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Senior editor vs executive editor

The differences between senior editors and executive editors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a senior editor and an executive editor. Additionally, an executive editor has an average salary of $110,541, which is higher than the $90,094 average annual salary of a senior editor.

The top three skills for a senior editor include edit content, video content and SEO. The most important skills for an executive editor are editorial content, editorial calendar, and digital content.

Senior editor vs executive editor overview

Senior EditorExecutive Editor
Yearly salary$90,094$110,541
Hourly rate$43.31$53.14
Growth rate-5%-5%
Number of jobs12,15075,810
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 79%Bachelor's Degree, 81%
Average age4444
Years of experience44

What does a senior editor do?

A Senior Editor determines the editorial content for a publication. They supervise the content creation process and manage junior editors.

What does an executive editor do?

An executive editor supervises the editorial content of magazines, newspapers, or other publications. In the corporate setting, an executive editor often arranges a book's publishing. In a newspaper setting, an executive editor is the newsroom leader, and in larger newspapers, they coordinate all aspects of the publication's production. They must have the ability to manage subordinates and assistant editors and be experienced with Associated Press style.

Senior editor vs executive editor salary

Senior editors and executive editors have different pay scales, as shown below.

Senior EditorExecutive Editor
Average salary$90,094$110,541
Salary rangeBetween $66,000 And $121,000Between $43,000 And $278,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CANew York, NY
Highest paying stateConnecticutNew York
Best paying companyAppleAmerican Media
Best paying industryFinanceMedia

Differences between senior editor and executive editor education

There are a few differences between a senior editor and an executive editor in terms of educational background:

Senior EditorExecutive Editor
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 79%Bachelor's Degree, 81%
Most common majorEnglishJournalism
Most common collegeNorthwestern UniversityNorthwestern University

Senior editor vs executive editor demographics

Here are the differences between senior editors' and executive editors' demographics:

Senior EditorExecutive Editor
Average age4444
Gender ratioMale, 51.7% Female, 48.3%Male, 50.1% Female, 49.9%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 3.6% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 8.1% Asian, 7.2% White, 76.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%Black or African American, 3.6% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 8.1% Asian, 7.3% White, 76.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage12%12%

Differences between senior editor and executive editor duties and responsibilities

Senior editor example responsibilities.

  • Contract and manage editorial freelancers and full-service vendors for successful high school Spanish and Latin textbook and ancillary programs.
  • Post video to the Fox17 website and youtube.
  • Complete several robust DVD authoring projects for clients.
  • Redesign the look and the style of lifestyle magazine.
  • Double traffic on the Instagram page with newly implement marketing plan.
  • Content editing for automobile DVD user manuals (English, French and Spanish).
  • Show more

Executive editor example responsibilities.

  • Lead effort to publish works of fiction (Alfaguara imprint).
  • Manage content using CMS tools and ongoing social media campaign and reader engagement via social media networks and blog.
  • Acquire established writers and introduce new voices in genre fiction.
  • Leverage meticulous attention to detail in technical editing and proofreading all content from project inception to completion.
  • Analyze FrameMaker source document and provide feedback to XML architects to improve accuracy of conversion.

Senior editor vs executive editor skills

Common senior editor skills
  • Edit Content, 11%
  • Video Content, 7%
  • SEO, 7%
  • Digital Content, 6%
  • Project Management, 4%
  • Facebook, 3%
Common executive editor skills
  • Editorial Content, 12%
  • Editorial Calendar, 8%
  • Digital Content, 6%
  • SEO, 6%
  • Editor-In-Chief, 6%
  • Content Strategy, 6%

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