FY2022: 34 filings FY22 FY2023: 16 filings FY23 FY2024: 21 filings FY24 FY2025: 29 filings FY25 FY2026: 8 filings FY26 34
Shaded: FY2025–FY2026, the years behind the figures above. Median shown for years with at least 10 filings. FY2026 covers Q1–Q3 only.
Show as table
Fiscal yearMedianP25P75Filings
FY2020$70,000$69,982$70,72016
FY2021–––9
FY2022$72,000$71,910$78,72034
FY2023$73,000$72,862$73,27316
FY2024$74,100$74,090$78,14621
FY2025$78,200$78,146$81,91029
FY2026–––8

Cost of living

Washington's median mid-level HR Specialist salary of $78,208 is worth about $71,800 at national average prices.

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024 (U.S. = 100; Washington = 108.9).

Compared with all workers here

All Human Resources Specialists in the Washington, DC area earned a median of $100,830 in May 2025 (24,450 employed). The H-1B median here is $78,208, 22% lower.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS metropolitan area estimates. BLS wages include some incentive pay; H-1B figures are base salary.

Employers filing at this level

EmployerMedianFilings
SS Software Solutionstoo few4
Amazontoo few3
Amiti Consultingtoo few2
High Sierra Poolstoo few2
Jecho Laboratoriestoo few2
Olympus Corporation of the Americastoo few2
Velocity Data Solutionstoo few2

Employers with at least 2 filings here. Median shown at 10+ filings.

By experience level

Wage levelMedianFilings
Entry-level · Level I $62,483 17
Mid-level · Level II $78,208 37
Senior · Level III – 0
Expert · Level IV $142,800 12

Median shown when a level has at least 10 filings.

Minimum H-1B salary by level

Wage levelPrevailing wage (most common)Median offered salaryFilings
Entry-level · Level I$58,926$62,48317
Mid-level · Level II$78,146$78,20837
Expert · Level IV$121,430$142,80012

The prevailing wage is the minimum an employer must pay for this job and area. Amounts vary by county within a metro and by wage source.