Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, aged to 2026 using compounded market movement. State selections show BLS state-level figures where published. Actual pay varies with experience, industry, and organization size.
Psychiatric Aide is a professional role in the Healthcare Support job family, focused on Psychiatric Aide work. Pay for this title reflects both its level and its scope; see our Title Level and Organization Responsibility guides for how WePayFairly defines them.
What Psychiatric Aides do
Typical education: Some College Courses
Listen and provide emotional support and encouragement to psychiatric patients.
Provide patients with cognitive, intellectual, or developmental disabilities with routine physical, emotional, psychological, or rehabilitation care under the direction of nursing or medical staff.
Complete physical checks and monitor patients to detect unusual or harmful behavior and report observations to professional staff.
Restrain or aid patients as necessary to prevent injury.
Work as part of a team that may include psychiatrists, psychologists, psychiatric nurses, or social workers.
Top skills:SpeakingSocial PerceptivenessService OrientationMonitoringActive ListeningCritical Thinking
Includes information from O*NET OnLine by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (CC BY 4.0).
Psychiatric Aide salary by industry
Health Care and Social Assistance
27,290 workers
$47,000
State Government, including Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation)
15,880 workers
$48,000
Federal, State, and Local Government, excl. State & Local Schools & Hospitals & USPS
7,300 workers
$48,000
Local Government, including Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation)
1,640 workers
$57,000
Educational Services
440 workers
$65,000
Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services
270 workers
$44,500
Management of Companies and Enterprises
190 workers
$47,000
Finance and Insurance
40 workers
$57,000
National sector-level figures, BLS OEWS May 2025, aged to 2026.
How this role compares
Psychiatric Aide pays 4% below the average across 17 roles in the Healthcare Support job family (family average $49,500).
