Annual Salary, Salary Range, and Highest Paying States and Industries
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Secretaries
Secretaries perform routine administrative functions such as drafting correspondence, scheduling appointments, organizing and maintaining paper and electronic files, or providing information to callers.
Table of contents
- Average salary
- Starting salary
- Salary rank
- Salary range
- Highest paying states
- Highest paying industries
Average salary
Starting salary
Entry-level Secretaries and Administrative Assistants with little to no experience can expect to make anywhere between $25,630 to $31,180 per year or $12 to $15 per hour. Similar to any other job, their salary will increase as they gain experience.
Salary rank
We wanted to make it easy for our readers to compare the salary of Secretaries and Administrative Assistants to all the other careers out there. So we created Salary Rank. We compared the salary of all careers then we gave them a rank of A, B, C, or D depending on where their average salary sit in comparison to other careers.
Salary range
| Level | Hourly | Annual |
|---|---|---|
| Highest (Top 10%) | $28 | $59,090 |
| Senior (Top 25%) | $23 | $48,860 |
| Middle (Mid 50%) | $19 | $38,850 |
| Junior (Bottom 25%) | $15 | $31,180 |
| No experience (Bottom 10%) | $12 | $25,630 |
Highest paying states
| State | Hourly | Annual |
|---|---|---|
| DC | $24 | $50,210 |
| CT | $24 | $50,120 |
| MA | $24 | $49,490 |
| CA | $22 | $46,380 |
| WA | $22 | $46,090 |
| RI | $22 | $46,020 |
| HI | $22 | $45,160 |
| NJ | $22 | $44,820 |
| AK | $21 | $44,510 |
| OR | $21 | $43,750 |
Another simple way to increase your salary as a Secretary and Administrative Assistant is to move to a higher paying state. However moving to a higher paying state like DC doesn’t guarantee that you will make more because the expenses at DC might be much higher than where you are currently living at right now.
According to BLS, the highest paid Secretaries are in the states of DC, CT, MA, CA and WA.
Highest paying industries
| Salary by industry | Annual | Hourly |
|---|---|---|
| Postal Service (Federal Government) | $60920 | $29.29 |
| Monetary Authorities-Central Bank | $55750 | $26.80 |
| Federal Executive Branch | $54190 | $26.05 |
| Manufacturing and Reproducing Magnetic and Optical Media | $51640 | $24.83 |
| Motor Vehicle Manufacturing | $51460 | $24.74 |
| Natural Gas Distribution | $51180 | $24.61 |
| Scientific Research and Development Services | $49720 | $23.91 |
| Aerospace Product and Parts Manufacturing | $49230 | $23.67 |
| Navigational, Measuring, Electromedical, and Control Instruments Manufacturing | $49230 | $23.67 |
| Audio and Video Equipment Manufacturing | $48520 | $23.33 |
| Communications Equipment Manufacturing | $47980 | $23.07 |
| Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution | $47950 | $23.06 |
| Semiconductor and Other Electronic Component Manufacturing | $47550 | $22.86 |
| Telecommunications | $47260 | $22.72 |
| Couriers and Express Delivery Services | $46750 | $22.47 |
| Ship and Boat Building | $46670 | $22.44 |
| Metal Ore Mining | $46580 | $22.39 |
| Software Publishers | $46390 | $22.30 |
| Insurance Carriers | $46390 | $22.30 |
| Insurance and Employee Benefit Funds | $46340 | $22.28 |
| Commercial and Service Industry Machinery Manufacturing | $46200 | $22.21 |
| Cable and Other Subscription Programming | $46160 | $22.19 |
| Pharmaceutical and Medicine Manufacturing | $45820 | $22.03 |
| Computer and Peripheral Equipment Manufacturing | $45820 | $22.03 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | $45780 | $22.01 |
| Securities, Commodity Contracts, and Other Financial Investments and Related Activities | $45610 | $21.93 |
| Amusement Parks and Arcades | $45590 | $21.92 |
| Other Information Services | $45560 | $21.90 |
| Engine, Turbine, and Power Transmission Equipment Manufacturing | $45530 | $21.89 |
| Credit Intermediation and Related Activities | $44880 | $21.58 |
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