Research Summary. The Zippia data team has compiled average salary estimates for account executive positions across the United States using a blend of public government data and insights from thousands of current job postings. This report identifies the highest-paying types of account executives based on their average annual salaries.
Here’s a summary of our findings for the highest-paying account executive roles:
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Account Director tops the list as the highest-paid account executive, with an average salary of $114,728 and an average hourly rate of $55.16.
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The second highest-paid role is Senior Sales Executive, earning an average salary of $110,808.
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The overall average salary for account executives stands at $69,618 per year, translating to an average hourly pay of $33.47.
Table Of Contents: Background | Table | Methodology | FAQs
Background
Choosing a career path can be challenging. While salary shouldn’t be the sole factor in your decision, it plays a crucial role. If you aspire to work as an account executive, understanding the highest-paid roles can help you strategize your career trajectory.
Here are the top salaries for various types of account executives:
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Account Director
Average Salary: $114,728
An Account Director manages client accounts, oversees budgets, and forecasts sales. Their responsibility is to ensure effective account management strategies, meet client demands, cultivate professional relationships that drive revenue, enhance profitability, and align with the company’s long-term goals. They supervise account management teams, ensuring projects are completed efficiently and accurately. Additionally, Account Directors design training programs to optimize team performance, particularly in high-pressure situations.
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Senior Sales Executive
Average Salary: $110,808
Senior Sales Executives are vital team leaders responsible for guiding customer representatives to meet sales targets. They analyze market trends to identify improvements for products and services, ensure customer satisfaction, and prepare account plans and sales reports for upper management. Promptly addressing customer complaints is also a key aspect of their role.
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Business Development Executive
Average Salary: $97,871
A Business Development Executive serves as a key driver of sales within the company. They engage existing clients for upselling while also sourcing new clients. Their focus revolves around lead generation, prospect management, and customer acquisition. Essential skills include customer relations, time management, effective written communication, and familiarity with the sales process.
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Wholesale Account Executive
Average Salary: $87,073
Wholesale Account Executives represent their firms at industry events and professional organizations to advance the company’s wholesale brand. They optimize geographic opportunities, build and sustain a robust account base, and enhance account relationships through exceptional service. Collaboration with sales teams is vital to ensure customer needs are met while staying abreast of adoption trends and innovations.
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Senior Account Executive
Average Salary: $84,118
A Senior Account Executive drives sales targets, develops strategies to expand the client base, resolves account issues, and recommends guidelines to boost company sales. They oversee and guide a team of representatives and account executives to reach shared goals. Effective communication is essential, as they frequently interact with clients and negotiate contracts.
Below is a comprehensive table detailing the average pay for various account executive roles, followed by an explanation of our methodology.
Highest-Paying Types Of Account Executives
Methodology
Zippia employs publicly available information from government entities such as the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), Foreign Labor Certification Data Center (FLC), and the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to develop its salary estimates.
The data science team also reviews current job postings and company-published resources for updated salary information specific to account executives.
After compiling the data, the team calculates a weighted average for each job title. For further details about our salary estimates, please refer to our detailed methodology.
Highest-Paying Types Of Account Executive Jobs FAQs
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What is the highest-paid account executive job?
The highest-paid account executive job is an Account Director. Account Directors earn an average salary of $114,728, which equates to $55.16 hourly.
An Account Director is tasked with managing client accounts, monitoring budgets, and forecasting sales. They aim to sustain effective account management strategies, fulfill client demands, foster professional relationships that drive revenue, and meet the organization’s long-term objectives. They supervise account management staff, ensuring projects are completed with efficiency and accuracy, and also design training programs to enhance team performance.
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What is a good salary for an account executive?
A good salary for an account executive is $69,618 or more. This figure represents the average account executive salary, meaning those earning at least this amount are above average.
However, it’s important to note that average salaries can vary significantly based on location, as businesses adjust their pay scales according to local living costs. It’s advisable to research the average salary in your region for someone with your level of expertise and experience to gauge if you’re being fairly compensated.
If you’re just embarking on your career as an account executive, remember that the average entry-level salary can be considerably lower than the overall average, which includes all experience levels.
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Do account executive jobs pay well?
Yes, account executive jobs generally pay well. While salaries can vary by specific roles within the industry, the average account executive salary of $69,618 is considerably higher than the average national salary of approximately $44,225 per year.
Additionally, many account executive positions offer high earning potential, with the top 10% earning significantly more annually.
Account executive salaries are influenced by experience level, industry, and geographical location, so it’s important to consider these factors while job hunting. Research the going rate for your expertise in your area and be prepared to negotiate your salary accordingly.
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Where do account executives get paid the most?
Account Executives earn the highest salaries in Oregon. In Oregon, the average annual salary for account executives is $86,782, with an hourly wage of $41.72.
Following Oregon, the states with the highest-paid account executives include Washington, Rhode Island, and Nevada, with average annual salaries of $78,188, $76,992, and $75,185 respectively.
The cities with the highest-paid account executive salaries are:
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Portland, OR – $86,549
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Richmond, CA – $82,643
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Des Moines, WA – $79,091
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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.
