Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between pastors and chaplains can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a pastor and a chaplain. Additionally, a chaplain has an average salary of $46,392, which is higher than the $44,787 average annual salary of a pastor.
The top three skills for a pastor include community outreach, overseer and bible study. The most important skills for a chaplain are patients, social work, and clinical pastoral.
| Pastor | Chaplain | |
| Yearly salary | $44,787 | $46,392 |
| Hourly rate | $21.53 | $22.30 |
| Growth rate | - | - |
| Number of jobs | 494 | 2,600 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 48% |
| Average age | 51 | 51 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
Pastors are considered the leader of a church whose primary role is to give sermons to church members. They also have other duties, including conducting worship services, planning weekly sermons, and interpreting scriptures for the congregation. As the church leader, they provide counseling and care to their members and offer support in times of crisis. Their job also allows them to officiate at special events like weddings, baptisms, and confirmations. Also, they are responsible for overseeing and supporting congregation staff and ensuring the functionality of church facilities.
The word chaplain is originally referred to as representatives of the Christian faith. In tradition, a chaplain is a cleric or formal leader with an established religion or any non-ordained members of religious institutes. Chaplains now are diverse in terms of faith and often serve various constituencies. Chaplains are professionally trained and certified to provide spiritual guidance in a clinical setting to individuals who has issues with meaning, hope, and transcendence or any specific life circumstances it may be. They offer reflective listening and non-judgmental emotional and inner comfort in various settings, including the military, parishes, hospitals, prisons, universities, and schools.
Pastors and chaplains have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Pastor | Chaplain | |
| Average salary | $44,787 | $46,392 |
| Salary range | Between $30,000 And $64,000 | Between $25,000 And $83,000 |
| Highest paying City | Worcester, MA | San Jose, CA |
| Highest paying state | Hawaii | California |
| Best paying company | Bethel Church | UofL Hospital |
| Best paying industry | Education | Health Care |
There are a few differences between a pastor and a chaplain in terms of educational background:
| Pastor | Chaplain | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 48% |
| Most common major | Theology | Theology |
| Most common college | Emory University | Emory University |
Here are the differences between pastors' and chaplains' demographics:
| Pastor | Chaplain | |
| Average age | 51 | 51 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 87.1% Female, 12.9% | Male, 68.3% Female, 31.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.7% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 9.0% Asian, 6.6% White, 68.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 11.8% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 9.0% Asian, 6.6% White, 68.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 16% | 16% |