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Columnist vs editorial writer

The differences between columnists and editorial writers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a columnist and an editorial writer. Additionally, an editorial writer has an average salary of $54,192, which is higher than the $50,696 average annual salary of a columnist.

The top three skills for a columnist include student newspaper, opinion pieces and twitter. The most important skills for an editorial writer are editorials, SEO, and opinion pieces.

Columnist vs editorial writer overview

ColumnistEditorial Writer
Yearly salary$50,696$54,192
Hourly rate$24.37$26.05
Growth rate-10%6%
Number of jobs1,78314,965
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 77%Bachelor's Degree, 80%
Average age4046
Years of experience22

Columnist vs editorial writer salary

Columnists and editorial writers have different pay scales, as shown below.

ColumnistEditorial Writer
Average salary$50,696$54,192
Salary rangeBetween $34,000 And $75,000Between $38,000 And $77,000
Highest paying City-Edison, NJ
Highest paying state-Virginia
Best paying company-Qualcomm
Best paying industry--

Differences between columnist and editorial writer education

There are a few differences between a columnist and an editorial writer in terms of educational background:

ColumnistEditorial Writer
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 77%Bachelor's Degree, 80%
Most common majorJournalismEnglish
Most common collegeMassachusetts Institute of TechnologyMassachusetts Institute of Technology

Columnist vs editorial writer demographics

Here are the differences between columnists' and editorial writers' demographics:

ColumnistEditorial Writer
Average age4046
Gender ratioMale, 53.2% Female, 46.8%Male, 44.1% Female, 55.9%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 6.4% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.7% Asian, 9.7% White, 66.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%Black or African American, 6.4% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 7.6% Asian, 8.6% White, 72.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage10%11%

Differences between columnist and editorial writer duties and responsibilities

Columnist example responsibilities.

  • Share articles via twitter and facebook.
  • Frequent contributor to several British on- and off-line men's magazines.
  • Provide weekly articles on the NBA featuring analysis, news and opinions.
  • Content promotion via social networks (Facebook, twitter, etc .).
  • Focuse on trending topics while providing a solid SEO and social media component.
  • Explain complex NBA concepts and strategies in simple terms through diagram photos and videos.
  • Show more

Editorial writer example responsibilities.

  • Manage website by uploading and scheduling articles, fixing errors, proofreading, optimizing for SEO, and polishing content.
  • Compose, edit and proofread copy for obituary and life celebration announcements.
  • Research, pitch ideas and write editorials daily, including a community award-winning editorial and recognition for a four-part editorial series.
  • Research and identify public-policy issues and craft the paper's editorial opinions.
  • Write and edit fiction and non-fiction text to accompany products release and distribute internationally.

Columnist vs editorial writer skills

Common columnist skills
  • Student Newspaper, 16%
  • Opinion Pieces, 7%
  • Twitter, 6%
  • Mental Health, 6%
  • Feature Stories, 5%
  • News Stories, 5%
Common editorial writer skills
  • Editorials, 36%
  • SEO, 8%
  • Opinion Pieces, 7%
  • Editorial Content, 6%
  • Blog Posts, 5%
  • Press Releases, 4%

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