Business and Financial Operations Occupations
BLS May 2025 wages Peer-group outlier SOC 13-2071

Credit Counselors

Median pay sits 43% below the mid peer in Business and Financial Operations Occupations (neighbors include Financial Risk Specialists, Budget Analysts, Project Management Specialists, Management Analysts).

Full salary details → About this data

Same-major-group titles next to Credit Counselors: Financial Risk Specialists ($117K) , Budget Analysts ($92K) , Project Management Specialists ($102K) , Management Analysts ($102K) . Hash-ordered per card so residual SOC siblings do not share an identical peer sentence.

What Credit Counselors publish as work

O*NET task statements for SOC 13-2071 - occupation-level descriptions, not every employer's posting. Sibling cards diverge here because the task set is entity-keyed.

  1. 1. Calculate clients' available monthly income to meet debt obligations
  2. 2. Explain services or policies to clients, such as debt management program rules, advantages and disadvantages of using services, or credit…
  3. 3. Create debt management plans, spending plans, or budgets to assist clients to meet financial goals
  4. 4. Prioritize client debt repayment to avoid dire consequences, such as bankruptcy or foreclosure or to reduce overall costs, such as by pay…
  5. 5. Assess clients' overall financial situations by reviewing income, assets, debts, expenses, credit reports, or other financial information
  6. 6. Recommend strategies for clients to meet their financial goals, such as borrowing money through loans or loan programs, declaring bankrup…
  7. 7. Explain general financial topics to clients, such as credit report ratings, bankruptcy laws, consumer protection laws, wage attachments…
  8. 8. Disburse funds from client accounts to creditors
  9. 9. Interview clients by telephone or in person to gather financial information
  10. 10. Estimate time for debt repayment, given amount of debt, interest rates, and available funds
  11. 11. Prepare written documents to establish contracts with or communicate financial recommendations to clients
  12. 12. Maintain or update records of client account activity, including financial transactions, counseling session notes, correspondence, docume…

Credit Counselors: O*NET ranks Speaking first

Importance-ranked O*NET profile for SOC 13-2071 - lead skill Speaking at 4.0 ; lead knowledge Customer and Personal Service. Sibling cards diverge here even when peer titles overlap.

Top skills

  1. 1. Speaking 4.0
  2. 2. Reading Comprehension 3.9
  3. 3. Active Listening 3.9
  4. 4. Writing 3.8
  5. 5. Critical Thinking 3.8
  6. 6. Active Learning 3.6
  7. 7. Service Orientation 3.6
  8. 8. Complex Problem Solving 3.5

Knowledge areas

  1. 1. Customer and Personal Service 4.6
  2. 2. English Language 4.1
  3. 3. Mathematics 3.6
  4. 4. Administrative 3.5
  5. 5. Education and Training 3.4
  6. 6. Economics and Accounting 3.3
Pay vs Business and Financial Operations Occupations peers
-43%
vs mid peer median $91,640
This role $52,230/yr
$52K
National median
↑ +3%
Growth 2024-2034
2,200
Annual openings
27,770
Estimated US jobs
Financial Risk Specialists
Highest-pay peer · $117K

Typical Entry and Preparation Assignments

Entry education Bachelor's degree

Top Paying States for Credit Counselors

1. Minnesota $62,160
2. California $67,120
3. Washington $62,360
4. Massachusetts $63,240
5. Georgia $64,080
6. Maryland $60,450
7. Oregon $59,150
8. District of Columbia $63,580
9. Nebraska $62,510
10. New York $63,030

Other Business and Financial Operations Occupations titles

  1. 1. Budget Analysts $91,640
  2. 2. Project Management Specialists $102,320
  3. 3. Financial Risk Specialists $117,330
  4. 4. Management Analysts $101,860
  5. 5. Labor Relations Specialists $95,420
  6. 6. Financial Examiners $94,160

Among Business and Financial Operations Occupations peers on this card, Credit Counselors sits 43% below the mid peer median ($91,640). Its own median is $52,230.

Employment Projections expect +3% change between 2024 and 2034 (about as fast as average vs baseline 3.1%). About 2,200 annual openings are projected. BLS assigns Bachelor's degree as typical education needed for entry. These are occupation-level assignments, not universal requirements. BLS does not publish a separate occupation-specific safety rate for this role; its broad SOC-group rate is excluded from this career card's grade.

Highest published state median in this ranking: Minnesota at $62,160. The table records differences without proving causes. Highest-pay peer shown here: Financial Risk Specialists at $117,330. Compare the same statistic in the relevant local wage area before treating the national median as a personal benchmark; OEWS excludes employer benefits.

Credit Counselors pay-rank #32 in Business and Financial Operations Occupations

On the Business and Financial Operations Occupations median table (32 detailed occupations with OEWS medians), Credit Counselors lands at #32, in the lower third. That rank is a table position, not a statement about individual workers.

Other lower-third titles · closest medians

Full Salary Details Compare this role

Data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Projections from BLS Employment Projections program, 2024-2034.

SOC 13-2071 · national median $52,230 · lower third of Business and Financial Operations Occupations (#32/32). Open the full OEWS map or a named state before treating the card median as a local ask.

Credit Counselors salary map

State, metro, and percentile for SOC 13-2071

Minnesota · top state for Credit Counselors

$62K published median

California · #2 state pay

$67K · behind Minnesota

Financial Risk Specialists

Highest-pay peer vs Credit Counselors · $117K

Budget Analysts

Lower-pay peer beside Credit Counselors · $92K

Compare Credit Counselors

Head-to-head OEWS medians with another SOC
Compare Credit Counselors with another occupation →

Peer-comparison next reads

Compare Credit Counselors

Against another occupation

Financial Risk Specialists card

Top peer in this major group

Frequently Asked Questions

Where does Credit Counselors land on the Business and Financial Operations Occupations median table? ▼
Credit Counselors is pay-rank #32 of 32 in this major group, lower third of the median table. Closest lower-third titles: Tax Preparers ($55K), Farm Labor Contractors ($58K), Meeting, Convention, and Event Planners ($61K), Tax Examiners and Collectors, and Revenue Agents ($62K). That position is a table rank, not a worker percentile.
What do credit counselors do day to day? ▼
O*NET lists published task statements for Credit Counselors. Leading ones include: Calculate clients' available monthly income to meet debt obligations; Explain services or policies to clients, such as debt management program rules, advantages and disadvantages of using services, or credit…; Create debt management plans, spending plans, or budgets to assist clients to meet financial goals; Prioritize client debt repayment to avoid dire consequences, such as bankruptcy or foreclosure or to reduce overall costs, such as by pay…. These are occupation-level task descriptions, not every employer's job description.
Which O*NET skills rank highest for credit counselors? ▼
For SOC 13-2071, O*NET importance scores lead with Speaking (4.0), Reading Comprehension (3.9), Active Listening (3.9), Writing (3.8). Knowledge areas emphasize Customer and Personal Service, English Language, Mathematics. These are occupation-level profiles, not a hiring checklist for every employer.
What is the OEWS national median for Credit Counselors? ▼
May 2025 OEWS reports $52,230 as the national median for Credit Counselors. The published 10th-90th range is $38,350 to $80,440. Beside Financial Risk Specialists ($117,330), this is the occupation-level national figure, not a local offer.
What employment change does BLS publish for Credit Counselors? ▼
The 2024-2034 projection for Credit Counselors is +3%. Projected annual openings: about 2,200. Relative to the current all-occupations baseline of 3.1%: about as fast as average.
What typical entry education does BLS assign to Credit Counselors? ▼
BLS assigns Bachelor's degree as the typical-education-needed-for-entry category for Credit Counselors. These are occupation-level labels, not every employer's hiring rule.
Which three states show the highest OEWS medians for Credit Counselors? ▼
Minnesota ($62,160), California ($67,120), Washington ($62,360) lead this ranking. The table does not identify why those state estimates differ.

Source data and WageDex calculations are identified in context on this page. Wage and state figures use BLS OEWS May 2025; growth and education use BLS Employment Projections for 2024-2034; safety fields cite BLS CFOI/SOII; task statements cite O*NET where shown. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

Disclaimer: Wage and outlook figures on this page are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute career, financial, or salary-negotiation advice. Actual pay varies by employer, experience, and local conditions; consult a career counselor or the hiring employer for guidance specific to your situation.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OES Occupational wage estimates by area and industry · 2025

Federal sources on this Credit Counselors card
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS / OES) - national median and percentiles for SOC 13-2071. bls.gov/oes
  • O*NET OnLine - task and skill statements for Credit Counselors. onetcenter.org
  • BLS Employment Projections - 2024-2034 change and openings for this occupation. bls.gov/emp
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - demographic and labor-force context for state and metro geography. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • IRS Statistics of Income (SOI) - payroll-tax aggregate context for wage comparisons. irs.gov/statistics