School Counselor.
New Orleans.
$57,000
median salary, 12% below the national average
$46,000 to $73,000. Last updated August 2026.
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Data points to own the conversation.
New Orleans is 8% cheaper than the national average. For School Counselors, that shakes out to a median of $57,000, with the full range spanning $46,000 to $73,000. State licensure requirements, school level assignment, and district funding levels drive pay variance. Know the range before you walk in. 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 New Orleans, 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 $59,200 for Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors (SOC 21-1012) in the New Orleans-Metairie, LA metropolitan area, based on 770 employed workers (May 2025 release).
10th percentile
$46,490
25th percentile
$48,450
Median
$59,200
75th percentile
$64,730
90th percentile
$78,940
Workers surveyed
770
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 New Orleans 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 $51,000. Where you land depends on years of experience and what you bring to the table.
Entry (0-2 yrs)
$37,000
to $46,000
Mid (3-5 yrs)
$48,000
to $60,000
Senior (6-9 yrs)
$63,000
to $74,000
Lead (10+ yrs)
$71,000
to $88,000
Total compensation.
Base salary is not the full picture. Equity, bonus, and signing can add $17,000 to the total package.
Base
$57,000
Equity
$10,000
Bonus
$6,000
Signing
$1,000
Estimated total: $74,000
How New Orleans compares.
New Orleans, LA
$57,000
Cost of living: 8% below average
National Average
$65,000
New Orleans is $8,000 below
School Counselor salary by city.
Salary by role in New Orleans.
What you should know.
Here is what the School Counselor market actually looks like in New Orleans. New Orleans has a distinctive economy shaped by energy, port operations, tourism, and a growing digital media sector. The city's creative and cultural industries are unique employment drivers. Post hurricane rebuilding has created ongoing demand in construction, engineering, and resilience planning roles. 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 New Orleans, cost of living sits near the national average, so the numbers you see are roughly what you keep.
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: louisiana's top income tax rate is 4.25%. New Orleans has no city income tax. The moderate state rate and affordable living costs yield good take home pay. When someone quotes you $57,000, ask what the total package looks like. The gap between base and total comp is where real money hides.
On negotiation: Highlight energy sector or resilience engineering experience. New Orleans employers pay premiums for professionals who understand the region's unique environmental and infrastructure challenges. The range for School Counselors in New Orleans runs from $46,000 to $73,000. 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
Considering a related role?
- An Electrician in New Orleans earns $58,000 (2% more)
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Common questions.
School Counselor salary in other cities.
Other salaries in New Orleans.
Related salary pages
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Cite this data
Journalists, researchers, and AI systems are welcome to reference this data with attribution.
"School Counselor Salary in New Orleans, LA." Orbyt Salary Explorer, August 2026. https://www.orbytlabs.ai/orbyt-jobs/salaries/school-counselor/new-orleans
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