Clinical Psychologist Salary in Tennessee: What Clinical and Counseling Psychologists Earn
Clinical and counseling psychologists in Tennessee had a median annual wage of $76,820 in May 2025, 24% below the national median of $100,580.
The entire distribution sits below national, and the gap widens toward the top: the 10th percentile is 8% below its national counterpart, while the 90th percentile is 30% below.
Tennessee ranks 43rd of 48 jurisdictions by median, with an estimated 1,180 psychologists employed in the occupation.
Clinical & counseling psychologists · SOC 19-3033
$76,820/yr
−24% vs. national $100,580
$36.93/hr median
Which psychologists this covers
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 state and national estimates — Tennessee, SOCs 19-3033.
Retrieved 2026-09-24 from the BLS Public Data API.
How to read these figures
Tennessee vs. the national figure
Each occupation is compared with its own national median from the same May 2025 release, and the national clinical psychologist salary page gives the national distribution.
Ranks count only the jurisdictions (states plus DC) where BLS publishes that occupation’s figure.
Differences are whole percentages of the national figure, rounded half away from zero, computed from the figures shown.
By estimated employment, Tennessee ranks 16th of 46 for clinical and counseling psychologists.
A median $23,760 below national
The Tennessee median of $76,820 is $23,760 below the national median of $100,580 for clinical and counseling psychologists, a 24% gap.
The hourly median tells the same story at $36.93 against $48.36 nationally, $11.43 less per hour.
Among the 48 jurisdictions where BLS publishes a median for this occupation, Tennessee ranks 43rd.
That sits alongside a mid-sized workforce: an estimated 1,180 psychologists in the occupation, 16th of the 46 jurisdictions where BLS publishes both a median and an employment estimate.
So the Tennessee median is not a small-workforce figure; it rests on a mid-sized reported workforce and sits below the national middle.
Every percentile below national, the gap widest at the top
The Tennessee distribution sits below the national one at every percentile, and the gap widens at each step up.
At the floor the two are closest: the 10th percentile of $50,520 is 8% below the national 10th of $55,170.
Above the floor the state ladder rises in shorter steps than the national one — the 25th percentile of $56,990 is only $6,470 above the state 10th, where the national 25th of $73,210 sits $18,040 above its own 10th — a 22% gap at the 25th.
The median of $76,820 is 24% below, the 75th percentile of $100,180 is 26% below the national $135,200, and the 90th percentile of $126,930 is 30% below the national $180,960 — a gap of $54,030, the widest in the distribution in dollars or in percent.
The middle half of Tennessee psychologists spans $43,190, against a national band of $61,990.
What this figure covers: Clinical and counseling psychologists only.
School psychologists and "psychologists, all other" (SOC 19-3039) are separate occupations and are not in this figure.
OEWS counts wage and salary workers, so psychologists in their own private practice are not counted.
Reading an offer against these figures
Compare an offer with the Tennessee row first, then the national one.
An offer at the Tennessee median of $76,820 is $23,760 below the national median of $100,580.
An offer near $57,000 sits right at the state 25th percentile of $56,990, the boundary of the bottom quarter — which is itself 22% below the national 25th percentile of $73,210.
The Tennessee 75th percentile of $100,180, the boundary of the state's top quarter, sits just below the national median of $100,580; an offer in that top quarter can fall on either side of the national median.
For an hourly posting, the state hourly median of $36.93 is the comparison point, $11.43 below the national hourly median of $48.36.
A percentile is a position in the state distribution, not a pay step or a measure of time in the field.
What this figure does and does not describe
This row is the BLS occupation for clinical and counseling psychologists, not a figure for one Tennessee credential.
Nor is the row a count of licence holders: OEWS classifies workers by job duties, not by the credential they hold.
It does not split licensed psychologists — including those the board designates as health service providers and those on temporary or provisional licences — from one another.
Tennessee's five levels of psychological practice also include psychological examiners and the certified psychological assistant and certified psychological testing technician levels; the row publishes no separate figure for any of them, and a credential alone does not say who the row counts.
Check which credential a posting asks for before comparing its pay with this row.
What each licence requires in Tennessee is summarized in psychologist licensure in Tennessee.
Before you weigh an offer, check what licence or certification the posting requires — browse clinical psychologist jobs in Tennessee.
What Clinical Psychologist Job Listings in Tennessee Show Right Now
From the 10 active clinical psychologist listings on BehavioralHires as of October 28, 2026.
Employers with the most openings
- LifeStance Health5
- Thriveworks3
- BetterHelp2
Benefits and work arrangement
- 50% hybrid; the rest are on-site
- Health Insurancenamed in 80%
- Dental & Visionnamed in 80%
- 401k Matchnamed in 80%
- Continuing Education Budgetnamed in 50%
- Flexible Schedulenamed in 50%
Source: active clinical psychologist listings on BehavioralHires, updated daily. Pay figures use only listings that state pay (midpoint of each posted range). Benefits count listings that name the benefit; a listing that doesn’t mention one may still offer it.
Browse 10 jobs →Frequently Asked Questions
How much do clinical psychologists make in Tennessee?
BLS reports a May 2025 median annual wage of $76,820 for clinical and counseling psychologists in Tennessee, or $36.93 an hour.
That is 24% below the national median of $100,580.
The middle half of Tennessee psychologists earned between $56,990 and $100,180, and the top tenth earned more than $126,930.
Is psychologist pay in Tennessee below the national figure across the whole distribution?
Yes, at every percentile, and the gap widens toward the top: 8% at the 10th, 22% at the 25th, 24% at the median, 26% at the 75th and 30% at the 90th.
The largest dollar gap is also at the 90th percentile: $126,930 is $54,030 below the national 90th of $180,960.
The closest figure to national is the state 10th percentile, $4,650 below.
How many clinical and counseling psychologists work in Tennessee?
BLS estimates 1,180 clinical and counseling psychologists employed in Tennessee in May 2025, which ranks 16th of the 46 jurisdictions where BLS publishes both a median and an employment estimate for the occupation.
That is a count of people in jobs during the survey period, not of open positions, and it covers only this one occupation.
What do psychologists in the middle half of the Tennessee distribution earn?
Between $56,990 and $100,180 — a band of $43,190, against the national middle half of $61,990.
The state band sits lower at both ends: the 25th percentile is 22% below the national one and the 75th percentile is 26% below.
Even the state 75th percentile sits below the national median of $100,580.
More Tennessee Clinical Psychologist Resources
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 state estimates — Tennessee, SOC 19-3033 (BLS Public Data API) (retrieved 2026-09-24)
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 national estimates — SOC 19-3033 (BLS Public Data API) (retrieved 2026-09-24)
Wage figures: BLS OEWS May 2025 state and national estimates, SOCs 19-3033, retrieved 2026-09-24.
Page last updated 2026-09-29.