Veterinary Assistant Salary in New York
Veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers in New York — BLS publishes the two as one combined occupation, SOC 31-9096 — earned a median annual wage of $44,750 in the May 2025 estimates, $6,600 or 17% above the national median of $38,150.
That ranks 9th of the 51 jurisdictions that publish a median.
The distinctive part is the shape: the lead is widest at the floor — the state's 10th percentile is 21% above the national one — and thinnest at the 75th, 2% above.
What these figures cover
10th percentile
$36,450
25th percentile
$38,610
75th percentile
$46,560
90th percentile
$53,460
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 state estimates — New York, SOC 31-9096 (Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers). Retrieved 2026-09-16 from the BLS Public Data API.
How to read these figures
New York vs. the national figures
The New York median is above the national median by 17%. Among the 51 jurisdictions (states plus DC) where BLS publishes a Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers (SOC 31-9096) median for May 2025, it ranks 9th, and 5th by estimated employment.
Differences are whole percentages, rounded half away from zero, computed from the figures shown.
Above the national line at every percentile, thinnest at the 75th
New York sits above the national figures at every published percentile, but not by the same margin.
The 10th percentile, $36,450, is 21% above the national $30,120 — the widest lead in the distribution, and a figure that clears even the national 25th percentile of $35,660.
At the median the lead is 17%, $44,750 against $38,150.
At the 75th it thins to almost nothing: $46,560 is 2% above the national $45,710, before the top decile widens the gap again to 9% above at $53,460.
Someone benchmarking a New York offer at the 25th or 75th percentile against national figures would see only a small premium; at the floor and the middle, the premium is substantial.
A narrow middle band with the median pressed against its top
Half of the New York workers counted earned between $38,610 and $46,560, a middle band $7,950 wide — narrower than the national band of $10,050.
From the 10th to the 90th percentile the state spans $17,010, against $19,030 nationally.
Inside the band the median sits high: $6,140 above the 25th percentile and only $1,810 below the 75th, where the national median sits $2,490 above its 25th and $7,560 below its 75th.
Above the band the range opens up again — $6,900 separates the 75th and 90th percentiles in New York, against $3,440 nationally.
OEWS does not publish why a distribution has this shape, so this page does not assign it a cause.
Holding an hourly posting against these figures
The hourly median in New York is $21.52, against $18.34 nationally — $3.18 more, the same 17% gap as the annual median.
The data set carries hourly pay at the median only, so it is the one figure to hold an hourly posting against.
For the rest of the range, ask how many hours a week the role is scheduled before comparing a posted rate with the annual percentiles.
A large employment estimate, for a combined occupation
BLS estimates 5,790 people were employed in this combined occupation in New York, 5th among the jurisdictions that publish an employment figure.
That count includes laboratory animal caretakers as well as veterinary assistants, in a split BLS does not publish.
It is a headcount of people in jobs during the survey period — not a count of openings, and not a measure of how quickly positions are filled.
Against the New York vet tech median
In the same release, New York's veterinary technologists and technicians have a median of $59,010, which is $14,260, or 32%, above the median for this occupation.
On an hourly basis the technician median is $28.37 against $21.52 — $6.85 more.
Read that as the distance between two BLS occupations in one state, not as a raise any one person should expect: the two rows count different groups of workers.
Same release, same state: veterinary technologists and technicians (SOC 29-2056) in New York have a median of $59,010 ($28.37/hr) — $14,260 above the veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers median shown on this page. Vet tech salary in New York →
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the median veterinary assistant salary in New York?
BLS does not publish veterinary assistants on their own.
The closest figure is SOC 31-9096, Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers, whose New York median annual wage was $44,750 in May 2025, or $21.52 an hour.
Half of those counted earned more and half earned less.
The national median for the same occupation is $38,150, so New York sits 17% above it.
How much do the top-paid workers in this occupation earn in New York?
The New York 90th percentile is $53,460, meaning one in ten workers counted in SOC 31-9096 earned more than that.
Nationally the 90th percentile is $49,150, so the New York figure is $4,310, or 9%, higher.
Because the occupation combines veterinary assistants with laboratory animal caretakers, the figure cannot say which of the two groups sits at the top.
What does the low end of pay look like in New York?
The New York 10th percentile is $36,450, 21% above the national floor of $30,120 — the widest lead anywhere in the distribution, and a figure higher than the national 25th percentile of $35,660.
The state's 25th percentile is $38,610, 8% above the national $35,660.
A percentile is a position in a distribution, not an experience level, so these figures describe where the lower part of the range falls, not what any career stage earns.
How does this compare with vet tech pay in New York?
In the same BLS release, veterinary technologists and technicians in New York have a median of $59,010, against $44,750 for veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers — a difference of $14,260, or 32% on this occupation's median.
The technician median is 1.3 times this occupation's median.
The two figures describe different occupations, so the gap is context for a career decision, not a promised raise.
How many veterinary assistants work in New York?
BLS estimates 5,790 people employed in SOC 31-9096 in New York, 5th among the jurisdictions that publish an employment figure.
That number combines veterinary assistants with laboratory animal caretakers, so it overstates clinic assistants alone by an amount BLS does not publish.
It is a headcount of people in jobs, not a count of vacancies.
More New York Veterinary Assistant Resources
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 state estimates — New York, SOC 31-9096 Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers, and SOC 29-2056 for the technician comparison (BLS Public Data API) (retrieved 2026-09-16)
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 national estimates — SOC 31-9096 (via O*NET OnLine) (retrieved 2026-08-15)
Wage figures: BLS OEWS May 2025 state and national estimates, SOC 31-9096, retrieved 2026-09-16. Page last updated 2026-09-24.