New YorkNY
Paralegal Pay In New York, From The BLS
Paralegal Salary In New York
Where Paralegal Pay Sits In New York
Annual pay in May 2025. Half of New York's paralegals and legal assistants earned between $57,430 and $94,200.
The bar runs from the 10th to the 90th percentile; the solid band is the middle half. BLS
Paralegal Salary In New York At A Glance
- Paralegals and legal assistants in New York earned a median $68,410 in May 2025, $5,520 above the national median of $62,890, ninth highest of the 51 states and districts BLS reports.
- The New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metro area pays the highest median, $75,330, and employs the most paralegals, 33,850.
- One of the 13 metro areas BLS reports in New York pays above the state median.
- The least expensive ABA-approved certificate ranked in New York, at LaGuardia Community College, costs $5,218 a year in state, 8% of a year's median paralegal pay there.
Every wage on this page is from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 release, for the occupation BLS calls Paralegals and Legal Assistants (SOC 23-2011), which counts the two job titles as one. The state figures are BLS's for New York; the metro figures are the same release for each metropolitan area, named as the Census Bureau's 2023 delineation names it. They are what employers reported paying, so they include every paralegal, new or senior, and they are not adjusted for living costs. The national picture, with every state, is on the paralegal salary page.
Paralegal Salary By Metro Area In New York
BLS reports a median for 13 metro areas in New York. The New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metro area leads at $75,330, $6,920 above the state median, and the Utica-Rome, NY metro area is lowest at $54,850. The best-paid metro is also the largest, with 33,850 paralegals. One metro crosses a state line and is counted whole, as BLS counts it: New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ.
| Metro area | Median pay, a year | Against the state | Paralegals employed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | $75,330 | +$6,920 | 33,850 |
| 2Kingston, NY | $62,210 | -$6,200 | 140 |
| 3Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh, NY | $61,350 | -$7,060 | 600 |
| 4Syracuse, NY | $61,150 | -$7,260 | 970 |
| 5Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY | $60,680 | -$7,730 | 1,340 |
| 6Ithaca, NY | $60,550 | -$7,860 | 80 |
| 7Binghamton, NY | $60,420 | -$7,990 | 240 |
| 8Glens Falls, NY | $59,170 | -$9,240 | 100 |
| 9Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY | $58,270 | -$10,140 | 2,060 |
| 10Rochester, NY | $57,250 | -$11,160 | 1,300 |
| 11Elmira, NY | $56,230 | -$12,180 | 50 |
| 12Watertown-Fort Drum, NY | $56,190 | -$12,220 | 50 |
| 13Utica-Rome, NY | $54,850 | -$13,560 | 170 |
How New York Compares With The Nation
At every point of the range, here is New York beside the national figures. New York's median is $5,520 above the national one; its highest-paid 10% start at $115,720, $14,220 above the national $101,500, and its lowest-paid 10% earn under $48,330, $3,590 above the national $44,740. The mean, which the best-paid pull up, is $76,890 in New York and $69,700 nationally.
| Point in the range | New York | United States | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $48,330 | $44,740 | +$3,590 |
| 25th percentile | $57,430 | $50,340 | +$7,090 |
| Median | $68,410 | $62,890 | +$5,520 |
| 75th percentile | $94,200 | $80,080 | +$14,120 |
| 90th percentile | $115,720 | $101,500 | +$14,220 |
What A Paralegal Certificate Costs In New York
This site ranks 5 ABA-approved certificates in New York. The least expensive, at LaGuardia Community College, charges $5,218 a year in in-state tuition and fees, 8% of a year's median paralegal pay in the state, and the median across the 5 certificates is $5,856. Tuition is the federal figure for a full-time year; a certificate can take more or less than a year. The ranking of the best paralegal certificate programs in New York scores each one on price, graduation rate and graduates.
Common Questions About Paralegal Salary In New York
How much do paralegals make in New York?
Which New York metro area pays paralegals the most?
How much do paralegals make an hour in New York?
Do paralegals in New York earn more than the national median?
Sources For New York Paralegal Pay
State and national wages are BLS's OEWS figures for SOC 23-2011. Metro wages are the same May 2025 release, read through the BLS Public Data API for each metropolitan statistical area, whose names and boundaries are the Census Bureau's July 2023 delineation. Program costs are IPEDS tuition and required fees for 2023-24.