How to hire a content editor

How to hire a content editor, step by step

Here's a step-by-step content editor hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a content editor job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new content editor
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a content editor do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The content editor hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A content editor's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, content editors from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list presents content editor salaries for various positions.

   Type of Content Editor	Description	Hourly rate
   Content Editor	Editors plan, review, and revise content for publication.	$19-43
   Journalist	A journalist is responsible for creating written correspondence, covering various subjects as the management requires. This task involves a lot of research investigations, conducting interviews, and gathering reliable sources to verify the authenticity of data before releasing the articles on news portals and other social platforms... Show more	$18-45
   Writer	A writer can have different responsibilities depending on which industry or line of work they are involved. There are writers assigned in a corporate setting, some in journalism, while there are also writers in the entertainment Industry... Show more	$19-51

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Digital Content
   • Web Content
   • Digital Marketing
   • WordPress
   • Video Content
   • Content Marketing
   • Instagram
   • Edit Content
   • Content Strategy
   • Proofreading
   • HTML
   • PowerPoint
   • Project Management
   • Facebook

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Work with W3C standardize CSS to achieve design goals.
   • Coordinate and manage a team of photographers who work on NBA games throughout the league.
   • Identify, create and manage QA projects to improve data consistency and accuracy using SQL to extract data.
   • Manage editorial department by editing and publishing daily content for website and daily e-newsletter.
   • Develop SEO strategies to increase profitability and manage social media to spread brand awareness and bolster readership.
   • Develop social media content for different outlets such as Facebook, Instagram, Youtube channel and the blog's webpage.

   More content editor duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the content editor job description is a good way to get more applicants. A content editor salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a content editor in Louisiana may be lower than in New York, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level content editor. Additionally, a content editor with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average content editor salary

   $61,694yearly

   $29.66 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level content editor salary

   $41,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 16, 2025

   Average content editor salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	New York	$78,577	$38
   2	California	$76,979	$37
   3	Connecticut	$76,042	$37
   4	Washington	$68,417	$33
   5	District of Columbia	$67,746	$33
   6	Virginia	$66,508	$32
   7	Minnesota	$64,359	$31
   8	New Jersey	$62,122	$30
   9	Illinois	$60,980	$29
   10	Pennsylvania	$59,892	$29
   11	Massachusetts	$58,945	$28
   12	Georgia	$56,334	$27
   13	Arkansas	$53,968	$26
   14	North Carolina	$53,924	$26
   15	Colorado	$51,019	$25
   16	Maryland	$48,421	$23
   17	Texas	$47,710	$23
   18	Ohio	$47,241	$23
   19	Florida	$42,192	$20
   20	Puerto Rico	$38,194	$18

   Average content editor salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Apple	$105,208	$50.58	5
   2	Ernst & Young	$95,189	$45.76	2
   3	Amazon	$90,978	$43.74	39
   4	ServiceNow	$86,337	$41.51	1
   5	CVS Health	$84,172	$40.47	49
   6	NBCUniversal	$83,214	$40.01	64
   7	Ziff Davis	$80,460	$38.68
   8	Roku	$76,410	$36.74	7
   9	Aptara	$74,977	$36.05
   10	Oxford University Press	$74,850	$35.99
   11	ByteDance	$74,293	$35.72
   12	Dotdash	$72,711	$34.96
   13	Capital City Press, L.L.C.	$72,076	$34.65	9
   14	Kforce	$70,194	$33.75	3
   15	Audacy	$69,989	$33.65	34
   16	Bluehawk Consulting	$69,741	$33.53	1
   17	USA Vein Clinics	$68,901	$33.13	1
   18	Archipelago Learning	$68,106	$32.74
   19	The Walt Disney Company	$67,840	$32.62	51
   20	Medical Billing	$67,598	$32.50

4. Writing a content editor job description

   A job description for a content editor role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's a content editor job description:

   Content editor job description example

   Permanent Contract; Full Time - 40-hour per week between 08:00 - 16:00 Monday - Friday
   
   Do you LOVE writing and editing? Are you the sort of person who is constantly bugging your friends for their poor grammar and spelling? Well, then this might be the dream job for you! Help us make one of the world's most used music and app platforms, accessible to everyone, no matter the language. Let's connect the world, together!
   
   We are hiring a Content Editor for European Spanish to join our growing team. In this exciting position, you'll be copy-editing and fact-checking content to ensure the highest quality of accuracy for customers using one of the world's foremost multimedia platforms.
   Ideal Candidates: writing/editing background, marketing, blogging, journalism, etc.
   
   Responsibilities:
   • Editing and proofreading content to ensure accuracy, ensuring it meets the provided standards
   • Creative writing of marketing content to engage customers
   • Proofreading and copy editing of storefront descriptions
   • Report any patterns of issues observed to help improve database and product performance
   • Test tools to provide feedback for improving efficiency and accuracy
   • Work and communicate with cross-functional teams
   
   About you:
   • You must speak European Spanish at a native level
   • An exceptional eye for proofreading and editing and catching even the smallest of mistakse!
   • Genuine passion for writing about multimedia content (apps, music, tv shows, that sort of thing)
   • Proven ability to maintain motivation and solid focus through repetitive task
   • Highly detail-oriented with an ability to multitask and meet deadlines in a high-pressure environment
   • Comfortable with navigating ambiguity to make a sound judgment call
   • Stable internet connection and work station for remote working
   
   What it is like to work as part of our team:
   • Your colleagues are industry experts with significant experience in their fields,
   which means that you will have a strong support network around you
   • You will work in a transparent and collaborative environment providing you with plenty of opportunities to share and discuss ideas with your colleagues and shape how we work
   • We are fun, friendly, and most importantly, love what we do
   Apply Today! Please apply today for immediate consideration.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right content editor for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with content editors they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit content editors who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   To find content editor candidates, you can consider the following options:

   • Post your job opening on Zippia or other job search websites.
   • Use niche websites that focus on engineering and technology jobs, such as problogger, media bistro, journalismjobs.com, content writing jobs.
   • Post your job on free job posting websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with content editor candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new content editor

   Once you've found the content editor candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   To prepare for the new content editor first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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