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Role hub · Health Education Specialists

Health Educator: what the job is, what it pays, and how to get hired.

The work, the skills that matter, the tools in demand and the pay range, from U.S. government data, plus every TryHired page for the role.

Maid DizdarevicCareer coach · 8x LinkedIn Top Voice
Updated Nov 2, 2026 · Data: BLS OEWS May 2025 · O*NET 31.0
Pay ladder · select a percentile
Median percentile pay

Half of health educators earn more than this and half earn less.

Annual
$64,070
Hourly
$30.80
Source
BLS May 2025
Quick answer

Health Educators provide and manage health education programs that help individuals, families, and their communities maximize and maintain healthy lifestyles. The median pay is $64,070 a year ($30.80 an hour) (BLS, May 2025). The most commonly reported education requirement is an associate's degree (62% of workers surveyed by O*NET).

Median pay
$64,070
BLS May 2025
Employed in the U.S.
65,690
BLS May 2025
Preparation
Job Zone 4 of 5
considerable preparation
Most common education
Associate's Degree or other 2-year degree
62% of workers

Data Government data groups this job as Health Education Specialists (O*NET-SOC 21-1091.00). Figures on this page are for that occupation.

Key facts

Health Educators at a glance

  • Health education specialists in the United States earned a median annual wage of $64,070 in May 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

    Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025

  • In its 2025–35 employment projections, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics lists a bachelor's degree as the typical entry-level education for health education specialists in the United States.

    Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35

  • BLS projects employment of health education specialists in the United States to grow 5.6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 6,900 openings a year on average, including replacement openings.

    Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35

  • BLS estimated that 65,690 people were employed as health education specialists in the United States in May 2025, not counting the self-employed.

    Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025

Explore the role

Every page for Health Educators

SalaryHealth Educator salary

Pay by percentile, state and metro, with a negotiation script.

Open →How to becomeHealth Educator how to become

Education, training and the skills to build first.

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The work

What health educators do day to day

Data Core tasks rated most important by workers in the role (O*NET).

  1. Prepare and distribute health education materials, such as reports, bulletins, and visual aids, to address smoking, vaccines, and other public health concerns.
  2. Develop and maintain cooperative working relationships with agencies and organizations interested in public health care.
  3. Maintain databases, mailing lists, telephone networks, and other information to facilitate the functioning of health education programs.
  4. Document activities and record information, such as the numbers of applications completed, presentations conducted, and persons assisted.
  5. Develop and present health education and promotion programs, such as training workshops, conferences, and school or community presentations.
  6. Collaborate with health specialists and civic groups to determine community health needs and the availability of services and to develop goals for meeting needs.
  7. Develop, conduct, or coordinate health needs assessments and other public health surveys.
  8. Supervise professional and technical staff in implementing health programs, objectives, and goals.
Where this career works

Industries that employ it

Data Share of all health educator jobs in each industry, 2025 (BLS Employment Matrix).

  1. Government, excluding state and local education and hospitals23.9% of all jobs in this occupation · +1.2% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $81,010
  2. Ambulatory healthcare services18.5% of all jobs in this occupation · +12.2% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $67,010
  3. Hospitals; state, local, and private16.1% of all jobs in this occupation · +3.8% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $86,490
  4. Educational services; state, local, and private13.7% of all jobs in this occupation · +3.1% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $65,900
  5. Social assistance7.5% of all jobs in this occupation · +7.4% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $54,550
  6. Insurance carriers and related activities5.4% of all jobs in this occupation · +5.6% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $63,100

Sources: BLS 2025–35 National Employment Matrix (share of the occupation's jobs, projected change) and BLS OEWS May 2025 industry estimates (mean wage). Different industry estimates are not a pay forecast for any person.

Skills that matter

Ranked by importance to the job

Data O*NET importance ratings. The first three are core.

Active ListeningcoreWritingcoreSpeakingcoreLearning StrategiesSocial PerceptivenessActive LearningReading ComprehensionCritical ThinkingCoordination

Knowledge areas: Customer and Personal Service, Education and Training, English Language, Administrative, Psychology, Public Safety and Security.

Tools and technology

Software health educators use

Data Examples reported for the role; employer demand flags from O*NET.

  • Adobe PhotoshopGraphics or photo imaging softwareHot technology
  • FacebookWeb page creation and editing softwareHot technology
  • MEDITECH softwareMedical softwareHot technology
  • Microsoft VisioProcess mapping and design softwareHot technology
  • Blogging softwareWeb page creation and editing software
  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Epi InfoAnalytical or scientific software
  • EdpuzzleMulti-media educational software
  • JamBoardGraphics or photo imaging software
  • LogMeIn GoToWebinarNetwork conferencing software
  • Microsoft PublisherDesktop publishing software
  • PadletComputer based training software
  • Wiki softwareWeb page creation and editing software

Also called: Certified Diabetes Educator, Clinical Instructor, Community Health Consultant, Education Coordinator, Health Education Coordinator, Health Education Specialist.

Method

How this page is built

Tasks, skills, tools, education and related roles come from O*NET 31.0. Pay and employment come from the BLS OEWS May 2025 national estimates. The skill-match score is our calculation: Skill match is the cosine similarity of the two occupations' skill profiles: for each of 35 O*NET skills (10 essential, 25 transferable) we multiply importance by level and subtract the average across all occupations, then compare the direction of the two profiles. 100 means identical shape; 0 means unrelated or opposite (negative values are shown as 0). Only occupations that O*NET itself lists as related are compared.

What this page can't tell you
  • How a specific employer defines the job.
  • Pay for self-employed workers (OEWS covers employees).
  • Your own chances: data describes the occupation, not you.
Sources
  1. O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. TryHired selected, ranked and combined the data; O*NET is not responsible for these pages.
  2. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 estimates (public domain).

How TryHired builds this data: sources, methods and downloads. Spotted an error? Report a correction.