How much does an executive assistant make?

The average executive assistant salary in the United States is $50,539. Executive assistant salaries typically range between $35,000 and $71,000 yearly. The average hourly rate for executive assistants is $24.3 per hour. Executive assistant salary is impacted by location, education, and experience. Executive assistants earn the highest average salary in New York.

Executive assistant salary

Q: What state pays Executive Assistants the most?

New York pays Executive Assistants the most in the United States, with an average salary of $64,314 per year, or $30.92 per hour.

Q: How do I know if I'm being paid fairly as an executive assistant?

You know if you are being paid fairly as an executive assistant if your pay is close to the average pay for the state you live in. For example, if you live in District of Columbia you should be paid close to $60,819 per year.

Q: What is a good starting salary for an Executive Assistant?

A good starting salary for an executive assistant is $39,000 in the United States. That puts you in the 10th percentile of annual income for an executive assistant in the U.S., which is about what you would expect if you were new to the field. The average salary for executive assistants is $53,270, but that normally requires some level of experience to achieve. Furthermore, a good starting salary for an executive assistant can vary by state.

Q: How much do executive assistants make hourly?

Executive assistants make between $20 per hour and $40 hourly. This is a fairly wide range, but the pay for executive assistants varies a lot between positions, industries, and experience levels.

Q: How much does an executive assistant to a CEO make?

An executive assistant to a CEO makes between $50,000 and $95,000 per year. To attain a salary on the higher end of this range, several factors may be involved. Although no degree is strictly necessary to become an executive assistant to a CEO, a degree in a field related to business, communications, or technology may be helpful.

Q: How much should an executive assistant get paid?

An executive assistant should get paid an hourly wage around $30 per hour. This is the middle ground between the two ends of the expected hourly pay range for executive assistants. This can vary, though, depending on many factors.

Q: How much should you pay an executive assistant?

You should pay an executive assistant between $20 per hour and $40 per hour. This range covers the expected hourly wage range for most executive assistants. Additionally, depending on the education and experience you expect your executive assistant to have, you may need to adjust their hourly wages.

Average executive assistant salary

$50,539

$24.3 hourly rate

Entry-level executive assistant salary

$35,000 yearly salary

Updated January 8, 2025

Understanding Executive Assistant Salaries

The average salary for an executive assistant in the United States is around $50,539 annually, equating to approximately $24 per hour. However, actual earnings can differ based on several factors, including geographical location, industry, and years of experience. For instance, executive assistants in metropolitan areas often command higher salaries due to the increased cost of living and demand for skilled professionals.

Salary Variations by State

Executive assistants in states such as California, New York, and Massachusetts typically earn more than those in other regions. According to recent data, the highest-paying states for this role include:

California
New York
Washington
Texas
Florida

Moreover, the industry plays a significant role in salary levels. Executive assistants in the finance and technology sectors generally earn higher wages compared to those in education or non-profit organizations. Understanding these dynamics can help candidates make informed decisions about their career paths and salary expectations.

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Executive assistant salary by:

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Where can an Executive Assistant earn more?

Compare salary by location

75k

55k

35k

15k

Columbus, OH$64,830

San Antonio, TX$45,123

Compare salary by company

121k

101k

81k

61k

Meta$104,444

Xilinx$91,232

Executive assistant salary estimates from across the web

Based on the latest salary information compiled by Zippia, Salary.com, Indeed, Glassdoor, Ziprecruiter, Comparably, Payscale and CareerExplorer, the average salary for an executive assistant typically falls between $50,539 and $221,509.

zippia

$50,539yearly

glassdoor[1]

$70,284yearly

indeed[2]

$64,397yearly

comparably[3]

$60,160yearly

Salary.com[4]

$221,509yearly

ZipRecruiter[5]

$64,456yearly

payscale[6]

$63,272yearly

CareerExplorer[7]

$62,060yearly

Average executive assistant salary by state

The highest-paying states for executive assistants are New York, Alaska, and North Dakota. The lowest average executive assistant salary states are Wyoming, Kentucky, and Mississippi.

State view
County view

Average salary:

Highest paying states for executive assistants

Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
1	Washington	$59,785	$28.74
2	Massachusetts	$59,185	$28.45
3	New Jersey	$59,177	$28.45
4	District of Columbia	$60,819	$29.24
5	North Dakota	$59,840	$28.77
6	Alaska	$60,362	$29.02
7	Rhode Island	$58,222	$27.99
8	New York	$64,314	$30.92
9	Connecticut	$57,867	$27.82
10	Pennsylvania	$52,271	$25.13
11	Delaware	$57,642	$27.71
12	Virginia	$51,638	$24.83
13	Illinois	$51,071	$24.55
14	Maryland	$55,804	$26.83
15	Nevada	$49,161	$23.64
16	New Hampshire	$55,871	$26.86
17	Wisconsin	$47,684	$22.93
18	Ohio	$45,910	$22.07
19	Minnesota	$47,155	$22.67
20	California	$58,728	$28.23
21	West Virginia	$51,024	$24.53
22	Colorado	$46,095	$22.16
23	Arizona	$44,793	$21.54
24	Texas	$44,479	$21.38
25	Michigan	$46,994	$22.59
26	Vermont	$46,429	$22.32
27	Georgia	$46,327	$22.27
28	Utah	$42,754	$20.55
29	Montana	$42,286	$20.33
30	Maine	$46,291	$22.26
31	Oregon	$49,887	$23.98
32	North Carolina	$43,382	$20.86
33	Idaho	$41,073	$19.75
34	Arkansas	$42,760	$20.56
35	Missouri	$42,218	$20.30
36	Kansas	$42,226	$20.30
37	Florida	$39,997	$19.23
38	Tennessee	$39,466	$18.97
39	Hawaii	$40,573	$19.51
40	Alabama	$41,329	$19.87
41	South Carolina	$40,204	$19.33
42	Wyoming	$36,144	$17.38
43	Iowa	$39,900	$19.18
44	New Mexico	$40,560	$19.50
45	Nebraska	$37,648	$18.10
46	Indiana	$39,405	$18.94
47	Kentucky	$35,611	$17.12
48	Oklahoma	$34,988	$16.82
49	Louisiana	$35,143	$16.90
50	Mississippi	$35,207	$16.93
51	South Dakota	$34,519	$16.60

Top executive assistant jobs near you

Highest paying cities for executive assistants

The highest-paying cities for executive assistants are San Francisco, CA, New York, NY, and Washington, DC.

Rank	City	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
1	San Francisco, CA	$64,830	$31.17
2	New York, NY	$64,562	$31.04
3	Washington, DC	$60,864	$29.26
4	Olympia, WA	$60,830	$29.25
5	Boston, MA	$59,114	$28.42
6	Hartford, CT	$57,534	$27.66
7	Baltimore, MD	$56,085	$26.96
8	Arlington, VA	$53,255	$25.60
9	Philadelphia, PA	$52,661	$25.32
10	Chicago, IL	$51,367	$24.70
11	Portland, OR	$49,706	$23.90
12	Las Vegas, NV	$48,808	$23.47
13	Cleveland, OH	$47,935	$23.05
14	Detroit, MI	$47,335	$22.76
15	Madison, WI	$47,223	$22.70
16	Minneapolis, MN	$47,157	$22.67
17	Portland, ME	$46,921	$22.56
18	Columbus, GA	$46,239	$22.23
19	Denver, CO	$46,154	$22.19
20	San Antonio, TX	$45,123	$21.69

Executive Assistants are the most in-demand in these five cities:

Executive assistant salary details

An executive assistant's salary ranges from $35,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $71,000 at the 90th percentile.

Average executive assistant salary graph, trends, and summary

What is an executive assistant's salary?

Percentile	Annual salary	Monthly salary	Hourly rate
90th Percentile	$71,000	$5,917	$34
75th Percentile	$60,000	$5,000	$29
Average	$50,539	$4,212	$24
25th Percentile	$42,000	$3,500	$20
10th Percentile	$35,000	$2,917	$17

Top companies hiring executive assistants now:

Which companies pay executive assistants the most?

Executive assistant salaries at Meta and BP America Inc are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average executive assistant salary at companies like The Carlyle Group and Varian Medical Systems are highly competitive.

Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate
1	Meta	$104,444	$50.21
2	BP America Inc	$104,253	$50.12
3	The Carlyle Group	$102,102	$49.09
4	Varian Medical Systems	$102,072	$49.07
5	Microsoft	$100,610	$48.37
6	Cambridge Associates	$99,165	$47.68
7	KLA	$97,411	$46.83
8	Apple	$97,273	$46.77
9	GCP Applied Technologies	$96,392	$46.34
10	Pandora	$95,782	$46.05
11	Visa	$95,660	$45.99
12	Edwards Lifesciences	$94,793	$45.57
13	ResMed	$94,183	$45.28
14	Snowflake Computing	$92,027	$44.24
15	Workday	$91,976	$44.22
16	Marcus & Millichap	$91,949	$44.21
17	HSBC Bank	$91,679	$44.08
18	Cisco	$91,557	$44.02
19	BMO Capital Markets	$91,444	$43.96
20	Xilinx	$91,232	$43.86

Wage gap by gender, race and education

$52,000$51,600$51,200$50,800$50,400$50,000

MaleFemale

Executive Assistant salary by industry

The average executive assistant salary varies across industries:

The average executive assistant salary in the finance industry is $64,689, the highest of any industry.
The average executive assistant salary in the finance industry is $59,128.
Executive assistants in the media industry earn an average salary of $52,957, the lowest of any industry.

Highest paying industries for executive assistants

Rank	Industry	Average salary	Hourly rate
1	Finance	$64,689	$31.10
2	Technology	$59,128	$28.43
3	Professional	$57,112	$27.46
4	Manufacturing	$56,120	$26.98
5	Health Care	$54,271	$26.09
6	Government	$53,772	$25.85
7	Media	$52,957	$25.46

High paying executive assistant jobs

Executive assistant salary trends

The average executive assistant salary has risen by $14,038 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average executive assistant earned $36,501 annually, but today, they earn $50,539 a year. That works out to a 13% change in pay for executive assistants over the last decade.

Compare executive assistant salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.

Average executive assistant salary over time

Compare executive assistant salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.

Executive assistant salary by year

Year	Avg. salary	Hourly rate	% Change
2025	$50,500	$24.30	+3.5%
2024	$48,800	$23.44	+2.5%
2023	$47,500	$22.85	+3.3%
2022	$46,000	$22.10	+2.7%
2021	$44,700	$21.51	+4.5%

Recently added executive assistant salaries

Company	Job	Location	Date added	Salary
F5 Networks	Executive Assistant	Seattle, WA	06/30/2025	$93,910
Sutterhealth	Executive Assistant	Modesto, CA	06/30/2025	$74,944
United Talent Agency	Executive Assistant, Communications	Los Angeles, CA	06/30/2025	$56,349
Allegheny College	Executive Assistant To The Dean for The Student Experience	Meadville, PA	06/30/2025	$46,000
Gensler	Executive Assistant	San Francisco, CA	06/30/2025	$100,000
Gensler	Executive Assistant	Seattle, WA	06/30/2025	$85,000
Jackson Laboratory	Executive Assistant II	Bar Harbor, ME	06/30/2025	$69,711
Spin Master	Executive Assistant	Wilton, CT	06/30/2025	$70,000
Arlington School District	Executive Assistant for Student Support	Arlington, WA	06/30/2025	$85,170
Prologis	Executive Assistant	San Francisco, CA	06/30/2025	$91,306

Executive assistant salary FAQs

What state pays Executive Assistants the most?

How do I know if I'm being paid fairly as an executive assistant?

What is a good starting salary for an Executive Assistant?

How much do executive assistants make hourly?

How much does an executive assistant to a CEO make?

How much should an executive assistant get paid?

How much should you pay an executive assistant?

Have more questions? See all answers to common office and administrative questions.

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Updated January 8, 2025

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