Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors Salary

Yes — at the median salary of $47K, rent takes 19.9% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $663/month. That stays under the 30% guideline most financial planners use.

The 10th-percentile wage — what new substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors typically earn — is $30K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $1,810/month. At HUD’s $663/month FMR, rent would take 37% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.

Local pay runs 20% below the national median — $47K here vs. $59K nationally.

San Juan-Bayamon-Caguas pays $47K median vs. the U.S. average of $59K — that’s -20%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 100), the purchasing-power equivalent is $47K — below the national median.

The median is $47,230 a year, that works out to about $23 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $30,160, and experienced substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors can clear $47,950. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.

On that salary, you'd take home roughly $3,332/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $663/month, which eats 19.9% of your paycheck. That's under the 30% guideline most financial planners use, so the numbers work.

San Juan-Bayamon-Caguas 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 $47,230 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.