Secretaries and Administrative Assistants salary in the US
Here is where pay for secretaries and administrative assistants stands nationally, built from Census microdata rather than job-board postings.
How much do secretaries and administrative assistants earn?
If you lined up all secretaries and administrative assistants by pay, the person in the middle would earn about $40,610 a year — 23% less than the $52,508 median for all US earners aged 25 and older. It finishes 122nd of 171 on median pay — below the halfway mark but clear of the lowest-paid groups. That estimate rests on 110,925 individual Census survey responses from workers 25 and up.
| Position | Annual earnings |
|---|---|
| Top 10% start at | $76,611 |
| Top 25% start at | $56,677 |
| Median (top 50%) | $40,610 |
| Bottom 25% earn below | $25,187 |
How wide is the pay range?
The top 25% of secretaries and administrative assistants earn at least $56,677, and the top 10% start near $76,611 — about 1.9 times the median. A quarter of workers in the field made $25,187 or less over the year — a figure shaped by part-time and seasonal work as much as by hourly rates. So the distance from the bottom quarter to the middle is a factor of 1.6.
Earnings by age
The curve peaks late — $43,993 at 55–64 against $36,867 at 25–34. After the peak, the 65+ group's median falls to $31,484 (28% lower), largely because more older workers cut back their hours.
Men and women
Women in this occupation have a median of $40,327, 18% below the $48,891 men report. In the raw sample, roughly 94 in 100 workers in this job are women. Part of that difference reflects hours worked and job level within the occupation, which these totals don't control for.
| Group | Median earnings | Survey records |
|---|---|---|
| Men | $48,891 | 6,371 |
| Women | $40,327 | 104,554 |
Does education change the pay?
From a high school education or less to a doctorate, the median rises from $38,302 to $47,730, a 25% gap. 49,002 of the records belong to people with some college or an associate degree, the biggest single group; we suppress levels with fewer than 100.
| Education | Median earnings | Survey records |
|---|---|---|
| High school or less | $38,302 | 31,868 |
| Some college / associate | $40,693 | 49,002 |
| Bachelor's | $42,691 | 24,031 |
| Master's | $44,688 | 5,192 |
| Professional degree | $40,610 | 543 |
| Doctorate | $47,730 | 289 |
Where the most work, and what they earn there
In terms of headcount in the survey, California, Texas, New York, Florida, and Pennsylvania lead the country. The state medians range from $36,867 in Florida up to $47,722 in California. These are nominal dollars — living costs differ just as much between states and aren't adjusted for. 51 states have enough records (100+) for their own figure.
| State | Median earnings | Survey records |
|---|---|---|
| California | $47,722 | 10,412 |
| Texas | $39,102 | 8,966 |
| New York | $47,226 | 7,184 |
| Florida | $36,867 | 6,426 |
| Pennsylvania | $39,880 | 5,802 |
Occupations with similar pay
Occupations with a median close to $40,610 include industrial truck and tractor operators ($40,929), customer service representatives ($39,880), pharmacy technicians ($39,595), and miscellaneous production workers, including equipment operators and tenders ($41,763). They aren't interchangeable careers, though the middle of the pay distribution is close.
| Occupation | Median earnings | vs. this job |
|---|---|---|
| Industrial Truck And Tractor Operators | $40,929 | +1% |
| Customer Service Representatives | $39,880 | −2% |
| Pharmacy Technicians | $39,595 | −2% |
| Miscellaneous Production Workers, Including Equipment Operators And Tenders | $41,763 | +3% |
| Shipping, Receiving, And Inventory Clerks | $39,297 | −3% |
About these figures
A note on definitions: figures cover everyone 25+ with earnings in this occupation over 2020–2024, inflation-adjusted to 2024, full-time or not. Medians are weighted to the US population; suppressed cells are those under 100 records. The occupation total is 110,925 records.
See where your pay ranks among secretaries and administrative assistants
Opens the calculator with this occupation already selected. Your income stays in your browser — it's never put in the link.
Open the calculatorSource: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-Year Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) — personal earnings (PERNP) in 2024 dollars, person-weighted
Reference statistics only — not financial advice.