Annual Salary, Salary Range, and Highest Paying States and Industries
.jpg)
Paralegals and Legal Assistants
Paralegals and Legal Assistants assist lawyers by investigating facts, preparing legal documents, or researching legal precedent. Conduct research to support a legal proceeding, to formulate a defense, or to initiate legal action.
Table of contents
- Average salary
- Starting salary
- Salary rank
- Salary range
- Highest paying states
- Highest paying industries
Average salary
Starting salary
Entry-level Paralegals and Legal Assistants with little to no experience can expect to make anywhere between $32,900 to $40,640 per year or $16 to $20 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 Paralegals and Legal 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%) | $41 | $85,160 |
| Senior (Top 25%) | $32 | $67,080 |
| Middle (Mid 50%) | $25 | $52,920 |
| Junior (Bottom 25%) | $20 | $40,640 |
| No experience (Bottom 10%) | $16 | $32,900 |
Highest paying states
| State | Hourly | Annual |
|---|---|---|
| DC | $40 | $83,330 |
| CA | $32 | $66,250 |
| WA | $30 | $63,050 |
| CO | $30 | $62,950 |
| NY | $30 | $62,530 |
| MA | $30 | $62,160 |
| NJ | $29 | $61,150 |
| CT | $29 | $61,070 |
| IL | $29 | $60,390 |
| NV | $29 | $60,140 |
Another simple way to increase your salary as a Paralegal and Legal 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 Paralegals and Legal Asst are in the states of DC, CA, WA, CO and NY.
Highest paying industries
| Salary by industry | Annual | Hourly |
|---|---|---|
| Merchant Wholesalers, Nondurable Goods | $134210 | $64.52 |
| Land Subdivision | $90360 | $43.44 |
| Semiconductor and Other Electronic Component Manufacturing | $85440 | $41.08 |
| Grantmaking and Giving Services | $85350 | $41.03 |
| Natural Gas Distribution | $84300 | $40.53 |
| Scientific Research and Development Services | $83880 | $40.33 |
| Computer and Peripheral Equipment Manufacturing | $82620 | $39.72 |
| Merchant Wholesalers, Nondurable Goods | $82420 | $39.63 |
| Other Information Services | $82410 | $39.62 |
| Wholesale Electronic Markets and Agents and Brokers | $80140 | $38.53 |
| Medical and Diagnostic Laboratories | $80020 | $38.47 |
| Aerospace Product and Parts Manufacturing | $79690 | $38.31 |
| Computer Systems Design and Related Services | $79460 | $38.20 |
| Navigational, Measuring, Electromedical, and Control Instruments Manufacturing | $79380 | $38.16 |
| Software Publishers | $78310 | $37.65 |
| Medical Equipment and Supplies Manufacturing | $77920 | $37.46 |
| Cable and Other Subscription Programming | $77800 | $37.41 |
| Other Miscellaneous Manufacturing | $77660 | $37.33 |
| Other Investment Pools and Funds | $76560 | $36.81 |
| Telecommunications | $76220 | $36.64 |
| Oil and Gas Extraction | $75630 | $36.36 |
| Travel Arrangement and Reservation Services | $75570 | $36.33 |
| Freight Transportation Arrangement | $74700 | $35.91 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | $74390 | $35.76 |
| Chemical Manufacturing | $74250 | $35.70 |
| Couriers and Express Delivery Services | $74140 | $35.64 |
| Electronic Shopping and Mail-Order Houses | $73710 | $35.44 |
| Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services | $73040 | $35.12 |
| Federal Executive Branch | $72930 | $35.06 |
| Professional and Commercial Equipment and Supplies Merchant Wholesalers | $72540 | $34.87 |
Explore Other Careers
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
Don’t know which career to pursue?
Take the career quiz to find careers that match your personality type. Take The Career Quiz
