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Job outlook for worship leaders in the United States
Are worship leader jobs in demand?
Worship leader job and salary trends over time
Worship leader jobs over time
Worship leader job growth rate over time
| Year | # of jobs | % of population |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 3,166 | 0.00% |
| 2020 | 3,257 | 0.00% |
| 2019 | 3,314 | 0.00% |
| 2018 | 3,176 | 0.00% |
| 2017 | 3,107 | 0.00% |
Average worship leader salary over time
Worship leader salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $47,463 | $22.82 | +3.1% |
| 2024 | $46,055 | $22.14 | +2.9% |
| 2023 | $44,767 | $21.52 | +4.0% |
| 2022 | $43,040 | $20.69 | +3.0% |
| 2021 | $41,797 | $20.09 | +3.4% |
Worship leader jobs by state
Most common states for worship leaders
| Rank | State | Population | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | 693,972 | 217 | 31% |
| 2 | Massachusetts | 6,859,819 | 1,277 | 19% |
| 3 | North Dakota | 755,393 | 140 | 19% |
| 4 | Alaska | 739,795 | 115 | 16% |
| 5 | Nebraska | 1,920,076 | 270 | 14% |
| 6 | Montana | 1,050,493 | 147 | 14% |
| 7 | Oregon | 4,142,776 | 519 | 13% |
| 8 | South Dakota | 869,666 | 110 | 13% |
| 9 | Washington | 7,405,743 | 883 | 12% |
| 10 | Rhode Island | 1,059,639 | 131 | 12% |
| 11 | New Mexico | 2,088,070 | 196 | 9% |
| 12 | New Hampshire | 1,342,795 | 24 | 2% |
| 13 | Delaware | 961,939 | 20 | 2% |
| 14 | Wyoming | 579,315 | 12 | 2% |
| 15 | California | 39,536,653 | 230 | 1% |
| 16 | Connecticut | 3,588,184 | 33 | 1% |
| 17 | Nevada | 2,998,039 | 22 | 1% |
| 18 | Maine | 1,335,907 | 16 | 1% |
| 19 | West Virginia | 1,815,857 | 12 | 1% |
| 20 | Vermont | 623,657 | 9 | 1% |
Most common cities for worship leaders
| Rank | City | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl | Avg. salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Santa Monica | 1 | 1% | $55,796 |
| 2 | Orlando | 1 | 0% | $41,254 |
Worship Leader job outlook: Expert opinions
Our panel of worship leader experts
Bethel University
Baylor School of Music
Jessica Tangen Daniels Ph.D.
Associate Provost - Innovation and Partnerships, Program Director/Professor, Ed.D. Leadership in Higher EducationBethel University
Education Leadership
What soft skills should all Worship Leaders possess?
Jessica Tangen Daniels Ph.D.: With the rapid rate of change, accelerating information turnover, and boundless access to knowledge, certain new soft skills may now be prioritized in our current society. So we all have to be learners, seeking new information, anticipating that we will need to change our mind, and striving for a disposition of curiosity. The specific skill of asking good questions cannot be underestimated.
Employers may be seeking skills like imaginative bridging, humbly and curiously connecting dots. Or the skills of facilitation and curation, with so many different perspectives and lived experiences, and an overabundance of information, an educational leader, must manage people, perspectives, and content like never before.
Employers are looking for skills that relate to not only the day-to-day tactical aspects of educational leadership but also imaginative problem-solving for a thriving future.
What skills will help Worship Leaders earn the most?
Jessica Tangen Daniels Ph.D.: For educational leaders, I'm not convinced discrete skills equate to salary. Working hard and working well with others, with a disposition of humility and curiosity, is really powerful. Perhaps the combination of soft and hard skills gained through diverse experiences, positions, and institutional contexts results in the highest earning potential.
What general advice would you give to a Worship Leader?
Dr. Randall Bradley: Yes, I believe that the COVID-19 will have a lasting effect on our students and on the church. For starters, it has been more difficult than usual to place our students because church search committees stopped meeting in March, and it was impossible for churches to host our graduates for interviews and meet-and-greet opportunities that are so vital to church placement. However, I believe that some of the enduring impacts of the coronavirus pandemic will be the greater role that technology will play in churches of all sizes moving forward.
Nearly every church I know (even very small ones) has found ways to use technology to remain connected to their worshiping community. I don't think that this development is something that will end with the pandemic. I see our future graduates playing larger roles in helping to prepare worship that communicates not only to those gathered in the worship space live, but also to the virtual worshipers who join in from many other places. Also, the sheer volume of technology that churches have purchased during this time will need to be used in their congregations moving forward.
I also think that future worship leaders will be challenged to discover new ways in which virtual worship can be considered fresh and creative, rather than just an airing of what is in the worship space. Churches are going to demand greater innovation and creativity going forward, and future ministers are going to be challenged at this point. Lastly, I think that once we have all exercised greater dependence on technology during the pandemic, and experienced first-hand its potential for effectiveness, we will never return to our old ways of doing things. These changes will affect the ways in which meetings are held; administrative decisions are made, personnel is managed, and more. These implications will alter the way that worship leaders not only plan and lead worship but also how they implement and administer their ministries.