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Ghost writer vs staff writer

The differences between ghost writers and staff 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 ghost writer and a staff writer. Additionally, a ghost writer has an average salary of $62,531, which is higher than the $44,844 average annual salary of a staff writer.

The top three skills for a ghost writer include blog posts, web content and SEO. The most important skills for a staff writer are feature stories, news stories, and event coverage.

Ghost writer vs staff writer overview

Ghost WriterStaff Writer
Yearly salary$62,531$44,844
Hourly rate$30.06$21.56
Growth rate6%6%
Number of jobs10,19280,547
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 70%Bachelor's Degree, 82%
Average age4646
Years of experience22

Ghost writer vs staff writer salary

Ghost writers and staff writers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Ghost WriterStaff Writer
Average salary$62,531$44,844
Salary rangeBetween $39,000 And $98,000Between $29,000 And $68,000
Highest paying City-Washington, DC
Highest paying state-New Jersey
Best paying company-The New York Times Company
Best paying industry-Non Profits

Differences between ghost writer and staff writer education

There are a few differences between a ghost writer and a staff writer in terms of educational background:

Ghost WriterStaff Writer
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 70%Bachelor's Degree, 82%
Most common majorEnglishJournalism
Most common collegeMassachusetts Institute of TechnologyMassachusetts Institute of Technology

Ghost writer vs staff writer demographics

Here are the differences between ghost writers' and staff writers' demographics:

Ghost WriterStaff Writer
Average age4646
Gender ratioMale, 33.6% Female, 66.4%Male, 49.2% Female, 50.8%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 6.7% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 8.8% White, 71.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%Black or African American, 6.7% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 8.8% White, 71.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage11%11%

Differences between ghost writer and staff writer duties and responsibilities

Ghost writer example responsibilities.

  • Manage a team of RFP writers and work with a cross-functional team to meet RFP requirements and establish deadlines.
  • Rewrite author's manuscript into a twenty-plus chapter, fact-base fiction novel.
  • Research and draft return on investment (ROI) kitchen and basement remodeling articles utilizing SEO best practices.
  • Work closely with developers to integrate UI standards into the application and to build intuitive navigation and functionality.
  • Coordinate efforts between web developers, SharePoint site administrators and product support representatives to build and support an active online community.

Staff writer example responsibilities.

  • Manage magazine's transition to a new CMS system.
  • Manage website by uploading and scheduling articles, fixing errors, proofreading, optimizing for SEO, and polishing content.
  • Manage arts and entertainment editorial calendar, assign stories to multiple freelancers and plan daily coverage.
  • Assist with copywriting, magazine and advertisement layout.
  • Research, verify facts and edit all contributor submissions.
  • Create unique columns commentating on the social state of hockey and the NHL.
  • Show more

Ghost writer vs staff writer skills

Common ghost writer skills
  • Blog Posts, 18%
  • Web Content, 16%
  • SEO, 14%
  • Fiction, 9%
  • Ghost Writing, 9%
  • Press Releases, 6%
Common staff writer skills
  • Feature Stories, 9%
  • News Stories, 8%
  • Event Coverage, 7%
  • News Articles, 7%
  • SEO, 6%
  • Photography, 6%

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