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Senior writer salary
Average senior writer salary
$80,145
Average Senior Writer Salary
The average salary for a Senior Writer is approximately $80,145 annually, translating to around $39 per hour. This figure can vary widely depending on location, industry, and years of experience. For instance, Senior Writers in tech and finance sectors often command higher salaries compared to those in education or non-profits.
Where Can a Senior Writer Earn More?
States such as California, New York, and Washington top the list for the highest-paying positions. In these regions, salaries can exceed $100,000. Additionally, metropolitan areas typically offer more lucrative opportunities due to the higher demand for skilled writers. As a Senior Writer, honing your skills in digital content creation or specialized technical writing can further enhance your earning potential.
Senior Writer Salary Estimates from Across the Web
- LinkedIn: $82,000
- Glassdoor: $78,500
- Payscale: $75,000
These estimates reflect the diverse opportunities available for Senior Writers and illustrate the importance of researching specific job markets.
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Where can a Senior Writer earn more?
Senior writer salary estimates from across the web
Average senior writer salary by state
The highest-paying states for senior writers are California, Washington, and New York. The lowest average senior writer salary states are Arizona, Iowa, and Missouri.
- State view
- County view
Highest paying states for senior writers
| Rank | State | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | $125,068 | $60.13 |
| 2 | Washington | $99,845 | $48.00 |
| 3 | District of Columbia | $102,766 | $49.41 |
| 4 | New York | $96,672 | $46.48 |
| 5 | Massachusetts | $93,173 | $44.79 |
| 6 | Nevada | $89,030 | $42.80 |
| 7 | Utah | $88,655 | $42.62 |
| 8 | Idaho | $94,186 | $45.28 |
| 9 | Wisconsin | $94,947 | $45.65 |
| 10 | Indiana | $95,982 | $46.15 |
| 11 | Vermont | $87,417 | $42.03 |
| 12 | Illinois | $88,350 | $42.48 |
| 13 | New Jersey | $90,284 | $43.41 |
| 14 | Connecticut | $89,753 | $43.15 |
| 15 | Virginia | $86,849 | $41.75 |
| 16 | Nebraska | $81,338 | $39.10 |
| 17 | Maine | $90,293 | $43.41 |
| 18 | Alaska | $84,430 | $40.59 |
| 19 | Delaware | $84,958 | $40.85 |
| 20 | Rhode Island | $81,042 | $38.96 |
| 21 | Maryland | $84,284 | $40.52 |
| 22 | Mississippi | $86,490 | $41.58 |
| 23 | North Dakota | $82,660 | $39.74 |
| 24 | Oregon | $77,781 | $37.39 |
| 25 | West Virginia | $79,358 | $38.15 |
| 26 | North Carolina | $76,656 | $36.85 |
| 27 | Michigan | $76,209 | $36.64 |
| 28 | Minnesota | $77,444 | $37.23 |
| 29 | Texas | $77,285 | $37.16 |
| 30 | New Hampshire | $76,349 | $36.71 |
| 31 | Pennsylvania | $75,223 | $36.16 |
| 32 | Alabama | $75,660 | $36.38 |
| 33 | New Mexico | $73,625 | $35.40 |
| 34 | Ohio | $73,722 | $35.44 |
| 35 | Kentucky | $74,537 | $35.84 |
| 36 | Wyoming | $65,321 | $31.40 |
| 37 | Georgia | $74,045 | $35.60 |
| 38 | Montana | $70,372 | $33.83 |
| 39 | Colorado | $72,239 | $34.73 |
| 40 | Louisiana | $74,125 | $35.64 |
| 41 | Oklahoma | $68,483 | $32.92 |
| 42 | South Dakota | $69,885 | $33.60 |
| 43 | South Carolina | $68,927 | $33.14 |
| 44 | Arkansas | $67,783 | $32.59 |
| 45 | Hawaii | $54,300 | $26.11 |
| 46 | Florida | $64,389 | $30.96 |
| 47 | Arizona | $62,690 | $30.14 |
| 48 | Missouri | $60,587 | $29.13 |
| 49 | Iowa | $61,555 | $29.59 |
| 50 | Kansas | $58,237 | $28.00 |
| 51 | Tennessee | $58,452 | $28.10 |
Highest paying cities for senior writers
The highest-paying cities for senior writers are San Francisco, CA, Washington, DC, and Vancouver, WA.
| Rank | City | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Francisco, CA | $137,017 | $65.87 |
| 2 | Washington, DC | $102,773 | $49.41 |
| 3 | Vancouver, WA | $101,362 | $48.73 |
| 4 | New York, NY | $97,357 | $46.81 |
| 5 | Madison, WI | $94,474 | $45.42 |
| 6 | Boston, MA | $92,911 | $44.67 |
| 7 | Parsippany-Troy Hills, NJ | $89,739 | $43.14 |
| 8 | Chicago, IL | $88,802 | $42.69 |
| 9 | Arlington, VA | $88,349 | $42.48 |
| 10 | Salt Lake City, UT | $87,887 | $42.25 |
| 11 | Wilmington, DE | $85,019 | $40.87 |
| 12 | Baltimore, MD | $84,512 | $40.63 |
| 13 | Bismarck, ND | $82,175 | $39.51 |
| 14 | Charleston, WV | $78,657 | $37.82 |
| 15 | Austin, TX | $78,255 | $37.62 |
| 16 | Durham, NC | $78,024 | $37.51 |
| 17 | Salem, OR | $77,785 | $37.40 |
| 18 | Minneapolis, MN | $77,569 | $37.29 |
| 19 | Canton, MI | $76,577 | $36.82 |
| 20 | Philadelphia, PA | $75,898 | $36.49 |
Senior writer salary details
A senior writer's salary ranges from $54,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $117,000 at the 90th percentile.
What is a senior writer's salary?
| Percentile | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90th Percentile | $117,000 | $9,750 | $56 |
| 75th Percentile | $98,000 | $8,167 | $47 |
| Average | $80,145 | $6,679 | $39 |
| 25th Percentile | $65,000 | $5,417 | $31 |
| 10th Percentile | $54,000 | $4,500 | $26 |
Highest paying senior writer jobs
The highest paying types of senior writers are senior editor, managing editor, and senior copywriter.
| Job title | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Publisher | $71,539 | $5,962 | $34.39 | 10,303 |
| Managing Editor | $89,060 | $7,422 | $42.82 | 16,781 |
| Editor | $52,107 | $4,342 | $25.05 | 15,115 |
| News Editor | $53,822 | $4,485 | $25.88 | 12,484 |
| Technical Editor | $61,717 | $5,143 | $29.67 | 78,423 |
| Content Editor | $61,694 | $5,141 | $29.66 | 18,586 |
Top companies hiring senior writers now:
Which companies pay senior writers the most?
Senior writer salaries at Apple and Turo are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average senior writer salary at companies like Amazon and Qualtrics are highly competitive.
| Rank | Company | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Apple | $146,393 | $70.38 |
| 2 | Turo | $143,538 | $69.01 |
| 3 | Amazon | $135,415 | $65.10 |
| 4 | Qualtrics | $128,848 | $61.95 |
| 5 | Aspiration | $125,927 | $60.54 |
| 6 | CrowdStrike | $123,736 | $59.49 |
| 7 | Microsoft | $120,939 | $58.14 |
| 8 | GoDaddy | $120,722 | $58.04 |
| 9 | Cohen & Steers | $120,673 | $58.02 |
| 10 | Neiman Marcus Group | $119,548 | $57.48 |
| 11 | The New York Times Company | $118,817 | $57.12 |
| 12 | J.P. Morgan | $114,095 | $54.85 |
| 13 | WebMD | $113,862 | $54.74 |
| 14 | Ahmad, Zavitsanos, Anaipakos, Alavi & Mensing P.c. Or Aza | $108,058 | $51.95 |
| 15 | Texas Mutual Insurance | $107,649 | $51.75 |
| 16 | Goodby Silverstein & Partners | $107,486 | $51.68 |
| 17 | Medtronic | $105,693 | $50.81 |
| 18 | Boston Consulting Group | $104,845 | $50.41 |
| 19 | NRDC | $104,635 | $50.31 |
| 20 | AllianceBernstein | $104,611 | $50.29 |
Wage gap by gender, race and education
Senior Writer salary by industry
The average senior writer salary varies across industries:
- The average senior writer salary in the professional industry is $90,045, the highest of any industry.
- The average senior writer salary in the finance industry is $89,888.
- Senior writers in the retail industry earn an average salary of $89,116, the lowest of any industry.
Highest paying industries for senior writers
| Rank | Industry | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Professional | $90,045 | $43.29 |
| 2 | Manufacturing | $89,888 | $43.22 |
| 3 | Media | $89,264 | $42.92 |
| 4 | Retail | $89,116 | $42.84 |
High paying senior writer jobs
Senior writer salary trends
The average senior writer salary has risen by $13,433 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average senior writer earned $66,712 annually, but today, they earn $80,145 a year. That works out to a 10% change in pay for senior writers over the last decade.
Compare senior writer salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.
Average senior writer salary over time
Compare senior writer salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.
Senior writer salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $80,100 | $38.53 | +5.8% |
| 2024 | $75,500 | $36.28 | +1.6% |
| 2023 | $74,200 | $35.69 | +0.6% |
| 2022 | $73,800 | $35.49 | +0.9% |
| 2021 | $73,100 | $35.16 | +1.6% |
Recently added senior writer salaries
| Company | Job | Location | Date added | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Neuberger Berman | RFP Writer/Senior RFP Writer | Day, NY | 06/30/2025 | $85,000 |
| All | SHE Media: Senior Health Writer | New York, NY | 06/29/2025 | $85,000 |
| Penske Media | Sheknows: Senior Parenting Writer | New York, NY | 06/27/2025 | $75,000 |
| Undead Labs | SR. Writer II | Seattle, WA | 06/27/2025 | $160,000 |
| CVS Health | Senior Writer, Aetna B2B (Healthcare) | Woonsocket, RI | 06/26/2025 | $66,330 |
| CVS Health | Senior Writer, Aetna B2B (Healthcare) | Wellesley, MA | 06/26/2025 | $66,330 |
| Apple | Senior Writer, Apple ADS | New York, NY | 06/24/2025 | $179,000 |
| Apple | Senior Writer, Apple ADS | Culver City, CA | 06/24/2025 | $170,100 |
| Snowflake | Senior Writer & Editor-Thought Leadership and Blog | Menlo Park, CA | 06/24/2025 | $135,000 |
| The New York Times Company | Senior Writer, Marketing | New York, NY | 06/22/2025 | $135,000 |
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