# Mental Health Counselors

US SOC code 21-1014. Markdown version of https://futurehistory.earth/timeline/21-1014

Also called: Licensed professional counselor, LPC, Licensed clinical mental health counselor, LCMHC, Licensed professional clinical counselor.

## In brief

BLS last counted US mental health counselors as their own occupation in May 2016: **139,820** jobs. Median pay was **$42,840** a year in May 2016. The earliest figure here is [an estimate](https://www.nimh.nih.gov/about/nimh-history) of **25,000** from 1976, not measured the same way as today's count. The last full technology era for mental health counselors: AI therapy chatbots, 2017 to 2020. AI chatbots expanded access to mental health support for mild symptoms and subclinical distress: the 'worried well' population who would not otherwise seek or afford counseling.

## What the sources say

### Official outlook

BLS's 2025-35 employment projections do not list this occupation on its own.

### AI exposure studies

- **26.5%** of this job's tasks are exposed to large language models. Not a forecast of job losses. [Eloundou and others, 2023](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv)
- **0.0048** estimated probability that the whole occupation could be computerised, over an unspecified number of years. Not a forecast of job losses. [Frey and Osborne, 2013](https://oms-www.files.svdcdn.com/production/downloads/academic/The_Future_of_Employment.pdf)

Data as of BLS OEWS May 2016.

## Mental Health Counselors employment and pay by year

- On record since: 1908
- Latest US employment: 139,820 (May 2016). Source: BLS OEWS May 2016 [4]
- Latest US median pay: $42,840 (May 2016). Source: BLS OEWS May 2016 [10]

### In other countries

The latest figure each country's statistics agency publishes for this job. Each uses its own occupation definition, survey basis and currency, so the numbers are not directly comparable with each other or with the US figures.

- **United Kingdom** (UK SOC 3224)
  - Employment, 2025: 19,000. Source: ONS ASHE 2025 [8]. ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (Table 14): employee jobs in SOC 3224 Counsellors, United Kingdom, 2025 (ASHE "number of jobs", thousands x1000; excludes self-employment). Open Government Licence v3.0.
  - Median pay, 2025: £27,082. Source: ONS ASHE 2025 [14]. ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (Table 14.7a): median gross annual pay for all employee jobs in SOC 3224 Counsellors, United Kingdom, 2025. Open Government Licence v3.0.
- **Australia** (ANZSCO 2721)
  - Employment, 2025: 40,500. Source: ABS Labour Force Survey [9]. ABS Labour Force Survey (Detailed), table EQ08: employed persons in ANZSCO 2721 Counsellors, national (summed across sex and state/territory), annual average of 4 quarterly estimates.
  - Median pay, 2025: A$112,008. Source: ABS Employee Earnings May 2025 [15]. Annualised (x52) from A$2,154 median weekly earnings. ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2025: median pay for full-time non-managerial employees paid at the adult rate, before tax. Surfaced via the Jobs and Skills Australia occupation profile.

### All 17 years of cited US data

| Year | US employment | Annual pay (median unless marked) | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1976 | 25,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., NIMH [1] |
| 1990 | 75,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., American Mental Health Counselors… [2] |
| 2000 | 65,780 | n/a | BLS OEWS 2000 [3] |
| 2003 | 83,450 | $31,290 | BLS OEWS May 2003 [4] |
| 2004 | 89,300 | $32,960 | BLS OEWS May 2004 [4] |
| 2005 | 87,220 | $34,010 | BLS OEWS May 2005 [4] |
| 2006 | 91,830 | $34,380 | BLS OEWS May 2006 [4] |
| 2007 | 95,970 | $36,000 | BLS OEWS May 2007 [4] |
| 2008 | 104,650 | $36,810 | BLS OEWS May 2008 [4] |
| 2009 | 106,920 | $38,010 | BLS OEWS May 2009 [4] |
| 2010 | 110,300 | $38,150 | BLS OEWS May 2010 [4] |
| 2011 | 114,180 | $39,190 | BLS OEWS May 2011 [4] |
| 2012 | 115,080 | $40,080 | BLS OEWS May 2012 [4] |
| 2013 | 115,580 | $40,580 | BLS OEWS May 2013 [4] |
| 2014 | 120,010 | $40,850 | BLS OEWS May 2014 [4] |
| 2015 | 128,200 | $41,880 | BLS OEWS May 2015 [4] |
| 2016 | 139,820 | $42,840 | BLS OEWS May 2016 [4] |

## Sources (80)

### Employment series

1. [NIMH — National Institute of Mental Health (historical workforce development context)](https://www.nimh.nih.gov/about/nimh-history), National Institute of Mental Health
2. [American Mental Health Counselors Association — AMHCA History and Licensure Timeline](https://www.amhca.org/home), American Mental Health Counselors Association
3. [BLS OES 2000 national estimates (flat file)](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oes00nat.zip), Bureau of Labor Statistics
4. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip)
5. [ONS: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14.7a (Annual pay - Gross), 4-digit SOC 3235, United Kingdom, 2011. Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14. Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2011revisedbasedonsoc2010/2011-revised-table-14.zip), Office for National Statistics
6. [ONS: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14.7a (Annual pay - Gross), 4-digit SOC 3235, United Kingdom, 2015. Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14. Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2015/table142015revised.zip), Office for National Statistics
7. [ONS: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14.7a (Annual pay - Gross), 4-digit SOC 3224, United Kingdom, 2022. Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14. Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2022revised/ashetable142022revised.zip), Office for National Statistics
8. [ONS: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14.7a (Annual pay - Gross), 4-digit SOC 3224, United Kingdom, 2025. Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14. Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2025provisional/ashetable142025provisional.zip), Office for National Statistics
9. [ABS: Labour Force, Australia, Detailed, table EQ08 (Employed persons by Occupation unit group, ANZSCO 2013), latest release](https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/labour/employment-and-unemployment/labour-force-australia-detailed/latest-release), Australian Bureau of Statistics

### Wage series

10. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip)
11. [ONS: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14.7a (Annual pay - Gross), 4-digit SOC 3235, United Kingdom, 2011. Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14. Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2011revisedbasedonsoc2010/2011-revised-table-14.zip), Office for National Statistics
12. [ONS: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14.7a (Annual pay - Gross), 4-digit SOC 3235, United Kingdom, 2015. Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14. Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2015/table142015revised.zip), Office for National Statistics
13. [ONS: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14.7a (Annual pay - Gross), 4-digit SOC 3224, United Kingdom, 2022. Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14. Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2022revised/ashetable142022revised.zip), Office for National Statistics
14. [ONS: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14.7a (Annual pay - Gross), 4-digit SOC 3224, United Kingdom, 2025. Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14. Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2025provisional/ashetable142025provisional.zip), Office for National Statistics
15. [Jobs and Skills Australia: Counsellors (ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2025)](https://www.jobsandskills.gov.au/data/occupation-and-industry-profiles/occupations/2721-counsellors), Jobs and Skills Australia / Australian Bureau of Statistics

### Tool eras

16. [Wikipedia — Clifford W. Beers (1876-1943, "A Mind That Found Itself" 1908, NCMH 1909)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clifford_Beers), Wikipedia
17. [Wikipedia — National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH history, National Mental Health Act 1946)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Institute_of_Mental_Health), Wikipedia
18. [Wikipedia — Community Mental Health Act (1963, JFK signature, CMHC construction program)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community_Mental_Health_Act), Wikipedia
19. [Wikipedia — Deinstitutionalization in the United States (558,239 peak in 1955; bed reductions timeline)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deinstitutionalization_in_the_United_States), Wikipedia
20. [American Mental Health Counselors Association — AMHCA licensure history and standards](https://www.amhca.org/home), American Mental Health Counselors Association
21. [Wikipedia — Mental Health Parity Act (1996 act, 2008 MHPAEA, ACA 2010 extension)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mental_Health_Parity_Act), Wikipedia
22. [Wikipedia — BetterHelp (founded 2013, Alon Matas; $700M revenue 2021, Teladoc acquisition)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BetterHelp), Wikipedia
23. [Wikipedia — Talkspace (founded 2012, Oren and Roni Frank; first profitable quarter 2025)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talkspace), Wikipedia
24. [Fitzpatrick et al. (2017) — "Delivering Cognitive Behavior Therapy to Young Adults With Symptoms of Depression and Anxiety Using a Fully Automated Conversational Agent (Woebot): A Randomized Controlled Trial" (JMIR Mental Health)](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28588005/), JMIR Mental Health / PubMed
25. [Wikipedia — Replika (founded November 2017, Eugenia Kuyda; 40M users 2025; Mozilla privacy criticism 2023)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Replika), Wikipedia
26. [NIMH — Mental Illness Prevalence Statistics (any mental illness 23.1% of US adults in 2022; 59.3 million)](https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/mental-illness), National Institute of Mental Health
27. [KFF/CNN Mental Health in America Survey (27% of adults needed but didn't receive services; 60% cite lack of providers accepting insurance)](https://www.kff.org/mental-health/kff-cnn-mental-health-in-america-survey/), Kaiser Family Foundation / CNN
28. [O\*NET 21-1014.00 — BLS 2024-34 projected growth for Mental Health Counselors (+18%, much faster than average)](https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/21-1014.00), O\*NET / BLS

### Forecasts and exposure studies

29. [Frey & Osborne (2013), "The Future of Employment: How Susceptible Are Jobs to Computerisation?", Appendix (SOC 21-1014 Mental Health Counselors: probability 0.0048, rank 25 of 702)](https://oms-www.files.svdcdn.com/production/downloads/academic/The_Future_of_Employment.pdf), Oxford Martin School, University of Oxford
30. [Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), "GPTs are GPTs", occupation-level exposure data occ\_level.csv (O\*NET-SOC 21-1014.00, human-rated β 0.265)](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv), OpenAI

### Historical notes

31. [Wikipedia — Clifford W. Beers ("A Mind That Found Itself," 1908)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clifford_Beers), Wikipedia
32. [Wikipedia — National Institute of Mental Health (1946 National Mental Health Act, NIMH founding 1949)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Institute_of_Mental_Health), Wikipedia
33. [Wikipedia — Deinstitutionalization in the United States (558,239 peak 1955; 340 beds per 100,000)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deinstitutionalization_in_the_United_States), Wikipedia
34. [Wikipedia — Community Mental Health Act (October 31, 1963; implementation shortfall)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community_Mental_Health_Act), Wikipedia
35. [American Mental Health Counselors Association — AMHCA licensure history](https://www.amhca.org/home), American Mental Health Counselors Association
36. [Wikipedia — Mental Health Parity Act (1996 act; 2008 MHPAEA; ACA 2010 essential health benefit)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mental_Health_Parity_Act), Wikipedia
37. [Fitzpatrick et al. (2017) — Woebot RCT, JMIR Mental Health (PHQ-9 reduction, P=.01; n=70; 2-week study)](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28588005/), JMIR Mental Health / PubMed
38. [NIMH — Mental Illness Prevalence Statistics (23.1% any mental illness, 2022; 59.3 million adults)](https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/mental-illness), National Institute of Mental Health

### Predecessors & successors

39. [Wikipedia — Clifford Beers / National Committee for Mental Hygiene (social work roots of mental health counseling)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clifford_Beers), Wikipedia
40. [Wikipedia — Community Mental Health Act (1963 CMHC workforce)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community_Mental_Health_Act), Wikipedia
41. [Wikipedia — BetterHelp (platform employment model, $700M revenue 2021)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BetterHelp), Wikipedia

### Present-day analysis

- [O\*NET 30.3 — Mental Health Counselors (21-1014.00): tasks, work activities, technology skills, knowledge domains, employment data](https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/21-1014.00), accessed 2026-05-23
- [BLS OOH 2024-2034 — Mental Health Counselors: ~385,000 employed; +18% growth 2024-2034; median wage $53,710](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/community-and-social-service/mental-health-counselors-and-marriage-and-family-therapists.htm), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Eleos Health — AI clinical documentation for behavioral health; 150+ behavioral health organizations; 30-60 min/day documentation time saved; HIPAA compliant; SOC 2 Type II](https://eleos.health/), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Blueprint Companion (SimplePractice) — AI progress notes, treatment plans, and outcome measure integration for 50,000+ therapists](https://www.blueprint.ai/), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Upheal — AI session notes and treatment plan generation; JMIR Mental Health pilot 2024; therapists save 5-10 hours/week; HIPAA compliant](https://www.upheal.io/), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Limbic Access — NHS-deployed AI triage chatbot for mental health; NICE-approved; 40+ NHS Talking Therapies services; 2M+ intake assessments completed](https://limbic.ai/), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Woebot Health — CBT-based conversational AI; RCT evidence; deployed by Kaiser Permanente, Express Scripts; used as step-down and between-session resource](https://woebothealth.com/), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Spring Health — AI care navigation platform; AI Compass matching; 3,000+ employers including Microsoft, Target, J.P. Morgan (Jan 2026)](https://www.springhealth.com/), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Lyra Health — AI matching algorithm for employer mental health benefits; 500+ employers; 15M+ covered employees; structured outcome tracking per session](https://www.lyrahealth.com/), accessed 2026-05-23
- [ACA — Ethics and Code of Ethics Resources (2025): therapeutic relationship, informed consent, and clinical judgment are exclusively human responsibilities; AI notes require counselor attestation](https://www.counseling.org/resources/ethics), accessed 2026-06-21
- [NEJM AI — "Large Language Models in Mental Health Care" (Mar 2025): LLMs can generate psychoeducation content; clinical risk assessment for suicidality requires licensed human judgment](https://ai.nejm.org/doi/10.1056/AIra2400480), accessed 2026-05-23
- [NIMH — Mental Illness Statistics (2022): 59.3 million U.S. adults live with any mental illness; approximately 49% of adults with mental illness did not receive treatment in the past year; AI tools positioned to expand access](https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/mental-illness), accessed 2026-06-21
- [Eloundou et al. 2024 — GPTs are GPTs (Science): occupational LLM exposure framework; counselors rated low β-exposure due to face-to-face therapeutic core tasks](https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.10130), accessed 2026-05-23

How to read these figures: https://futurehistory.earth/methodology. Every figure links to its own source; gaps stay gaps.