How to hire a lactation consultant

How to hire a lactation consultant, step by step

Here's a step-by-step lactation consultant hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a lactation consultant job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new lactation consultant
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a lactation consultant do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your lactation consultant job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find a lactation consultant for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

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   Hiring the perfect lactation consultant also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   This list shows salaries for various types of lactation consultants.

   Type of Lactation Consultant	Description	Hourly rate
   Lactation Consultant	Registered nurses (RNs) provide and coordinate patient care, educate patients and the public about various health conditions, and provide advice and emotional support to patients and their family members.	$25-47
   Nurse	Nurses are medical professionals assigned to a specific department in the hospital and provide their trusted department services. Nurses are in charge of taking patients' medical histories, getting vital signs, preparing patients for checkups or procedures, explaining upcoming practices, answering any questions, and communicating any concerns to the assigned doctor... Show more	$18-41
   Nurse Extern	The job of a nurse extern is to assist the mentor nurse in their nursing duties. They help the mentor nurse in various medical procedures such as administering medications or starting intravenous therapies... Show more	$13-22

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Patients
   • IBCLC
   • Patient Care
   • International Board
   • CPR
   • Mother-Baby
   • Patient Education
   • Maternity
   • Staff Education
   • Lactation Education
   • OB
   • Post-partum
   • Breast Milk
   • Resuscitation

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage communications with referral source, medical providers, injure worker and other parties involve in the rehabilitation process.
   • Provide clinical lactation support, community breastfeeding education, and CPR instruction
   • Work in outpatient breastfeeding center as IBCLC with occasional floating to inpatient lactation consulting.
   • Provide guidance to birth mothers on proper positions and latch techniques to minimize potential complications.
   • Implement and oversee a maternity services clinic focusing on prenatal education, lactation services, and breastfeeding.
   • Perform nutrition assessment for participants by providing participants with information on healthy eating, nursing assistance, and healthy lifestyle choices.

   More lactation consultant duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your lactation consultant job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A lactation consultant salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, lactation consultants' average salary in iowa is 54% less than in california.
   • Seniority. Entry-level lactation consultants earn 46% less than senior-level lactation consultants.
   • Certifications. A lactation consultant with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a lactation consultant's salary.

   Average lactation consultant salary

   $73,158yearly

   $35.17 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level lactation consultant salary

   $53,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 13, 2025

   Average lactation consultant salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$124,840	$60
   2	District of Columbia	$105,296	$51
   3	Washington	$95,034	$46
   4	Pennsylvania	$92,732	$45
   5	Maryland	$88,080	$42
   6	Ohio	$87,184	$42
   7	New Jersey	$86,756	$42
   8	New York	$83,797	$40
   9	Oregon	$83,146	$40
   10	Rhode Island	$82,638	$40
   11	Wisconsin	$79,969	$38
   12	Georgia	$79,517	$38
   13	Connecticut	$78,652	$38
   14	Minnesota	$78,628	$38
   15	North Carolina	$73,994	$36
   16	New Hampshire	$72,950	$35
   17	Colorado	$72,848	$35
   18	Kansas	$71,676	$34
   19	Texas	$69,851	$34
   20	Indiana	$63,016	$30

   Average lactation consultant salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Children's Hospital of Michigan	$88,919	$42.75
   2	University of Maryland Medical System	$86,000	$41.35	3
   3	Highmark	$84,798	$40.77	21
   4	Tenet Healthcare	$83,434	$40.11	2
   5	Sutter Health	$83,115	$39.96	2
   6	University of California-Berkeley	$82,924	$39.87
   7	Baystate Health	$81,223	$39.05	1
   8	Hca Hospital Services Of San Diego	$80,315	$38.61
   9	Mount Auburn Hospital	$80,071	$38.50
   10	Doylestown Health	$79,752	$38.34
   11	Capital Health	$79,746	$38.34	1
   12	Mayo Clinic	$79,640	$38.29	3
   13	St. Joseph Healthcare	$79,587	$38.26	1
   14	Woman's Hospital	$79,039	$38.00
   15	Hackensack Meridian Health	$78,982	$37.97
   16	Eastern Connecticut Health Network (echn)	$78,929	$37.95
   17	Novant Health	$78,780	$37.88	1
   18	UT Health East Texas	$78,661	$37.82
   19	Medstar Health	$78,567	$37.77	1
   20	Marin General Hospital: Foley Pamela MD	$78,505	$37.74

4. Writing a lactation consultant job description

   A lactation consultant job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of a lactation consultant job description:

   Lactation consultant job description example

   IU Health West Hospital is a full-service hospital located in Avon, Indiana. We serve the residents of the Indianapolis west side, Hendricks County and beyond. Our magnet designated hospital specializes in life-threatening, emergent, and non-emergent conditions.
   
   At IU Health West care is a relationship, careers are meaningful, caregivers are friends, and service is our privilege. If you are seeking an organization where you can engage expertly, develop clinical expertise, embrace learning, cultivate new relationships, and fuel your spirit of inquiry, join us as we fulfill Our Promise of 'The Best Care, Designed for you!"
   Apply teamwork. Apply experience. Apply skill. Apply yourself. We can change everything together.
   
   This is a supplemental, day shift position. If this sounds like a good fit for you, please apply!
   
   Provides comprehensive infant feeding services to families through inpatient and outpatient services. Develops, markets, and implements plans for the program. Increases awareness of the lactation program and develop educational materials for use with various audiences. Uses clinical expertise in assessment, diagnosis, outcome identification, planning, implementation, and evaluation of patient and family needs and participates in decision-making, teaching, mentoring, and collaboration with the multidisciplinary team to advance the patient plan of care, achieve outcomes and enhance operational efficiency. The nurse adheres to the ANA Scope and Standards of Professional Nursing and the Code of Ethics for Nurses with Interpretive Statements.
   
   + Requires an Associates of Nursing (ASN).
   
   + Bachelors of Nursing (BSN) preferred.
   
   + Requires current state of Indiana license as Registered Nurse.
   
   + Requires that the RN has graduated from a nationally accredited nursing program.
   
   + Requires certification by the International Board of Lactation Consultant Examiners (I . B . L . C . E .) or be certified within one year of hire.
   
   + Requires Basic Life Support certification through the AHA.
   
   + Other advanced life support certifications may be required per unit/department specialty according to patient care policies.
   
   + Requires background working with childbearing families or maternal health nursing.
   
   #LI-SL1
   
   REQNUMBER: 335061

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find lactation consultants for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any lactation consultants they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level lactation consultants with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your lactation consultant job on Zippia to find and attract quality lactation consultant candidates.
   • Use niche websites such as healthcarejobsite, health jobs nationwide, hospitalcareers, medreps.com.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with lactation consultant candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new lactation consultant

   Once you have selected a candidate for the lactation consultant position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a lactation consultant?