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Job outlook for mediators in the United States
Are mediator jobs in demand?
Mediator job and salary trends over time
Mediator jobs over time
Mediator job growth rate over time
| Year | # of jobs | % of population |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 3,270 | 0.00% |
| 2020 | 2,595 | 0.00% |
| 2019 | 2,720 | 0.00% |
| 2018 | 2,787 | 0.00% |
| 2017 | 2,729 | 0.00% |
Average mediator salary over time
Mediator salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $48,890 | $23.50 | +3.4% |
| 2024 | $47,264 | $22.72 | +2.7% |
| 2023 | $46,036 | $22.13 | +2.6% |
| 2022 | $44,853 | $21.56 | +1.5% |
| 2021 | $44,188 | $21.24 | +3.0% |
Mediator jobs by state
Most common states for mediators
| Rank | State | Population | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | 39,536,653 | 3 | 0% |
| 2 | Massachusetts | 6,859,819 | 3 | 0% |
| 3 | Ohio | 11,658,609 | 2 | 0% |
| 4 | New York | 19,849,399 | 1 | 0% |
| 5 | Alaska | 739,795 | 0 | 0% |
| 6 | Delaware | 961,939 | 0 | 0% |
| 7 | Connecticut | 3,588,184 | 0 | 0% |
| 8 | Rhode Island | 1,059,639 | 0 | 0% |
| 9 | Nevada | 2,998,039 | 0 | 0% |
| 10 | Maryland | 6,052,177 | 0 | 0% |
| 11 | West Virginia | 1,815,857 | 0 | 0% |
| 12 | New Hampshire | 1,342,795 | 0 | 0% |
| 13 | Pennsylvania | 12,805,537 | 0 | 0% |
| 14 | New Jersey | 9,005,644 | 0 | 0% |
| 15 | North Dakota | 755,393 | 0 | 0% |
| 16 | District of Columbia | 693,972 | 0 | 0% |
| 17 | Vermont | 623,657 | 0 | 0% |
| 18 | Michigan | 9,962,311 | 0 | 0% |
| 19 | Kentucky | 4,454,189 | 0 | 0% |
| 20 | Louisiana | 4,684,333 | 0 | 0% |
Mediator job outlook: Expert opinions
Our panel of mediator experts
Kennesaw State University
University of Oregon
University of Akron
Holt Law
Quinnipiac University
What general advice would you give to a Mediator?
Amanda Reinke: Many industries are looking for conflict resolution experts with adaptable skills. As you embark on a career in conflict resolution, ask yourself: what is my niche? It could be a specific skillset in conflict resolution (e.g., facilitation, negotiation, mediation, etc.) or an area of work (e.g., healthcare, employment settings, court, contracts, etc.). Look for opportunities to network, and for continuing education opportunities to deepen your knowledge in the niche you have identified.
What Mediator skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Amanda Reinke: Skills in managing cross-cultural conflict or issues related to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging are pressing issues and in high demand. Whether it's a workplace dispute resolution, diplomacy, humanitarian, or courts role, skills in working with diverse groups and resolving conflict in these settings are critical and often sought after by government, non-profit, and private employment sectors.
What will help Mediators increase their earning potential?
Amanda Reinke: Practical experience could put you at the top of the prospective hiring list and help you negotiate for a higher salary. There are many ways to gain practical experience, including volunteering at a local conflict resolution center, observing and co-mediating or co-facilitating with an expert in your network, interning, or other opportunities as appropriate to your given niche. Consider ways to augment your coursework with practical experience and skills application. This will also help you network and grow your references list.
Dr. Clare Fowler
VPUniversity of Oregon
Peace Studies And Conflict Resolution
What general advice would you give to a Mediator?
Dr. Clare Fowler: They love being able to help others - to see an immediate and significant impact on someone else's life. When people have been living with difficult, painful conflicts, and then they find an answer, you can see them immediately begin to feel hope. The hard part is that mediators must chart their own path - find their own clients, market themselves, and run their own business.
What Mediator skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Dr. Clare Fowler: The world needs to be able to enter into conversations and communicate with each other about difficult issues. Mediators allow people to have conversations about tough topics, and also teach people skills for connecting.
What will help Mediators increase their earning potential?
Dr. Clare Fowler: There are two main career paths for mediators. 1) They can be part of an organization, working as a consultant, mediating part-time as part of another job, or hired as a full-time mediator. This means that they would spend most of their time meeting with their clients. 2) The other option is to develop their own practice. This gives the mediator more control over their schedule and types of cases, but it also means that they will have to spend a significant portion of their day marketing, invoicing, and scheduling.
Heather Walter Ph.D.
Director and Associate ProfessorUniversity of Akron
The School of Communication
What skills stand out on Mediator resumes?
Heather Walter Ph.D.: Those looking for a career in conflict resolution (mediation, arbitration, facilitation, etc.) should build and profile several important skills. The goal of all conflict interventions is to assist in the transformation of the conflict. Whether this process is part of a formal mediation or an informal meeting of the minds, the conflict resolution professional's job is to find common ground, seek meaningful concessions but not painful to either party and find a way forward toward a sustainable path. Some conflict situations are just misunderstandings, and a third party can help find the already existing mutual agreements. But other conflicts are emotional or explosive or, at the core, completely incompatible and come to a third party because there doesn't seem to be any way forward.
Depending on the type of position desired, there is industry knowledge necessary. So a divorce mediator needs a good understanding of the laws surrounding divorce, but a corporate facilitator needs a good understanding of the companies and their focus that brings them to the disagreement. Thus a conflict resolution professional should have the capacity and desire to build a repository of knowledge surrounding their area of expertise. Regardless of the context, all conflict resolution professionals should be process experts, meaning they can deftly employ the steps needed to lead parties through the conflict. The best way to build these skills is through practice and experience. Thus the greatest stand out in a resume would be internships or other opportunities to employ the theories and principles in real life or simulated situations.
Brendan Holt
Mediator, Collaborative Divorce Attorney, Parenting Coordinator and Guardian Ad LitemHolt Law
What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for Mediators in the next 3-5 years?
Brendan Holt: Wow, technology changes so quickly, that looking out that far is ambiguous. But I think that ultimately, for this field, exciting technology will likely be systems that streamline the processing of large amounts of data and written communications, like contracts or email threads, for example, and help identify patterns and specific issues. The job of actually using empathy and deep listening to help people in conflict better understand and hear one another, and better communicate overlapping interests will probably remain a human skillset. But I think that technology that allows dispute resolution professionals, like mediators, to discover past communication pitfalls and patterns more quickly, will let them get to the work of fostering human communication and connection more readily.
William Logue
Director of Dispute Resolution Training Interim Director of Summer ProgramsQuinnipiac University
Law
What general advice would you give to a Mediator?
William Logue: New graduates in dispute resolution will face a different world than just a few months ago.
If graduates want to start as an independent third-party neutral, it will be challenging to establish a reputation, and bring in business. There are many other opportunities to use and apply the skills - as specialized conflict managers, and dispute resolvers, or using those skills that will make them more useful and valued as part of another job.
Graduates should look at where their skills can be used within organizations - that may be as a mediator, in an ombuds office, in HR, or as a project facilitator. They should think of how their dispute resolution skills can supplement other substantive knowledge to help the organization move forward - especially with more remote work and the tensions that can bring. They can also think about how they can skillfully facilitate work between workgroups and divisions, and act as conflict coaches to individuals.