Human Resources Specialists pay in the United States

Goes furthest in District of Columbia
·Business and Financial·
912k jobs
Biggest filer Amazon.com Services LLC31 certified filings on public record
$36.51/hr median
912,430 employed
+6% to 2035
68% AI exposure
Bachelor's degree
54 states reported
and more...

What this work is

Recruit, screen, interview, or place individuals within an organization. May perform other activities in multiple human resources areas.

Where the money actually goes furthest

District of Columbia pays the most both before and after cost of living — $110,970, worth $100,973 once local prices are counted.

Pay by state

54 states and territories publish a median for this occupation. Switch the ranking to see how much the order changes.

Adjusted for what things cost in that state.

Median pay for Human Resources Specialists by state, ranked by what it is worth locally
StateHourlyAnnualWorth locallyAfter state taxJobs
District of Columbia$53.35/hr$110,970$100,973$104,3786,910
North Dakota$36.36/hr$75,630$85,015$75,3851,710
Virginia$39.47/hr$82,090$81,196$78,11628,540
Massachusetts$41.17/hr$85,630$80,966$81,34827,300
Connecticut$39.85/hr$82,890$80,001$79,0819,010
Maryland$40.34/hr$83,910$79,944$80,10515,530
Minnesota$37.87/hr$78,760$79,862$74,86717,240
Vermont$37.40/hr$77,800$79,420$74,6021,270
Washington$40.65/hr$84,550$79,011$84,55022,770
Kansas$34.07/hr$70,870$78,683$67,2047,560
Colorado$38.86/hr$80,840$78,447$78,02419,450
New York$40.57/hr$84,380$78,187$80,34454,610
Delaware$37.36/hr$77,700$77,847$73,8022,720
North Carolina$35.13/hr$73,070$77,462$70,50631,140
Illinois$36.93/hr$76,820$76,850$73,15435,430
Kentucky$33.18/hr$69,010$76,541$66,37610,900
South Dakota$32.50/hr$67,590$76,295$67,5901,340
Iowa$32.07/hr$66,710$76,014$64,7297,930
Rhode Island$37.29/hr$77,560$75,831$75,0473,320
Ohio$33.74/hr$70,180$75,649$68,96633,500
Oregon$37.53/hr$78,060$75,522$71,77010,620
California$40.14/hr$83,500$75,415$79,707104,000
Alaska$37.02/hr$76,990$75,214$76,9901,420
Wisconsin$33.91/hr$70,540$74,962$67,89917,360
West Virginia$32.14/hr$66,860$74,703$64,4753,130
New Jersey$38.80/hr$80,690$74,156$77,67621,690
Maine$34.44/hr$71,630$73,807$68,0353,020
New Mexico$32.72/hr$68,050$73,798$65,8274,090
Missouri$32.21/hr$66,990$73,761$64,69817,650
Tennessee$32.39/hr$67,370$73,331$67,37021,460
Georgia$33.93/hr$70,570$73,289$67,53032,110
Alabama$31.22/hr$64,940$73,114$61,88311,080
Utah$34.49/hr$71,750$72,577$68,4859,900
Michigan$33.42/hr$69,520$72,251$66,80325,520
Wyoming$32.20/hr$66,970$72,251$66,9701,000
Pennsylvania$33.87/hr$70,450$72,204$68,28736,960
Nevada$34.43/hr$71,610$71,624$71,6106,520
Texas$33.14/hr$68,920$71,007$68,92084,930
Arizona$34.32/hr$71,390$70,907$69,97020,230
Indiana$31.54/hr$65,600$70,288$63,66217,110
Oklahoma$29.63/hr$61,630$70,161$59,1929,370
South Carolina$31.43/hr$65,370$69,728$62,89913,720
Louisiana$29.47/hr$61,300$69,493$59,8367,240
Mississippi$28.99/hr$60,300$69,350$57,7484,850
Nebraska$29.77/hr$61,930$68,734$59,6197,220
Idaho$31.25/hr$64,990$68,059$62,3193,930
New Hampshire$34.06/hr$70,840$68,004$70,8404,270
Montana$30.67/hr$63,790$67,395$61,1402,340
Hawaii$35.46/hr$73,750$67,075$69,5882,570
Florida$31.93/hr$66,410$64,220$66,41062,730
Arkansas$26.45/hr$55,010$63,273$53,0416,230
Virgin Islands$28.95/hr$60,210Not publishedNot published120
Guam$28.80/hr$59,900Not publishedNot published380
Puerto Rico$19.66/hr$40,900Not publishedNot published4,270

National median for comparison: $75,940. “Worth locally” divides pay by the area’s price level, so a figure above the headline means money goes further there than the US average.

$75,940/year

$36.51/hr an hour, national median

Across the states

$32,680$148,700

25th to 75th percentile, lowest and highest state

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How much of this job could software do?

68%High exposure
Hands, places, peopleLanguage and information

The two methods broadly agree.

Method 1 — ability mix56%

Cognitive share of O*NET ability importance (element families 1.A.1–1.A.4), O*NET 31.0

Method 2 — task content80%

Importance-weighted share of O*NET tasks classed as language or information work, O*NET 31.0

What this does and does not mean

Exposure means a model could plausibly do a meaningful share of the tasks in this job. It is not a forecast that the job disappears, and it says nothing about whether any employer will actually automate it.

For what the labour market expects, the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects employment in this occupation to change by +6% between 2025 and 2035, with about 73,700 openings a year.

Which parts are exposed

  • Interpret and explain human resources policies, procedures, laws, standards, or regulations.
  • Hire employees and process hiring-related paperwork.
  • Administer employee benefit plans.
  • Maintain current knowledge of Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) and affirmative action guidelines and laws, such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
  • Schedule or administer skill, intelligence, psychological, or drug tests for current or prospective employees.
  • Prepare or maintain employment records related to events, such as hiring, termination, leaves, transfers, or promotions, using human resources management system software.

Amber marks language and information work. Green marks tasks that need a person in a place.

What named employers said they would pay

From certified US Department of Labor visa filings. These are wages employers committed to for sponsored roles — not company-wide averages, and not necessarily what everyone in the job earns. Cells with fewer than three filings are withheld so no individual’s pay is identifiable.

EmployerRole as filedState25thMedian75thFilings
Amazon.com Services LLCSourcing Recruiter IIWA$98,758$116,938$129,80031
TT Commerce & Global Services LLCUniversity RecruiterCA$116,085$134,219$150,37514
Amazon.com Services LLCHRBP III(CORP)CA$122,750$180,000$181,70010
BYTEDANCE INC.Destination Services Specialist, AMSCA$114,010$119,750$145,1256
Amazon.com Services LLCHR Generalist ITX$76,125$126,100$144,0506
Intellipro Group IncSr. Human Resources AnalystCA$88,150$90,209$98,9875
Amazon.com Services LLCSourcing Recruiter IINY$151,400$151,400$151,4005
Amazon.com Services LLCHRBP III (Corp)VA$142,800$142,800$142,8005
Microsoft CorporationTalent ManagementWA$132,500$162,228$162,2285
Ernst & Young U.S. LLPHuman Resources Specialists - KBGFJG178366-11IL$139,776$154,509$169,2434
V-Soft Consulting Group, INCSenior Technical RecruiterKY$69,000$72,000$75,2504
Revotyx LLCSenior Technical RecruiterNC$65,000$65,000$77,0004
Citibank, N.A.Human Resources AnalystNY$90,000$110,000$133,7504
Safehold, Inc.Vice President, Human Resources Business PartnerNY$124,000$124,000$124,0004
TT Commerce & Global Services LLCHuman Resources PartnerWA$124,371$144,372$150,2754

Where human resources specialists move next

Occupations that share most of this one’s skills, with the pay difference and the change in AI exposure.

Location

San Diego, CA, United States of America (SAN-San Diego Intl.)

Photograph by Atlantic Ambience.