Archivist vs conservator

The differences between archivists and conservators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both an archivist and a conservator. Additionally, an archivist has an average salary of $47,145, which is higher than the $46,396 average annual salary of a conservator.

The top three skills for an archivist include archival collections, online database and archival materials. The most important skills for a conservator are social security, condition reports, and photographic documentation.

Archivist vs conservator overview

	Archivist	Conservator
Yearly salary	$47,145	$46,396
Hourly rate	$22.67	$22.31
Growth rate	12%	12%
Number of jobs	449	79
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 67%	Bachelor's Degree, 65%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	4	4

Archivist vs conservator salary

Archivists and conservators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Archivist	Conservator
Average salary	$47,145	$46,396
Salary range	Between $23,000 And $94,000	Between $25,000 And $86,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	Anchorage, AK
Highest paying state	Alaska	Connecticut
Best paying company	Apple	The Mariners' Museum and Park
Best paying industry	-	Non Profits

Differences between archivist and conservator education

There are a few differences between an archivist and a conservator in terms of educational background:

	Archivist	Conservator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 67%	Bachelor's Degree, 65%
Most common major	History	Fine Arts
Most common college	Harvard University	University of Maryland - College Park

Archivist vs conservator demographics

Here are the differences between archivists' and conservators' demographics:

	Archivist	Conservator
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 43.1% Female, 56.9%	Male, 35.1% Female, 64.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 5.3% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 7.3% Asian, 5.1% White, 76.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%	Black or African American, 5.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.0% Asian, 4.9% White, 77.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.4%
LGBT Percentage	13%	13%

Differences between archivist and conservator duties and responsibilities

Archivist example responsibilities.

Create EAD and DACS compliant finding aids for new and existing collections.
Update online database with metadata on newly accession materials and implement new physical arrangement system for archival collections.
Develop a custom RDF metadata model for archiving and cataloging multimedia digital artworks in the library's digital asset management system.
Enter website content, adding basic HTML coding.
Use EAD for collection processing and organization of metadata.
Encode multiple finding aids in EAD including faculty biographical files.

Conservator example responsibilities.

Create initial inventory of finances and physical items own by estate and submit to probate court.
Analyze prehistoric and historic cultural artifacts, including data entry for cataloging.
Design costumes and usher for mainstage productions.
Perform archeological field excavations and laboratory analysis.

Archivist vs conservator skills

Common archivist skills

Archival Collections, 15%
Online Database, 11%
Archival Materials, 8%
Reference Services, 8%
Archival Research, 4%
Manuscript Collections, 4%

Common conservator skills

Social Security, 17%
Condition Reports, 14%
Photographic Documentation, 12%
Condition Assessment, 12%
Conservation Lab, 11%
Conservation Treatments, 10%

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Archivist vs Conservator

Updated January 8, 2025

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