How much does a Paralegal make in Pennsylvania?

BLS reports a median annual wage of $60,950 for Paralegals in Pennsylvania as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $47,420 and the 75th-percentile is $78,920.

What does the top of the Paralegal pay scale look like in Pennsylvania?

The 90th percentile lands at $94,990. That tier typically reflects senior roles, specialty certifications, high-cost-of-living metros within the state, or union-negotiated rate cards. Below that, the P75 quartile is $78,920.

How many Paralegals does Pennsylvania employ?

BLS OES counts 14,130 Paralegals employed in Pennsylvania in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.

Why is the BEA RPP for Pennsylvania different from a single CPI number?

BEA splits regional price parity into three components — goods, services, and rents — reweighted to the BEA's national consumption basket. Pennsylvania's overall index of 97.4 reflects rents 85.8, services 118.3, and goods 98.4.

How wide is the wage spread in Pennsylvania?

P10 to P90 spans $40,620 to $94,990. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.

When does this data update?

BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.

Litigation vs corporate vs IP paralegal pay in Pennsylvania?

BLS aggregates SOC 23-2011 (paralegals and legal assistants) without segmenting by practice area. In Pennsylvania, intellectual-property paralegals — particularly patent paralegals with USPTO procedural fluency — typically earn well above the BLS P75 due to the credential scarcity. Corporate-transactional paralegals at major firms earn at or above median with strong overtime during deal cycles. Litigation paralegals cluster near the BLS median; family law, immigration, and personal-injury paralegals in smaller Pennsylvania firms typically fall below median. Senior paralegal manager roles at AmLaw 100 firms exceed BLS P90.

Paralegal Salary in Pennsylvania (2026): $61K Median, BEA RPP-Adjusted

TL;DR

Median Paralegal salary in Pennsylvania: $60,950 nominal, $62,577 real (BEA RPP basis).
Cost adjustment is small — neither an arbitrage state nor a high-cost penalty.
P25-P75 spread runs $47,420 to $78,920; P10 floor $40,620, P90 ceiling $94,990.
Paralegal ranking: #20 on the BLS table, #16 once cost of living is in.

Wage breakdown — Pennsylvania

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$40,620	$41,704
P25 (lower quartile)	$47,420	$48,686
P50 (median)	$60,950	$62,577
P75 (upper quartile)	$78,920	$81,027
P90 (top tier)	$94,990	$97,526
Mean	$65,920	$67,680
Employment	14,130 Paralegals in Pennsylvania

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Pennsylvania index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	97.4
Goods	98.4
Services	118.3
Rents	85.8

Pennsylvania's overall RPP (97.4) is close to the national 100 baseline; nominal and real wage move roughly together.

After-tax take-home — Pennsylvania (2024 BLS · 2024 tax year, single filer)

Layer-by-layer take-home math at the BLS median

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (Paralegal)	$60,950	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$5,176	8.5% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$1,871	3.07% flat (+ local 0.5-3.9% Philly/Pgh)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$4,663	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$49,240	80.8% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$50,555	÷ (97.4 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

What the Pennsylvania state-tax burden means for Paralegal take-home

Mid-band state-tax burden at 3.1% effective. Combined with federal and FICA, take-home is $49,240 (80.8% of gross). After the 97.4 RPP, real take-home is $50,555. Local-tax overlay: Philadelphia residents pay 3.75% city wage tax; Pittsburgh ~3% combined city + school. Subtract roughly $2,133/year if PHL-based.

Computed from 2026 IRS federal brackets (Rev. Proc. 2025-32), 2026 state DOR brackets, and 2026 FICA rates. Single filer, standard deduction, no other adjustments. See methodology · tax for limitations (married filers, ITM/SALT itemizers, retirement deferrals, HSA, dependent credits, etc.).

National context

Across the United States, BLS reports a national median of $61,010 for Paralegals with mean pay of $66,510 and total employment of 367,220. Pennsylvania sits at #20 on nominal pay and #16 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Pennsylvania climbs 4 positions — the cost of living is favorable relative to the wage.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a Paralegal make in Pennsylvania?: BLS reports a median annual wage of $60,950 for Paralegals in Pennsylvania as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $47,420 and the 75th-percentile is $78,920.
What does the top of the Paralegal pay scale look like in Pennsylvania?: The 90th percentile lands at $94,990. That tier typically reflects senior roles, specialty certifications, high-cost-of-living metros within the state, or union-negotiated rate cards. Below that, the P75 quartile is $78,920.
How many Paralegals does Pennsylvania employ?: BLS OES counts 14,130 Paralegals employed in Pennsylvania in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.
Why is the BEA RPP for Pennsylvania different from a single CPI number?: BEA splits regional price parity into three components — goods, services, and rents — reweighted to the BEA's national consumption basket. Pennsylvania's overall index of 97.4 reflects rents 85.8, services 118.3, and goods 98.4.
How wide is the wage spread in Pennsylvania?: P10 to P90 spans $40,620 to $94,990. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.
When does this data update?: BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.
Litigation vs corporate vs IP paralegal pay in Pennsylvania?: BLS aggregates SOC 23-2011 (paralegals and legal assistants) without segmenting by practice area. In Pennsylvania, intellectual-property paralegals — particularly patent paralegals with USPTO procedural fluency — typically earn well above the BLS P75 due to the credential scarcity. Corporate-transactional paralegals at major firms earn at or above median with strong overtime during deal cycles. Litigation paralegals cluster near the BLS median; family law, immigration, and personal-injury paralegals in smaller Pennsylvania firms typically fall below median. Senior paralegal manager roles at AmLaw 100 firms exceed BLS P90.

Sources & methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), SOC 23-2011, 2024 reference period.
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis — Regional Price Parities, 2023 vintage (all-items, goods, services, rents).
Real-wage figures = nominal BLS wage ÷ (state RPP / 100).
See the methodology page for full computation details and limitations.

By Marcus Liang · Founder & Editor · Last synced 2026-05-07.

Cross-comparison: see how Pennsylvania Paralegal pay ranks against the other 254 state × occupation pages on the Real Wage Atlas → — four-way ranking by real wage, after-tax take-home, state-tax savings, and cost-of-living arbitrage.