Travel speech language pathologist salary

A career as a travel speech language pathologist, or travel SLP, can be a rewarding path for clinicians looking to achieve their financial and professional goals. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the demand for speech language pathologists is projected to grow an exceptional 21% by 2031. This bodes well for the profession–as facilities strive to meet this high demand, the opportunities for travel SLPs to increase their pay while providing quality patient care across the country will only continue to flourish. 

At Nomad, we believe the fastest and surest way to increase your salary as a speech language pathologist is through travel. To empower our clinicians with the knowledge to navigate travel salary, we’ve created this comprehensive salary guide. With this guide, you’ll get an overview of the factors that can influence your pay as a travel speech language pathologist, along with the most current salary data for both staff and travelers. So whether you’re trying to negotiate higher pay for an assignment, or are simply wanting to understand industry-wide salary benchmarks for travel SLP jobs, take a look at our guide below. 

Average travel speech language pathologist salary

The average weekly salary or total compensation for travel speech language pathologists at Nomad Health is $2,059 including stipend. Compared to staff speech language pathologists who earn an average pay of around $1,647 per week, becoming a traveler is an excellent way to increase a speech language pathologist's salary.

Speech language pathologist travel salary range

Salary ranges for travel speech language pathologists can change frequently based on compensable factors like location, certifications, and specializations, and more. At Nomad Health, the average weekly salary range or compensation range for travel speech language pathologists is $1,692 to $2,800 including stipend.

Average travel speech language pathologist pay rate

Travel speech language pathologists at Nomad Health earn an average hourly pay rate of $53 per hour. On the high end, travelers can earn as much as $70 per hour.

What is the highest salary for a travel SLP therapist?

The highest weekly salary or compensation reported for travel speech language pathologists at Nomad Health is $2,800 including stipend. Keep in mind that travel speech language pathologist salaries can always increase or decrease depending on factors like the ones mentioned above.

Speech language pathologist salary factors

Travel speech language pathologist pay is influenced by a number of compensable factors, which include but are not limited to:

Travel speech language pathologist experience

Facilities are always looking for highly skilled speech language pathologists with experience who can start their assignments at full speed. The more relevant experience you have as a travel speech language pathologist, the more willing a facility is to pay you a higher salary for your skills.

Travel speech language pathologist education

Travel speech language pathologists are required to have a Master’s degree in Speech Language Pathology from an accredited school, along with a set number of Required Professional Experience (RPE) hours. The clinician must also pass the national exam, the Praxis test in Speech Language and Pathology.

Travel SLP specialization

Travel speech language pathologists who specialize in different populations such as pediatrics and neonatal may be able to negotiate a higher pay rate compared to travel speech language pathologists without specialization experience.

Certifications

As a travel speech language pathologist, earning certifications such as the Certificate of Clinical Competence in Speech-Language Pathology (CCC-SLP) issued by American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) demonstrates advanced clinical proficiency and increased knowledge. Having more credentials can help you stand out amongst your peers and give you more bargaining power with facilities. Some states require SLPs to have this certification.

Facility demand

When facilities experience speech language pathologist shortages, they often rely on travel SLPs to fill those gaps. Depending on the severity of the shortage, travel SLPs may be able to negotiate a higher pay with the facility.

Location

The cost of living in each city and state will directly influence how much pay facilities can offer travel speech language pathologists. For example, a travel SLP assignment in a rural area is likely to pay less than a travel assignment in a big city where the cost of living is higher.