Find a Job You Really Want In
Editors are one of the most common jobs in America. Additionally, a significant number of people work as editors in every state in the union — it’s not like they are all just concentrated in California or the South.
Since editors are such a prominent occupation, we at Zippia wanted to look at where editors have it the best: where there are plenty of jobs to go around and people get paid what they deserve during every phase of their career.
To that end, we dove into the numbers from the BLS to figure out which states have the best opportunities for editors.
After all the numbers had been crunched, we were left with this list of the best of best for America’s editors:
So there you have it — Editors is the best of the best when it comes to being an editor.
How did Editors end up here and does it really deserve this ranking? Read on to see how we completed our research on the best states for editors and for more on the top ten states.
If youĂÂre interested, you can read more about the job scene here:
- These Are The 10 Best Cities For Editors
- These Are The 100 Highest Paying Jobs In Virginia
- These Are The 100 Highest Paying Jobs In Virginia Beach
How we determined the best states to be an editor
Here at Zippia, we talk to a lot of people of all different backgrounds looking for jobs. Our research has concluded that there are two common things people want in a job:
- Availability of jobs
- Higher Pay
So in order to find out the best states for editors in America we needed to figure out where the jobs are and how well editors get paid. This led to the following criteria taken from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’s Occupational Employment Statistics for 2018:
- Location quotient. A measure of how common a job is a given state.
- Average annual salary.
- Average annual salary for entry level work.
- Average annual salary for experienced professionals.
To make all the salary numbers more apples to apples across states, we compared the salary data relative to the state’s cost of living.
Applying this standardization allows us to account for that fact that it costs more to live in certain in states. For example, the average salary for editors in California is $78,150 and the average salary in Illinois is $62,590, but the Illinois salary actually goes further in paying for life’s essentials.
In order to develop and overall ranking, we ranked each state for each criteria from 1 to 50 where 1 was the best.
We then averaged all the rankings for a state into a Job Score with the state having the lowest overall Job Score earning the distinction of being the best state for editors in America.
So without further ado, let’s get into just what made each state so great for editors.
1. Virginia
Total Jobs: 3,450
Average Annual Salary: $72,660
Average Entry Level Salary: $31,350
Average Experienced Salary: $118,640
Location Quotient: 1.36
2. Massachusetts
Total Jobs: 3,160
Average Annual Salary: $89,280
Average Entry Level Salary: $42,090
Average Experienced Salary: $150,990
Location Quotient: 1.34
3. Illinois
Total Jobs: 3,830
Average Annual Salary: $62,590
Average Entry Level Salary: $34,200
Average Experienced Salary: $98,140
Location Quotient: 0.97
4. Texas
Total Jobs: 5,490
Average Annual Salary: $72,300
Average Entry Level Salary: $31,090
Average Experienced Salary: $121,510
Location Quotient: 0.68
5. Utah
Total Jobs: 960
Average Annual Salary: $60,990
Average Entry Level Salary: $28,790
Average Experienced Salary: $111,440
Location Quotient: 1.0
6. North Carolina
Total Jobs: 2,090
Average Annual Salary: $67,450
Average Entry Level Salary: $31,110
Average Experienced Salary: $102,660
Location Quotient: 0.72
7. New York
Total Jobs: 19,140
Average Annual Salary: $83,070
Average Entry Level Salary: $37,230
Average Experienced Salary: $146,620
Location Quotient: 3.08
8. Georgia
Total Jobs: 2,190
Average Annual Salary: $61,330
Average Entry Level Salary: $27,970
Average Experienced Salary: $113,200
Location Quotient: 0.75
9. Minnesota
Total Jobs: 2,700
Average Annual Salary: $58,820
Average Entry Level Salary: $32,030
Average Experienced Salary: $91,970
Location Quotient: 1.43
10. Washington
Total Jobs: 1,830
Average Annual Salary: $67,560
Average Entry Level Salary: $34,160
Average Experienced Salary: $104,010
Location Quotient: 0.85
There You Have It – The Best States To Be An Editor
If you’re looking to start out your career as an editor these are the states that should be at the top of your list. You’ll find high pay, available jobs, and chances for career advancement.
If you’re curious, here are the worst states to be an editor in America:
For more reading, check out:
- These Are The 100 Largest Companies In Virginia
Detailed List Of The Best States For editors
| Rank | State | Average Salary |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Virginia | $72,660 |
| 2 | Massachusetts | $89,280 |
| 3 | Illinois | $62,590 |
| 4 | Texas | $72,300 |
| 5 | Utah | $60,990 |
| 6 | North Carolina | $67,450 |
| 7 | New York | $83,070 |
| 8 | Georgia | $61,330 |
| 9 | Minnesota | $58,820 |
| 10 | Washington | $67,560 |
| 11 | Delaware | $68,790 |
| 12 | New Jersey | $74,130 |
| 13 | Michigan | $58,150 |
| 14 | Tennessee | $54,400 |
| 15 | Pennsylvania | $62,870 |
| 16 | Ohio | $60,670 |
| 17 | Arizona | $57,180 |
| 18 | Connecticut | $71,260 |
| 19 | California | $78,150 |
| 20 | Florida | $58,200 |
| 21 | Iowa | $51,480 |
| 22 | Colorado | $59,120 |
| 23 | Missouri | $55,460 |
| 24 | Indiana | $51,800 |
| 25 | Rhode Island | $66,900 |
| 26 | Nevada | $56,790 |
| 27 | Wyoming | $49,550 |
| 28 | New Hampshire | $57,750 |
| 29 | Hawaii | $78,390 |
| 30 | Wisconsin | $48,630 |
| 31 | Nebraska | $47,910 |
| 32 | West Virginia | $52,910 |
| 33 | Idaho | $48,160 |
| 34 | Kansas | $50,390 |
| 35 | Oklahoma | $44,380 |
| 36 | Maryland | $59,560 |
| 37 | Arkansas | $47,480 |
| 38 | Oregon | $55,610 |
| 39 | South Carolina | $46,630 |
| 40 | Vermont | $48,910 |
| 41 | Maine | $50,650 |
| 42 | Mississippi | $46,070 |
| 43 | Kentucky | $44,050 |
| 44 | South Dakota | $48,100 |
| 45 | New Mexico | $44,370 |
| 46 | Montana | $41,030 |
| 47 | Louisiana | $42,340 |
| 48 | Alaska | $50,790 |
Author
Chris Kolmar is a co-founder of Zippia and the editor-in-chief of the Zippia career advice blog. He has hired over 50 people in his career, been hired five times, and wants to help you land your next job. His research has been featured on the New York Times, Thrillist, VOX, The Atlantic, and a host of local news. More recently, he's been quoted on USA Today, BusinessInsider, and CNBC.
