How much do librarians make?

Librarian salary 2026 · BLS occupation: Librarians and Media Collections Specialists (SOC 25-4022) · Updated October 28, 2026

Answer

Librarians in the US earned a median of $68,270 a year ($32.82 an hour) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The middle half earned $56,310 to $84,480.

Median annual pay: $68,270; Mean $72,840
Median hourly pay: $32.82; Mean $35.02
Typical range (10th–90th): $43.7K–$104K; $43,660 to $103,990
US jobs: 133,790; +2.6% projected, 2025–35

BLS OEWS, May 2025, released April 30, 2026. Wages include tips, commissions and production bonuses but not overtime premiums, shift differentials, other bonuses or benefits; self-employed workers are not included. Methodology

How to become a librarian: steps, years and cost · Best-paying state after cost of living: Washington

Librarian pay range

Annual wages, May 2025

10th percentile$43,660
25th percentile$56,310
Median$68,270
75th percentile$84,480
90th percentile$103,990

Half of all librarians earned more than $68,270 and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% made under $43,660; the top 10% made over $103,990. The middle 50%, from the 25th to the 75th percentile, ran from $56,310 to $84,480.

These percentiles describe everyone in the occupation at one time. They are not pay steps by years of experience: they mix new and senior workers, different states, employers and hours. Pay generally rises with experience, credentials and specialization, but BLS does not publish pay by experience.

Percentile	Annual	Hourly	Monthly
10th	$43,660	$20.99	$3,638
25th	$56,310	$27.07	$4,693
Median (50th)	$68,270	$32.82	$5,689
75th	$84,480	$40.62	$7,040
90th	$103,990	$50.00	$8,666
Mean (average)	$72,840	$35.02	$6,070

Librarian salary by state

Median annual pay; cost of living from BEA regional price parities 2024

Median annual pay for librarians by state. Darker tiles pay more.

Highest-paying states

1. Washington $100,030
2. District of Columbia $96,550
3. California $89,790
4. Maryland $88,570
5. Nevada $84,540

Lowest-paying states

51. West Virginia $42,980
50. Wyoming $46,530
49. South Dakota $51,210
48. Indiana $53,500
47. Utah $53,730

Best after cost of living: Washington. Its median of $100,030 is worth about $93,475 at national-average prices.


Alabama	$64,650	23	$72,785	18	$31.08	2,750	1.30
Alaska	$78,810	7	$76,994	9	$37.89	350	1.09
Arizona	$60,500	38	$60,093	45	$29.09	1,990	0.61
Arkansas	$56,800	45	$65,335	34	$27.31	1,490	1.15
California	$89,790	3	$81,096	5	$43.17	10,180	0.56
Colorado	$76,480	16	$74,215	14	$36.77	1,990	0.69
Connecticut	$79,210	6	$76,450	11	$38.08	2,550	1.50
Delaware	$77,700	12	$77,849	8	$37.35	370	0.77
District of Columbia	$96,550	2	$87,852	2	$46.42	960	1.36
Florida	$67,060	20	$64,846	36	$32.24	6,670	0.67
Georgia	$76,750	15	$79,705	6	$36.90	3,330	0.68
Hawaii	$68,270	19	$62,091	42	$32.82	300	0.48
Idaho	$54,130	46	$56,684	48	$26.03	650	0.76
Illinois	$62,700	29	$62,726	40	$30.14	5,390	0.88
Indiana	$53,500	48	$57,324	47	$25.72	1,920	0.60
Iowa	$58,440	42	$66,589	30	$28.09	1,770	1.14
Kansas	$61,900	34	$68,726	25	$29.76	1,620	1.13
Kentucky	$65,200	22	$72,317	19	$31.35	1,980	0.99
Louisiana	$60,650	36	$68,759	24	$29.16	2,130	1.10
Maine	$59,540	40	$61,350	43	$28.62	780	1.22
Maryland	$88,570	4	$84,385	4	$42.58	3,220	1.16
Massachusetts	$78,540	9	$74,265	13	$37.76	4,980	1.37
Michigan	$60,010	39	$62,369	41	$28.85	3,940	0.89
Minnesota	$77,650	13	$78,736	7	$37.33	2,220	0.75
Mississippi	$56,970	44	$65,518	32	$27.39	1,060	0.91
Missouri	$58,700	41	$64,635	37	$28.22	2,970	1.01
Montana	$63,870	25	$67,484	28	$30.71	640	1.24
Nebraska	$64,060	24	$71,096	21	$30.80	1,200	1.17
Nevada	$84,540	5	$84,558	3	$40.64	610	0.39
New Hampshire	$63,580	26	$61,038	44	$30.57	1,150	1.68
New Jersey	$78,380	10	$72,037	20	$37.69	4,100	0.96
New Mexico	$62,530	31	$67,811	26	$30.06	580	0.67
New York	$78,590	8	$72,822	17	$37.79	11,870	1.23
North Carolina	$61,420	35	$65,115	35	$29.53	4,010	0.81
North Dakota	$62,830	28	$70,628	23	$30.21	570	1.32
Ohio	$60,630	37	$65,352	33	$29.15	4,820	0.87
Oklahoma	$58,180	43	$66,232	31	$27.97	1,820	1.06
Oregon	$78,070	11	$75,531	12	$37.53	1,690	0.86
Pennsylvania	$62,880	27	$64,445	38	$30.23	5,050	0.83
Rhode Island	$75,860	17	$74,169	15	$36.47	780	1.55
South Carolina	$62,640	30	$66,817	29	$30.12	2,130	0.92
South Dakota	$51,210	49	$57,808	46	$24.62	490	1.08
Tennessee	$62,090	33	$67,585	27	$29.85	2,540	0.78
Texas	$71,860	18	$74,039	16	$34.55	9,150	0.65
Utah	$53,730	47	$54,347	49	$25.83	1,630	0.94
Vermont	$62,360	32	$63,660	39	$29.98	600	1.97
Virginia	$77,430	14	$76,585	10	$37.23	4,590	1.12
Washington	$100,030	1	$93,475	1	$48.09	2,750	0.77
West Virginia	$42,980	51	$48,024	51	$20.66	610	0.87
Wisconsin	$66,870	21	$71,066	22	$32.15	2,450	0.83
Wyoming	$46,530	50	$50,199	50	$22.37	440	1.57

BLS OEWS, May 2025, state estimates. Adjusted pay = median ÷ (state price level ÷ 100), using BEA regional price parities for 2024; it ignores taxes. Figures for states with few workers in the occupation have larger survey errors and can change sharply from one year to the next. “—” means BLS did not publish the figure. State names link to each state’s highest-paying jobs.

Best-paying metro areas for librarians

354 metro areas with published pay

Highest median pay
Metro area	Median	Adjusted	Jobs
Naples-Marco Island, FL	$106,550	$103,246	90
Kennewick-Richland, WA	$105,240	$105,157	90
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA	$103,240	$93,495	700
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA	$101,780	$91,584	1,590
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	$101,490	$87,784	1,940
Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard, WA	$100,240	$94,918	110
Merced, CA	$98,630	$100,361	50
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	$97,510	$85,862	3,270
Yakima, WA	$96,250	$100,738	80
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV	$95,480	$87,690	3,630

Most jobs
Metro area	Jobs	Median	Adjusted
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ	10,690	$81,670	$72,555
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN	3,740	$66,250	$63,951
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH	3,660	$79,450	$73,384
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV	3,630	$95,480	$87,690
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	3,270	$97,510	$85,862
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX	2,550	$74,340	$72,112
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD	2,430	$77,330	$75,404
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	1,940	$101,490	$87,784
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX	1,880	$75,280	$76,326
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA	1,810	$78,460	$78,415

BLS OEWS, May 2025, metropolitan statistical areas; adjusted with BEA metro price parities (2024).

What moves librarian pay: employers and settings

Employer type matters most. Federal librarians, a small group of about 1,100, have the highest median at $108,160. Librarians in elementary and secondary schools earn a median of $74,130. That is close to librarians in colleges and universities at $74,500 and junior colleges at $74,520. Public library work pays less: local government librarians have a median of $62,860. Libraries counted under information services report $60,360. State government librarians earn a median of $71,210 and private employers overall $64,250.

Location is the other big factor. Washington has the highest state median at $100,030, followed by the District of Columbia at $96,550, California at $89,790, Maryland at $88,570, and Nevada at $84,540. West Virginia is lowest at $42,980. After adjusting for living costs, Washington still leads at $93,475 adjusted.

The middle half of librarians earn between $56,310, the 25th percentile, and $84,480, the 75th, a spread driven by setting, location and responsibilities such as managing a branch or system. That range is not a pay ladder by years of service.

Where librarians work
Industry	Share of jobs	Median pay
Elementary and Secondary Schools	37%	$74,130
Local Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals	33.5%	$62,860
Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools	14.3%	$74,500
Web Search Portals, Libraries, Archives, and Other Information Services	5.2%	$60,360
Junior Colleges	3.2%	$74,520
State Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals	1.6%	$69,990

Private employers and government
Employer type	Jobs	Median pay
Private employers	25,860	$64,250
Federal government (incl. Postal Service)	1,100	$108,160
State government (incl. schools and hospitals)	13,740	$71,210
Local government (incl. schools and hospitals)	93,090	$68,420

BLS OEWS, May 2025, national industry-specific and ownership estimates (4-digit NAICS).

Librarian pay over time

Median annual pay, 2019–2025

$68.3K $59.5K

2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025

Nominal median (dollars of each year)In May 2025 dollars (adjusted with CPI-U)

The median rose from $59,500 in 2019 to $68,270 in 2025, up 15% in nominal dollars. After inflation, the 2019 median is worth $74,689 in May 2025 dollars, so real pay fell 9% over the period.

The series starts in 2019 because BLS changed how it defines or publishes this occupation before then, so earlier figures are not comparable.

BLS OEWS, May 2025 and earlier May releases; inflation from the CPI-U, US city average, May of each year.

What librarians do

A librarian helps people find, judge and use information, and runs the collections and services that make that possible. In a public library that means answering reference questions, helping someone file an online job application, planning story times and teen programs, and choosing which books, databases and e-books to buy. School librarians (often called library media specialists) teach students research skills and work with teachers on assignments. Academic librarians support college students and faculty with research databases, citations and data. Special librarians work in law firms, hospitals, corporations, museums and government agencies.

Behind the desk, librarians catalog new materials, manage budgets and vendor contracts, supervise library assistants and technicians, and keep catalogs and websites working. Most work for local governments and school districts. Public and college librarians often work some evenings and weekends; school librarians usually follow the school calendar.

A typical day

Answer questions at the reference desk, by chat and by email, and track down hard-to-find sources
Teach classes on research, database searching and basic computer skills
Select and order books, e-books, databases and media within a set budget
Catalog and classify new materials so patrons can find them
Plan and run programs such as story times, book clubs and job-search workshops
Supervise library assistants, technicians and volunteers
Arrange interlibrary loans and negotiate database and vendor contracts

Also called: librarians, catalog librarian, cataloger, library media specialist, reference and instruction librarian, reference librarian, research librarian, school librarian.

How to become a librarian

Full guide

To become a librarian, you earn a bachelor's degree in any subject, then a master's in library and information science from an ALA-accredited program, which takes 1 to 2 years. School librarians usually also need a state teaching license with a library media endorsement, which in some states means passing the Praxis School Librarian test.

Typical time: 6 years; Fastest: About 5 years after high school
Minimum education: Master's degree from an ALA-accredited library and information studies program (MLS, MLIS or equivalent)
License: Public school librarians typically need a state teaching license or school library certification (rules vary by state); some states also certify public librarians; academic and special librarians are not licensed
Typical training cost: $25.6K–$32.7K; See the guide for what it includes

Read the step-by-step guide to becoming a librarian: each step with its time and cost, education options, exams, licensing and advancement.

Is it worth it? Training cost against pay

Compare careers

Training time: 6 years; Typical path in our guide
Training cost: $25.6K–$32.7K; Tuition and exam fees, before aid
Median pay: $68,270; $17,290 above the all-jobs median ($50,980)
Cost vs. one year's pay: 38–48%; Training cost as a share of a year at the median

Once qualified, the pay difference over the typical US job at the median ($17,290 a year before tax) would repay the training cost in about 1.5–1.9 years after training ends (6 years in our guide). This is a rough guide: it ignores taxes, financial aid, interest, earnings given up while training and how pay changes over a career. How we calculate ROI.

Job outlook for librarians

BLS Employment Projections 2025–35

Projected growth: +2.6%; All occupations +3.5%
Jobs in 2025: 142,300; 145,900 projected for 2035
Openings each year: 12,600; New jobs plus replacements
Self-employed: —; Not in the pay figures above

BLS projects librarian and media collections specialist jobs to grow 2.6% from 2025 to 2035, from 142,300 to 145,900, close to the 3.5% for all occupations. That works out to about 12,600 openings a year, most of them created when librarians retire or change careers. BLS expects libraries to keep offering children's programs, events and job-search help, which keeps librarians in demand. Because most librarians work for local governments and school districts, the number of openings in a given area depends heavily on public budgets.

Related careers and their pay

IT Support Specialist$61,860
Business Analyst$101,860
Library Technicians$44,580
Library Assistants, Clerical$36,910
Archivists$64,550

Related occupations from O*NET 31.0; median annual pay from BLS OEWS, May 2025.

Librarian salary FAQ

How much do librarians make an hour?

The median hourly wage for librarians was $32.82 in May 2025. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $20.99 an hour and the highest-paid 10% more than $50.00. Hourly figures are BLS estimates for all workers in the occupation, full-time and part-time.

Which state pays librarians the most?

Washington has the highest median pay for librarians, $100,030 a year, followed by District of Columbia ($96,550) and California ($89,790). After adjusting for each state's price level, Washington comes out ahead at about $93,475 in national-average dollars.

Do librarians make six figures?

Some do: based on the BLS percentiles, between 10% and 25% of librarians earn more than $100,000 a year. The median is $68,270, and the top 10% earn more than $103,990. Pay generally rises with experience, specialization and location.

Do librarians need a master's degree?

For most professional librarian jobs, yes. ALA says the majority of employers require a master's from an ALA-accredited library and information studies program (MLS, MLIS or similar). School librarians are the main exception: depending on the state, a teaching license plus a school library endorsement may be enough. Library assistant and technician jobs do not need the master's but pay less. See our teacher page for the teaching license route.

What is the difference between a librarian and a library assistant?

Librarians hold professional roles: they answer in-depth research questions, choose materials, plan programs, teach and supervise staff, and most need a master's degree. Library assistants and technicians check items in and out, shelve, process new materials and handle routine questions, usually with a high school diploma or postsecondary certificate. BLS counts assistants and technicians in separate occupations, so they are not part of the pay figures on this page.

Do librarians work weekends?

Many do. Public libraries are open evenings and Saturdays, often Sundays too, and college libraries keep long hours during the semester, so librarians in those settings rotate through night and weekend shifts. School librarians usually work regular school hours and have summers off, which is one reason the school route is popular. Corporate, law and government librarians mostly work standard business hours.

Sources

Data updated October 28, 2026 · Text checked against its sources October 28, 2026

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 estimates, released April 30, 2026, SOC 25-4022
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025–2035, released September 2026
O*NET 31.0 Database (25-4022.00), U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under CC BY 4.0; tasks rewritten by Careers and Salaries
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities by state and metro area, 2024
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), US city average, May values
U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard field-of-study and institution data, most recent cohorts, released 2026-10-15
Librarians and Library Media Specialists, Occupational Outlook Handbook, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · checked October 28, 2026
Educational Requirements for Becoming a Librarian, American Library Association · checked October 28, 2026
MLIS Fees; Master of Library and Information Science, San José State University School of Information · checked October 28, 2026
School Librarian (5312), ETS Praxis · checked October 28, 2026
ALA-Accredited LIS Programs, American Library Association · checked October 28, 2026
How to Choose a Library Science Program, American Library Association · checked October 28, 2026
License Finder, CareerOneStop, U.S. Department of Labor · checked October 28, 2026
Accreditation Frequently Asked Questions, American Library Association · checked October 28, 2026
Standards for Accreditation of Master's Programs in Library and Information Studies (2019), American Library Association Committee on Accreditation · checked October 28, 2026

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