Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors Salary
In Pittsfield, MA, educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors earn $75,630 at the median, or about $36.36 an hour. The range runs from $56K at the entry level to $96K for experienced workers. Adjusted for local prices (RPP 95.11), that's roughly $79,518 in purchasing power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $1,709/month, about 34.4% of take-home, which is tight.
Where the paycheck goes
What $76K actually covers in Pittsfield, month by month
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by Pittsfield’s Regional Price Parity (95.11). Rent from HUD Fair Market Rents. Taxes estimated for single filer, standard deduction. * Healthcare is the employee-paid share only (premiums + out-of-pocket). Actual costs vary by coverage type: employer-sponsored, ACA marketplace, or uninsured.
About educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors
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What this looks like in Pittsfield
Pittsfield sits well above the national pay line for educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors, local pay runs about 18% higher than the U.S. median of $64K. The catch: housing math doesn't keep up. A 2-bedroom at the HUD median rents for $1,709/month, which is 35.5% of the median worker's take-home, past the 30% guideline most planners use. Cost of living (RPP 95.11) is near the national average, so spending patterns here track the typical American budget fairly closely. The pay premium is real, but so are the offsets.
Compared to nearby metros
Median pay for educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors in metros near Pittsfield, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton | $81K | $75K |
| Worcester | $78K | $76K |
| Springfield | $79K | $82K |
| Amherst Town-Northampton | $67K | $67K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Pittsfield, MA
Entry-level educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors (10th percentile) start around $56K. Mid-career wages sit at $76K. Top earners bring in $96K or more, a $40K spread from bottom to top.
Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors pay across states
Median income ranked highest to lowest, compared to the national figure
View Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors salary in all states
| State | Median salary | vs. national | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | $87K | +34% | 45,140 |
| Alaska | $83K | +29% | 540 |
| Washington | $83K | +29% | 6,610 |
| District of Columbia | $80K | +25% | 1,690 |
| Massachusetts | $80K | +24% | 11,460 |
| New Jersey | $78K | +21% | 8,190 |
| New Mexico | $78K | +21% | 1,780 |
| Maryland | $76K | +18% | 6,600 |
| Rhode Island | $75K | +17% | 1,340 |
| Delaware | $74K | +15% | 1,700 |
| Connecticut | $74K | +15% | 3,370 |
| New York | $72K | +11% | 23,380 |
| New Hampshire | $71K | +10% | 1,650 |
| Texas | $68K | +6% | 31,730 |
| Virginia | $68K | +5% | 9,450 |
| Nevada | $67K | +4% | 2,250 |
| Oregon | $67K | +4% | 3,990 |
| Colorado | $65K | +1% | 6,530 |
| Minnesota | $65K | +0% | 4,200 |
| Vermont | $65K | +0% | 1,120 |
| Kentucky | $64K | +0% | 5,030 |
| Georgia | $64K | -1% | 11,460 |
| Wyoming | $63K | -1% | 770 |
| Wisconsin | $63K | -3% | 5,330 |
| Nebraska | $63K | -3% | 2,190 |
| Illinois | $62K | -3% | 13,580 |
| Louisiana | $62K | -4% | 4,820 |
| Ohio | $62K | -4% | 13,250 |
| Hawaii | $62K | -4% | 1,620 |
| Utah | $61K | -5% | 4,070 |
| Pennsylvania | $61K | -5% | 13,570 |
| South Carolina | $60K | -6% | 6,460 |
| Idaho | $60K | -6% | 1,990 |
| Tennessee | $60K | -7% | 6,470 |
| Arkansas | $60K | -7% | 2,310 |
| Alabama | $60K | -7% | 4,410 |
| Michigan | $59K | -8% | 9,170 |
| Indiana | $59K | -8% | 5,610 |
| North Dakota | $59K | -8% | 840 |
| Mississippi | $59K | -9% | 2,620 |
| Maine | $59K | -9% | 1,780 |
| Arizona | $58K | -9% | 7,330 |
| Missouri | $58K | -10% | 8,890 |
| Montana | $58K | -10% | 890 |
| North Carolina | $58K | -10% | 9,430 |
| Kansas | $57K | -12% | 3,100 |
| Iowa | $57K | -12% | 3,690 |
| West Virginia | $56K | -14% | 1,260 |
| Florida | $53K | -17% | 22,800 |
| Oklahoma | $52K | -19% | 4,830 |
| South Dakota | $52K | -19% | 1,000 |
Showing 1–10 of 51 (all 50 states + DC)
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Quick answers
The stuff people actually ask about this job
Can a educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisor afford a 2BR apartment alone in Pittsfield?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $76K, rent takes 35.5% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,709/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $1,400/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.
What’s the entry-level salary for educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors in Pittsfield?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors typically earn — is $56K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $3,708/month. At HUD’s $1,709/month FMR, rent would take 46% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.
Is educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisor a high-paying job in Pittsfield?
Local pay is 18% above the national median — $76K here vs. $64K nationally.
How does Pittsfield compare to the national average for educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors?
Pittsfield pays $76K median vs. the U.S. average of $64K — that’s +18%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 95.11), the purchasing-power equivalent is $80K — still ahead of the national median.
How much do educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors make in Pittsfield, MA?
The median is $75,630 a year, that works out to about $36 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $56,350, and experienced educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors can clear $96,230. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $76K enough to live in Pittsfield?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $4,817/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,709/month, which eats 35.5% of your paycheck. That's above the 30% rule of thumb, housing will be a stretch at the median salary, though you can manage with roommates or a smaller place.
How far does a educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors salary go in Pittsfield?
Pittsfield has a Regional Price Parity of 95.11 (100 is the national average). That's below average, your money stretches further here than the raw salary number suggests. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors salary is worth about $79,518 in national-average purchasing power.
Where do educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors get paid the most?
The table above ranks every state by median pay for this role. Keep in mind that the highest-paying states tend to have the highest costs of living, so the top salary doesn't always mean the most money in your pocket.