Colorado Clinical Psychologist Salary Outlook
Nearly 20% of U.S. adults has a mental illness, including anxiety disorder, PTSD or depression. But unfortunately, too few people receive the help they need to lead better lives, and this gap is contributing to a major mental healthcare crisis in the U.S. Only about 15% of people in an average year receive any treatment for mental health or behavioral issues.
Adults in Colorado experience mental illness at roughly the same rate as the U.S. overall, but Coloradans are slightly more likely to seek treatment and services for mental, behavioral and emotional health concerns.
This helps make Colorado an attractive place for mental health professionals, such as licensed clinical psychologists, to seek professional employment, as does relatively high wages for these professionals when compared to other states. Let’s dive into how much clinical psychologists make in Colorado and what job openings have been posted for such professionals recently.
What’s On This Page
- How Much Do Clinical Psychologists Make in Colorado?
- Who’s Hiring for Clinical Psychologists in Colorado?
- Which Colorado Cities Are Best for Clinical Psychologists?
How Much Do Clinical Psychologists Make in Colorado?
Colorado ranks 10th overall among all states for the median annual clinical psychologist wage, which is $84,410, higher not only than most states but higher than the overall U.S. median of about $77,000.
Median annual clinical psychologist wage, top 10 states
| California | $100,850 |
| Oregon | $89,150 |
| Connecticut | $88,890 |
| New York | $88,710 |
| Rhode Island | $86,370 |
| New Jersey | $85,160 |
| District of Columbia | $84,780 |
| Alaska | $84,740 |
| Minnesota | $84,630 |
| Colorado | $84,410 |
In addition to having a median wage that’s among the 10 highest in the nation for clinical psychologists, these highly trained mental health professionals earn salaries that are considerably higher than the wage for all occupations as well as many other jobs that are popular in the state.
Median annual Colorado wage, select occupations
| All Occupations | $42,310 |
| Barbers | $30,110 |
| Broadcast News Analysts | $71,190 |
| Camera and Photographic Equipment Repairers | $30,240 |
| Chemists | $72,120 |
| Clinical, Counseling, and School Psychologists | $84,410 |
| Database Administrators | $92,260 |
| Editors | $57,350 |
| Electricians | $54,980 |
| Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse | $29,850 |
| Firefighters | $59,090 |
| Gaming Managers | $61,840 |
| Graphic Designers | $50,950 |
| Hearing Aid Specialists | $53,940 |
| Home Health Aides | $25,260 |
| Librarians | $60,370 |
| Mail Clerks and Mail Machine Operators, Except Postal Service | $32,360 |
| Medical Assistants | $35,640 |
| Occupational Therapy Aides | $33,450 |
| Painters, Construction and Maintenance | $40,210 |
| Plasterers and Stucco Masons | $36,560 |
| Radiologic Technologists | $64,130 |
| Tellers | $29,600 |
| Travel Agents | $40,780 |
| Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers | $29,720 |
Sweetening the high-wage pot for Colorado is the nation’s highest projected rate of long-term growth in job openings for clinical psychologists. These jobs are expected to grow by nearly 34% through 2026.
States by projected long-term clinical psychologist job growth
| Colorado | 33.50% |
| Utah | 30.80% |
| Arizona | 24.90% |
| Nevada | 21.70% |
| Washington | 21.50% |
| Texas | 20.00% |
| Florida | 19.90% |
| Virginia | 18.20% |
| Arkansas | 17.70% |
Note: Short-term, 2018-2020; long-term, 2016-2026
Which Colorado Cities Are Best for Clinical Psychologists?
While the state as a whole offers higher-than-average wages for clinical psychologists, Colorado cities vary widely when it comes to median wages, from a high in Grand Junction to a low in Greeley.
Colorado cities by median annual clinical psychologist wage
| Grand Junction | $91,020 |
| Denver-Aurora-Lakewood | $88,590 |
| Fort Collins | $87,110 |
| Colorado Springs | $79,440 |
| Boulder | $73,620 |
| Greeley | $64,950 |
Three Colorado cities and metro areas are among the leaders nationally when compared to all cities and metro areas in the country, with Grand Junction, Denver and Fort Collins all having among the highest wages (outside of California, which has several very high-paying cities).
Metro areas by median clinical psychologist wage, top 20*
| Baton Rouge, LA | $107,370 |
| Bend-Redmond, OR | $106,260 |
| Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL | $97,820 |
| Chambersburg-Waynesboro, PA | $95,280 |
| Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT | $94,000 |
| Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA | $93,360 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | $92,380 |
| Grand Junction, CO | $91,020 |
| Reno, NV | $90,900 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | $88,920 |
| Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO | $88,590 |
| Kingston, NY | $87,900 |
| Jackson, MI | $87,530 |
| Salisbury, MD-DE | $87,480 |
| Leominster-Gardner, MA | $87,170 |
| Fort Collins, CO | $87,110 |
| Providence-Warwick, RI-MA | $86,770 |
| Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT | $86,650 |
| Utica-Rome, NY | $86,090 |
| Springfield, MA-CT | $86,080 |
* Excluding California cities
Who’s Hiring for Clinical Psychologists in Colorado?
It’s common for clinical psychologists to open their own practices where they can diagnose and treat patients who are dealing with specific mental health problems or who meet other demographic criteria, such as being adolescents or elderly. Many other clinical psychologists will choose instead to seek employment with an existing business, agency or organization, and this can include employers both in the public and private sectors.
Here’s a look at a handful of the clinical psychologist jobs that were posted in the fall of 2019:
- The Metis Center for Psychological Services
- Colorado State University
- UCHealth
- Denver Public Schools
- U.S. Department of Justice
- OnSite Counseling
- U.S. Army
- State of Colorado
- Emerge
- Wellpath
- MediTelecare
- University of Denver
- Shandy Clinic
- Spectrum Healthcare Resources
- Rocky Mountain Behavioral Medicine
- Premise Health
- Colorado Department of Human Services
- A Wiser Mind
- Marillac Health Community Center
- SummitStone Health Partners
Conclusion
With wages that are among the top 10 in the nation and a job growth rate that is the very highest in the U.S., Colorado should continue its position as one of the most attractive states for people who are qualified, trained clinical psychologists.
SEE ALSO: Colorado Psychology Doctorate Programs
Additional References
- Information on clinical psychologist job openings in Colorado was gathered from listings posted in November 2019 on Indeed.com and Glassdoor.com
- U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Psychologists. (2019). Retrieved from https://www.bls.gov/ooh/life-physical-and-social-science/psychologists.htm#tab-5
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2016-2017 NSDUH State Prevalence Estimates. (Undated). Retrieved from https://www.samhsa.gov/data/report/2016-2017-nsduh-state-prevalence-estimates
- Projections Managing Partnership, Projections Central, Long Term Occupational Projections. (Undated). Accessed from https://projectionscentral.com/Projections/LongTerm
- U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment Statistics Query System. (2019). Accessed from https://data.bls.gov/oes/#/home