Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors Salary

It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $49K, rent takes 36.9% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,260/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $1,000/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.

The 10th-percentile wage — what new substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors typically earn — is $34K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,048/month.

Local pay runs 18% below the national median — $49K here vs. $59K nationally.

East Tennessee nonmetropolitan area pays $49K median vs. the U.S. average of $59K — that’s -18%.

The median is $48,510 a year, that works out to about $23 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $34,140, and experienced substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors can clear $84,010. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.

On that salary, you'd take home roughly $3,418/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,260/month, which eats 36.9% 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.

East Tennessee nonmetropolitan area has a Regional Price Parity of 100 (100 is the national average). That's right at the national average. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors salary is worth about $48,510 in national-average purchasing power.

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.