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Policy analyst salary
Average policy analyst salary
$66,359
Average Policy Analyst Salary
As of October 2025, the average Policy Analyst salary stands at $66,359 per year. This figure reflects the compensation for professionals tasked with researching and analyzing policies that affect various sectors, including government, healthcare, and education. The role is vital in shaping effective public policies and programs.
Salary by Experience Level
Entry-level Policy Analysts typically earn around $50,000, while those with more than ten years of experience can command salaries exceeding $80,000. Experience, education, and specific skill sets play crucial roles in determining salary levels.
Highest Paying States
Policy Analysts in states like California, New York, and Washington earn the highest salaries, often due to the cost of living and demand in urban areas. For example, in California, the average salary may reach $75,000, reflecting the state’s competitive landscape for policy roles.
Job Opportunities
With growing demand for skilled analysts, opportunities abound in both public and private sectors. Positions can be found in government agencies, think tanks, and non-profit organizations, offering a diverse range of environments for Policy Analysts.
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Where can a Policy Analyst earn more?
Policy analyst salaries by experience level
Policy analyst salary estimates from across the web
Average policy analyst salary by state
The highest-paying states for policy analysts are Connecticut, Washington, and Rhode Island. The lowest average policy analyst salary states are Utah, Kansas, and Mississippi.
- State view
- County view
Highest paying states for policy analysts
| Rank | State | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rhode Island | $88,035 | $42.32 |
| 2 | Connecticut | $91,013 | $43.76 |
| 3 | New York | $85,924 | $41.31 |
| 4 | Massachusetts | $85,192 | $40.96 |
| 5 | District of Columbia | $87,601 | $42.12 |
| 6 | Delaware | $78,450 | $37.72 |
| 7 | Virginia | $79,761 | $38.35 |
| 8 | Alaska | $87,493 | $42.06 |
| 9 | Washington | $90,386 | $43.45 |
| 10 | New Jersey | $81,320 | $39.10 |
| 11 | Arizona | $74,945 | $36.03 |
| 12 | Oregon | $78,176 | $37.58 |
| 13 | Maryland | $77,043 | $37.04 |
| 14 | Missouri | $76,619 | $36.84 |
| 15 | New Hampshire | $76,323 | $36.69 |
| 16 | Colorado | $73,085 | $35.14 |
| 17 | Pennsylvania | $73,849 | $35.50 |
| 18 | Vermont | $72,295 | $34.76 |
| 19 | California | $76,419 | $36.74 |
| 20 | Illinois | $69,008 | $33.18 |
| 21 | Minnesota | $70,659 | $33.97 |
| 22 | North Carolina | $66,467 | $31.96 |
| 23 | Texas | $66,953 | $32.19 |
| 24 | Indiana | $68,359 | $32.86 |
| 25 | Michigan | $65,988 | $31.73 |
| 26 | Alabama | $63,726 | $30.64 |
| 27 | Hawaii | $64,993 | $31.25 |
| 28 | Maine | $65,741 | $31.61 |
| 29 | Ohio | $62,279 | $29.94 |
| 30 | Wisconsin | $64,162 | $30.85 |
| 31 | North Dakota | $60,260 | $28.97 |
| 32 | Wyoming | $58,702 | $28.22 |
| 33 | Georgia | $62,013 | $29.81 |
| 34 | Nebraska | $60,926 | $29.29 |
| 35 | Nevada | $60,100 | $28.89 |
| 36 | South Dakota | $61,397 | $29.52 |
| 37 | Idaho | $60,259 | $28.97 |
| 38 | Montana | $60,147 | $28.92 |
| 39 | Tennessee | $59,632 | $28.67 |
| 40 | Iowa | $60,836 | $29.25 |
| 41 | Utah | $57,286 | $27.54 |
| 42 | New Mexico | $58,338 | $28.05 |
| 43 | Louisiana | $60,826 | $29.24 |
| 44 | Kentucky | $57,952 | $27.86 |
| 45 | Florida | $55,307 | $26.59 |
| 46 | West Virginia | $58,241 | $28.00 |
| 47 | Kansas | $56,065 | $26.95 |
| 48 | Oklahoma | $57,838 | $27.81 |
| 49 | Mississippi | $55,420 | $26.64 |
| 50 | Arkansas | $49,043 | $23.58 |
| 51 | South Carolina | $52,887 | $25.43 |
Highest paying cities for policy analysts
The highest-paying cities for policy analysts are Seattle, WA, Washington, DC, and Albany, NY.
| Rank | City | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Seattle, WA | $91,000 | $43.75 |
| 2 | Washington, DC | $87,636 | $42.13 |
| 3 | Albany, NY | $86,207 | $41.45 |
| 4 | Boston, MA | $85,324 | $41.02 |
| 5 | San Francisco, CA | $82,757 | $39.79 |
| 6 | Arlington, VA | $80,865 | $38.88 |
| 7 | Wilmington, DE | $78,564 | $37.77 |
| 8 | Salem, OR | $78,304 | $37.65 |
| 9 | Baltimore, MD | $77,344 | $37.18 |
| 10 | Phoenix, AZ | $75,140 | $36.13 |
| 11 | Denver, CO | $73,039 | $35.11 |
| 12 | Pittsburgh, PA | $71,322 | $34.29 |
| 13 | Saint Paul, MN | $70,642 | $33.96 |
| 14 | Chicago, IL | $69,271 | $33.30 |
| 15 | Raleigh, NC | $67,908 | $32.65 |
| 16 | Austin, TX | $67,217 | $32.32 |
| 17 | Madison, WI | $63,369 | $30.47 |
| 18 | Atlanta, GA | $62,117 | $29.86 |
| 19 | Columbus, OH | $61,569 | $29.60 |
| 20 | Lincoln, NE | $60,867 | $29.26 |
Policy analyst salary details
A policy analyst's salary ranges from $47,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $92,000 at the 90th percentile.
What is a policy analyst's salary?
| Percentile | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90th Percentile | $92,000 | $7,667 | $44 |
| 75th Percentile | $78,000 | $6,500 | $38 |
| Average | $66,359 | $5,530 | $32 |
| 25th Percentile | $55,000 | $4,583 | $26 |
| 10th Percentile | $47,000 | $3,917 | $23 |
Highest paying policy analyst jobs
The highest paying types of policy analysts are staff analyst, technical business analyst, and business process analyst.
| Job title | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Business Operations Analyst | $63,423 | $5,285 | $30.49 | 208,754 |
| Workforce Management Analyst | $64,447 | $5,371 | $30.98 | 127,151 |
| Business & Data Analyst | $75,461 | $6,288 | $36.28 | 188,716 |
| Finance Management Analyst | $71,934 | $5,995 | $34.58 | 184,284 |
| Technical Business Analyst | $81,757 | $6,813 | $39.31 | 203,686 |
| Administrative Analyst | $55,444 | $4,620 | $26.66 | 91,598 |
Top companies hiring policy analysts now:
Which companies pay policy analysts the most?
Policy analyst salaries at Apple and Google are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average policy analyst salary at companies like Pacific Gas and Electric and First Republic Bank are highly competitive.
| Rank | Company | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Apple | $119,600 | $57.50 |
| 2 | $116,303 | $55.91 | |
| 3 | Pacific Gas and Electric | $101,168 | $48.64 |
| 4 | First Republic Bank | $97,142 | $46.70 |
| 5 | Santander Private Banking International | $93,354 | $44.88 |
| 6 | Bloomberg | $92,421 | $44.43 |
| 7 | Visa | $90,850 | $43.68 |
| 8 | Southern California Edison | $90,830 | $43.67 |
| 9 | Santander Bank | $87,177 | $41.91 |
| 10 | Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory | $86,689 | $41.68 |
| 11 | Urban Institute | $86,301 | $41.49 |
| 12 | Earthjustice | $86,046 | $41.37 |
| 13 | M&T Bank | $85,740 | $41.22 |
| 14 | NRDC | $84,516 | $40.63 |
| 15 | Federal Reserve Bank | $84,467 | $40.61 |
| 16 | IIF | $84,355 | $40.56 |
| 17 | Food and Drug Law Institute | $83,728 | $40.25 |
| 18 | Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory | $83,486 | $40.14 |
| 19 | Booz Allen Hamilton | $82,851 | $39.83 |
| 20 | Warner Music Group | $82,161 | $39.50 |
Wage gap by gender, race and education
Policy Analyst salary by industry
The average policy analyst salary varies across industries:
- The average policy analyst salary in the insurance industry is $76,361, the highest of any industry.
- The average policy analyst salary in the finance industry is $72,709.
- Policy analysts in the education industry earn an average salary of $67,522, the lowest of any industry.
Highest paying industries for policy analysts
| Rank | Industry | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Insurance | $76,361 | $36.71 |
| 2 | Government | $72,709 | $34.96 |
| 3 | Technology | $72,330 | $34.77 |
| 4 | Non Profits | $71,046 | $34.16 |
| 5 | Professional | $69,848 | $33.58 |
| 6 | Health Care | $67,702 | $32.55 |
| 7 | Education | $67,522 | $32.46 |
High paying policy analyst jobs
Policy analyst salary trends
The average policy analyst salary has risen by $6,942 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average policy analyst earned $59,417 annually, but today, they earn $66,359 a year. That works out to a 8% change in pay for policy analysts over the last decade.
Compare policy analyst salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.
Average policy analyst salary over time
Compare policy analyst salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.
Policy analyst salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $66,400 | $31.90 | +2.7% |
| 2024 | $64,500 | $31.03 | +1.9% |
| 2023 | $63,300 | $30.43 | +1.4% |
| 2022 | $62,400 | $30.01 | +1.4% |
| 2021 | $61,600 | $29.60 | +0.0% |
Recently added policy analyst salaries
| Company | Job | Location | Date added | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Parsons | Policy and Governance Analyst | Hawaii | 06/30/2025 | $108,700 |
| Virginia Commonwealth University | Health Policy Analyst/Policy Research Associate | Richmond, VA | 06/30/2025 | $80,000 |
| Ieee | Technology Policy Analyst (E5938) | Piscataway, NJ | 06/29/2025 | $91,000 |
| Community Service Society of New York | Health Policy Analyst | New York, NY | 06/29/2025 | $84,710 |
| Legislative Branch | Policy Analyst | Washington, DC | 06/29/2025 | $70,000 |
| Ernst & Young LLP | Government and Public Sector-Privacy and Policy Analyst | McLean, VA | 06/28/2025 | $138,700 |
| Cai | Policy Analyst/Administrator | Indianapolis, IN | 06/27/2025 | $125,220 |
| Cai | Policy Analyst/Administrator | Boise, ID | 06/27/2025 | $125,220 |
| Cai | Policy Analyst/Administrator | Santa Fe, NM | 06/27/2025 | $125,220 |
| Cai | Policy Analyst/Administrator | Juneau, AK | 06/27/2025 | $125,220 |
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