Mental Health Counselor salary in Washington, DC

Based on 29 certified H-1B filings in the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV metro area, FY2025–FY2026. Includes Frederick, Rockville, Germantown, Herndon, Silver Spring.

Also listed as: Therapist

Median salary$73,070
Middle 50%$65.5k–$93.6k
vs. national median+9%comparison median $67,250
Filings29FY2025–FY2026 · latest two fiscal years

Salary range

Box: middle 50% of filings. Whiskers: 10th–90th percentile. 99% of filings are between $57,255 and $113,730.
PercentileSalary
10th$64,000
25th$65,500
50th (median)$73,070
75th$93,600
90th$97,727

Cost of living

Washington's median Mental Health Counselor salary of $73,070 is worth about $67,100 at national average prices.

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

Top employers filing

EmployerMedianFilings
Paving the Way Multi Service Institutetoo few6
Orchard Mental Health Grouptoo few3
Blue Ridge Behavioral Healthtoo few2

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

By experience level

Wage levelMedianFilings
Entry-level · Level I – 0
Mid-level · Level II $65,500 17
Senior · Level III – 0
Expert · Level IV – 0

Median shown when a level has at least 10 filings.

Minimum H-1B salary by level

Wage levelPrevailing wage (most common)Median offered salaryFilings
Mid-level · Level II$60,070$65,50017

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.