School Counselor.
Little Rock.
$51,000
median salary, 22% below the national average
$41,000 to $65,000. Last updated August 2026.
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Data points to own the conversation.
A School Counselor in Little Rock earns a median of $51,000 in 2026. That is 22% below the national average. The range runs from $41,000 to $65,000, and where you land depends on your experience, your skills, and how well you negotiate. State licensure requirements, school level assignment, and district funding levels drive pay variance. These figures are Orbyt estimates, computed rather than measured, and must not be cited as Bureau of Labor Statistics figures; the published BLS wage for the occupation this role maps to is shown separately on this page.
Salary range.
Where do you fall?
Orbyt estimate for School Counselor in Little Rock, modelled from national occupation wages adjusted for local cost of living. The published government benchmark for this occupation is below.
Government benchmark for this occupation
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a median annual wage of $61,660 for Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors (SOC 21-1012) in the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR metropolitan area, based on 520 employed workers (May 2025 release).
10th percentile
$40,420
25th percentile
$49,910
Median
$61,660
75th percentile
$73,060
90th percentile
$79,530
Workers surveyed
520
BLS publishes wages by occupation code, not by job title, so this figure covers every role mapped to Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors (SOC 21-1012) rather than School Counselor specifically. The Little Rock range at the top of this page is Orbyt’s role-level estimate, which is a different thing and is labelled as such.
View the BLS source for SOC 21-1012Salary by experience.
The gap between entry and lead level is typically $46,000. Where you land depends on years of experience and what you bring to the table.
Entry (0-2 yrs)
$33,000
to $41,000
Mid (3-5 yrs)
$43,000
to $54,000
Senior (6-9 yrs)
$56,000
to $66,000
Lead (10+ yrs)
$64,000
to $79,000
Total compensation.
Base salary is not the full picture. Equity, bonus, and signing can add $15,000 to the total package.
Base
$51,000
Equity
$9,000
Bonus
$5,000
Signing
$1,000
Estimated total: $66,000
How Little Rock compares.
Little Rock, AR
$51,000
Cost of living: 18% below average
National Average
$65,000
Little Rock is $14,000 below
School Counselor salary by city.
Salary by role in Little Rock.
What you should know.
The School Counselor landscape in Little Rock is not what most salary sites will tell you. Little Rock's economy is driven by Walmart's nearby headquarters ecosystem, state government, healthcare, and logistics. The metro's extremely low cost of living means even moderate salaries deliver strong purchasing power. Tech jobs are growing as companies seek affordable alternatives to major metros. State licensure requirements, school level assignment, and district funding levels drive pay variance. Counselors in well-funded suburban districts or states with mandated counselor-to-student ratios earn significantly more. Advanced certifications in college counseling or trauma-informed care add salary value.
Entry-level School Counselors earn $46,000 to $52,000. Experienced counselors with five to ten years reach $58,000 to $70,000. Lead Counselors and Department Heads earn $72,000 to $85,000, while Directors of School Counseling and Student Services command $88,000 to $110,000. In Little Rock, your dollars stretch further. Cost of living runs 18% below the national average, which means even a median salary buys a stronger lifestyle.
Base salary is not the full picture. School counselors typically work 10 to 11 months, with optional summer employment adding $3,000 to $6,000. Pension benefits and comprehensive health insurance add $15,000 to $25,000 in effective value. Some districts offer tuition reimbursement for doctoral studies. And on the tax side: arkansas has a top income tax rate of 4.4%. Little Rock has no city income tax. The combination of low taxes and very affordable housing creates one of the best net pay environments in the country. When someone quotes you $51,000, ask what the total package looks like. The gap between base and total comp is where real money hides.
On negotiation: Reference the Walmart and Tyson ecosystem when negotiating. Northwest Arkansas and Little Rock employers benchmark against national corporate pay scales. The range for School Counselors in Little Rock runs from $41,000 to $65,000. That is not a narrow window. Where you land inside it depends almost entirely on whether you negotiate and how well you prepare.
Sources: BLS OES, H-1B LCA (DOL). COL: BEA Regional Price Parities (2025). Data verified by Justin Bartak, Founder & Chief AI Officer. Last verified July 1, 2026. Full methodology
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Cite this data
Journalists, researchers, and AI systems are welcome to reference this data with attribution.
"School Counselor Salary in Little Rock, AR." Orbyt Salary Explorer, August 2026. https://www.orbytlabs.ai/orbyt-jobs/salaries/school-counselor/little-rock
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