Tennessee · BLS May 2025

Social and Human Service Assistant Salary in Tennessee

Also called case worker. SOC 21-1093.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics counted 4,380 social and human service assistants working in Tennessee. Here is what they are paid, what the median leaves after federal and FICA tax, and what that is worth against local prices.

Median pay · Tennessee

$40,310A year, or $19.38 an hour.
Take-home a month$2,881After federal and FICA tax at 14.2%
Worth at national prices$43,877Prices here sit at 91.9 against 100
Against the nation12.2% belowNational median $45,930
What social and human service assistants earn in Tennessee, May 2025
PercentileAnnualHourly
10th percentileEntry and lowest-paid$30,280$14.56
25th percentile$35,680$17.15
MedianHalf earn more, half less$40,310$19.38
75th percentile$46,150$22.19
90th percentileMost experienced and senior$52,190$25.09
MeanThe average, pulled up by the top$41,300$19.86
How we got this
  1. Median wage in TennesseeBLS OEWS May 2025. Half of social and human service assistants earned more than this, half less.$40,310
  2. Median hourly wagePublished separately by BLS, not divided out of the annual figure.$19.38
  3. Take-home after federal and FICA tax$2,881 a month at an effective rate of 14.2%.$34,569 a year
  4. Worth at national average pricesPrices in Tennessee sit at 91.9 against a national 100 (BEA, 2024).$43,877
  5. Against the national medianThe national median is $45,930.12.2% below
  6. Jobs countedA concentration of 0.47 against the nation's 1.00.4,380
What we assumed
  • Wages are BLS OEWS survey estimates for May 2025, not job postings or offers.
  • OEWS surveys wage and salary workers. The self-employed and business owners are outside it.
  • Take-home assumes one 2026 filer, filing single, taking the standard deduction, with no dependents, pre-tax retirement contributions or local income tax.
  • Regional price parities compare price levels between places in one year. They are not inflation, and they do not adjust for what a household actually buys.
Technical details

Method occupation-wage-v1Data bls-oews-2025-05-v1, us-tax-2026-v1, bea-rpp-2024-v1, census-acs5-2024-v1

What lands in the bank

A $40,310 salary in Tennessee, for one single filer taking the standard deduction in 2026.

  • Federal income tax. $2,657 a year.
  • State income tax. Tennessee levies no state income tax on wages.
  • Social Security and Medicare. $3,084 a year.
  • Left over. $34,569 a year, $2,881 a month, an effective rate of 14.2%.

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What $40,310 is worth in Tennessee

Prices in Tennessee sit at 91.9 against a national average of 100, so $40,310 earned here buys what $43,877 buys at national average prices.

  • Rents. 79.1 against 100, the component that moves most between states.
  • Against local households. The median household in Tennessee takes in $69,595, so this occupation's median is 0.58 times that, on one income.
  • How common the job is here. 53% less concentrated in Tennessee than in the country as a whole.

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Common questions

Social and Human Service Assistant pay in Tennessee, answered

How much does a social and human service assistant make in Tennessee?

The median wage for social and human service assistants in Tennessee is $40,310 a year, or $19.38 an hour.

Half earn more than that and half earn less. The figure comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics occupational wage survey for May 2025.

What is the take-home pay for a social and human service assistant in Tennessee?

On the median wage of $40,310, one filer taking the standard deduction keeps about $34,569 a year, or roughly $2,881 a month.

That is after federal and FICA tax, an effective rate of 14.2%.

Tennessee levies no state income tax on wages, so nothing is withheld for it.

Do social and human service assistants earn more in Tennessee than in the rest of the country?

No. The median in Tennessee is 12.2% below the national median of $45,930.

Nominal pay is only half the comparison: prices in Tennessee sit at 91.9 against a national 100, so the gap in what the money buys is different from the gap in the salary.

Is $40,310 a good salary in Tennessee?

It is 0.58 times the median household income of $69,595. A household often has more than one earner, so a single salary at this level goes further than the ratio alone suggests.

Prices in Tennessee run at 91.9 against a national average of 100, with rents at 79.1, so $40,310 here buys about what $43,877 buys at national average prices.

What do the highest-paid social and human service assistants earn in Tennessee?

The top tenth earn $52,190 a year or more, against $30,280 at the bottom tenth.

Experience, specialism, employer and the part of Tennessee someone works in all move a wage inside that range; the survey reports the spread, not the reason for it.

How many social and human service assistants are there in Tennessee?

The survey counted 4,380 of these jobs in Tennessee for May 2025.

That makes the occupation 53% less concentrated here than in the country as a whole. It counts wage and salary jobs, so the self-employed are outside it.

Sources

Where this data comes from