Yes, $100k Is Real — Here's When to Walk Away Anyway

Before the tea: What follows is a recap of what people said publicly on Reddit — not Pair's salary bands. We're not naming employers. Corrections: contact@pairaba.com.

Girl. You just passed. The group chat is already doing that thing where someone drops "six figures" like it's a personality test.

So of course you open Reddit and ask: is $90–100k+ right out of grad school actually realistic in ABA?

Short answer from the crowd: yes — in a lot of markets. Longer answer: the sticker number is not the offer.

The scene Reddit actually cast

Some reported starting around $80–85k, with $90k+ becoming more common after a few years. Others said larger companies, higher-cost-of-living areas, and some school settings can hit that $90–100k+ range earlier.

One BCBA accepted an offer around $90k before finishing their first year—and even turned down a $100k offer. Their setup: about six clients, 27.5 billable hours per week, fully in-clinic.

The plot twist nobody puts on the offer slide

Some clinicians warned that higher starting salaries can also come with larger caseloads, less supervision, and heavier productivity expectations.

That's the Pair decode in one line: sticker salary ≠ sustainable math.

Three questions before you celebrate the $100k

1. What's the weekly billable requirement — and what happens when cancellations hit?

2. What's the caseload range for a first-year BCBA, and who actually supervises me?

3. Why is the number this high?

Pair's Take

We screen the offer the way the floor screens the offer: pay plus caseload plus billables plus supervision. Your cert is expensive. Don't rent it to a shop that bought your silence with a round number.

Want offers where the math is already green?

Tell us your location, setting, schedule, salary goals, and non-negotiables. We'll show you what's open.

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