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The differences between senior technical writers and content editors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a senior technical writer, becoming a content editor takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a senior technical writer has an average salary of $70,820, which is higher than the $61,694 average annual salary of a content editor.
The top three skills for a senior technical writer include technical documentation, subject matter experts and API. The most important skills for a content editor are digital content, web content, and digital marketing.
| Senior Technical Writer | Content Editor | |
| Yearly salary | $70,820 | $61,694 |
| Hourly rate | $34.05 | $29.66 |
| Growth rate | 6% | -5% |
| Number of jobs | 80,897 | 18,586 |
| Job satisfaction | 4 | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 79% |
| Average age | 46 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 4 |
A senior technical writer's role is to oversee the progress within a team or department, ensuring quality and timeliness. It is their responsibility to delegate tasks, set deadlines, carry out corrective measures on any issues, and implement the company's regulations and policies. There are also instances when they participate in producing written content, even editing and reviewing materials of the staff. As someone with more experience, a senior technical writer must encourage and lead fellow writers, shaping them into valuable assets.
A content editor is an individual who is responsible for proof-reading articles written by content writers and write blog posts to promote the products and services of an organization. Content editors are responsible for producing monthly newsletters and optimize written pieces to increase user engagement. They need to interact with the consumers with the purpose of sourcing feedback on the content's impact actively. Content editors must also conduct business research on current trends to give the company an edge over the competition.
Senior technical writers and content editors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Technical Writer | Content Editor | |
| Average salary | $70,820 | $61,694 |
| Salary range | Between $54,000 And $92,000 | Between $41,000 And $91,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | California | New York |
| Best paying company | PayPal | Apple |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a senior technical writer and a content editor in terms of educational background:
| Senior Technical Writer | Content Editor | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 79% |
| Most common major | English | English |
| Most common college | University of Houston | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between senior technical writers' and content editors' demographics:
| Senior Technical Writer | Content Editor | |
| Average age | 46 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 51.8% Female, 48.2% | Male, 43.5% Female, 56.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.6% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 8.7% White, 71.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 3.5% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 8.0% Asian, 7.1% White, 76.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 12% |