Paralegals and Legal Assistants Salary
The median pay for a paralegals and legal assistants in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX is $62,730/year ($30.16/hour), per BLS data. The range runs from $42K at the entry level to $101K for experienced workers. Adjusted for local prices (RPP 98.63), that's roughly $63,601 in purchasing power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $1,573/month, about 36.1% of take-home, which is tight.
So what does $63K get you in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands?
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands’s Regional Price Parity (98.63). 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 paralegals and legal assistants
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What this looks like in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands
Paralegals and legal assistants pay in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands tracks closely to the national median, $63K locally vs. $63K nationwide, a 0% difference. The catch: housing math doesn't keep up. A 2-bedroom at the HUD median rents for $1,573/month, which is 36% of the median worker's take-home, past the 30% guideline most planners use. Cost of living (RPP 98.63) is near the national average, so spending patterns here track the typical American budget fairly closely. Use the affordability calculator above to model your specific situation.
Compared to nearby metros
Median pay for paralegals and legal assistants in metros near Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington | $63K | $61K |
| Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos | $64K | $65K |
| San Antonio-New Braunfels | $53K | $56K |
| McAllen-Edinburg-Mission | $47K | $55K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX
Entry-level paralegals and legal assistants (10th percentile) start around $42K. Mid-career wages sit at $63K. Top earners bring in $101K or more, a $59K spread from bottom to top.
Paralegals and Legal Assistants pay across states
Median income ranked highest to lowest, compared to the national figure
View Paralegals and Legal Assistants salary in all states
| State | Median salary | vs. national | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | $90K | +43% | 6,400 |
| Washington | $79K | +26% | 9,460 |
| Colorado | $78K | +24% | 5,620 |
| Massachusetts | $78K | +23% | 7,800 |
| California | $77K | +23% | 47,130 |
| Minnesota | $76K | +20% | 7,400 |
| New Jersey | $72K | +14% | 12,010 |
| Alaska | $69K | +9% | 570 |
| New York | $68K | +9% | 34,220 |
| Vermont | $67K | +7% | 660 |
| Maryland | $66K | +4% | 6,460 |
| Nevada | $65K | +3% | 3,620 |
| Virginia | $64K | +2% | 10,250 |
| Connecticut | $64K | +1% | 5,210 |
| Illinois | $64K | +1% | 14,130 |
| Pennsylvania | $63K | +1% | 14,670 |
| Nebraska | $63K | +1% | 1,630 |
| Utah | $63K | +1% | 3,250 |
| Delaware | $63K | +0% | 2,480 |
| Hawaii | $63K | -0% | 1,170 |
| Maine | $62K | -1% | 1,210 |
| Georgia | $62K | -1% | 14,160 |
| Texas | $62K | -1% | 29,540 |
| Michigan | $62K | -1% | 7,730 |
| New Hampshire | $62K | -1% | 1,430 |
| Arizona | $62K | -2% | 7,890 |
| Oregon | $61K | -2% | 4,870 |
| Missouri | $61K | -2% | 7,130 |
| Florida | $61K | -3% | 40,950 |
| Ohio | $60K | -4% | 9,270 |
| Louisiana | $60K | -4% | 4,890 |
| New Mexico | $60K | -5% | 1,740 |
| Kentucky | $60K | -5% | 3,540 |
| North Dakota | $59K | -6% | 730 |
| West Virginia | $59K | -6% | 1,660 |
| Tennessee | $59K | -6% | 6,080 |
| Wisconsin | $59K | -7% | 4,780 |
| South Dakota | $58K | -7% | 600 |
| North Carolina | $58K | -9% | 13,650 |
| Montana | $57K | -9% | 1,010 |
| Indiana | $57K | -9% | 5,910 |
| Rhode Island | $56K | -11% | 2,070 |
| Kansas | $55K | -13% | 2,210 |
| Iowa | $55K | -13% | 2,980 |
| South Carolina | $54K | -14% | 7,420 |
| Oklahoma | $53K | -15% | 3,110 |
| Idaho | $50K | -21% | 2,030 |
| Wyoming | $49K | -21% | 600 |
| Arkansas | $47K | -25% | 1,610 |
| Alabama | $47K | -25% | 5,700 |
| Mississippi | $46K | -27% | 2,270 |
Showing 1–10 of 51 (all 50 states + DC)
Track paralegals and legal assistants salary changes
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Frequently asked questions
Can a paralegals and legal assistant afford a 2BR apartment alone in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $63K, rent takes 36% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,573/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $1,300/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.
What’s the entry-level salary for paralegals and legal assistants in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new paralegals and legal assistants typically earn — is $42K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,530/month. At HUD’s $1,573/month FMR, rent would take 62% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.
Is paralegals and legal assistant a high-paying job in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands?
Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $63K locally vs. $63K nationally, a 0% difference.
How does Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands compare to the national average for paralegals and legal assistants?
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands pays $63K median vs. the U.S. average of $63K — that’s +0%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 98.63), the purchasing-power equivalent is $64K — still ahead of the national median.
How much do paralegals and legal assistants make in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?
The median is $62,730 a year, that works out to about $30 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $42,160, and experienced paralegals and legal assistants can clear $101,370. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $63K enough to live in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $4,370/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,573/month, which eats 36% 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 paralegals and legal assistants salary go in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands?
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands has a Regional Price Parity of 98.63 (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 paralegals and legal assistants salary is worth about $63,601 in national-average purchasing power.
Where do paralegals and legal assistants 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.