Therapists working at behavioral health tech companies can expect an average compensation of about $90,000.
That’s according to a new annual compensation report by Therapists in Tech. The report found that the compensation of licensed clinical therapists and specialists ranged from $122,000 on the high end to $70,000 on the low end, with a median of $85,000.
Still, the report’s authors found that therapists working at later-stage behavioral health tech companies reported higher salaries than those working at earlier-stage startups.
“This report echoes many of the trends we saw in 2021. There is still a lot of variability in what people get paid,” Jaclyn Satchel, executive director of Therapists in Tech, wrote in the report. “There is still a lack of representation of people of color in leadership positions. For all of the increased company valuations over the pandemic, salaries are still about the same.”
Education did account for some of the differences in therapist salaries. Clinical therapists and specialists with a master’s degree made an average of $78,000, whereas those with a doctorate made an average of $109,000.
The report is based on responses from 68 behavioral health employees. Seventy percent of survey respondents worked at a startup, and 22% worked in big tech. A total of 52% of survey respondents were white female psychologists.
Overall, vice presidents at behavioral health tech companies reported the highest salaries with an average annual compensation of $225,000. Meanwhile, behavioral health coaches had the lowest salaries, averaging $70,000 per year.
The average salary for all employees at a pre-seed to Series A company was $131,000. Comparatively, the average wage at a Series D/E stage company was $164,000.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, investors have poured billions of dollars into the behavioral health tech industry. Investment peaked in 2021 when digital behavioral health companies raised a total of $4.8 billion, according to Rock Health. But funding has begun to slow. In 2022, behavioral health tech companies raised $2.2 billion.
Despite the industry’s recent funding boom, several digital behavioral health companies have faced choppy water lately and have laid off staff. For example, last week, virtual substance use disorder provider Workit Health announced plans to reduce its workforce by 100 employees. Talkspace, Cerebral, Sondermind, Eleanor, Foresight and Headspace have also laid off staff.
