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The differences between technical writers and journalists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a technical writer and a journalist. Additionally, a technical writer has an average salary of $65,329, which is higher than the $60,828 average annual salary of a journalist.
The top three skills for a technical writer include technical documentation, subject matter experts and powerpoint. The most important skills for a journalist are news stories, multimedia, and story development.
| Technical Writer | Journalist | |
| Yearly salary | $65,329 | $60,828 |
| Hourly rate | $31.41 | $29.24 |
| Growth rate | 6% | -10% |
| Number of jobs | 75,090 | 11,488 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Average age | 46 | 40 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
Technical Writers specialize in producing easy-to-understand instructional or informational written materials, such as media and journal articles, assessments and guidelines, and legal forms of documentation. For Technical Writers to develop well-versed content, one must conduct thorough research on the topic or idea to ensure factual legitimacy and communicate with those whose expertise aligns with the subject. Aside from producing, Technical Writers can also improve or convert complex written materials such as operating manuals or documents into one that can be easily understood by the general public.
A journalist is responsible for creating written correspondence, covering various subjects as the management requires. This task involves a lot of research investigations, conducting interviews, and gathering reliable sources to verify the authenticity of data before releasing the articles on news portals and other social platforms. Journalists should have excellent communication skills, both written and oral, conveying information to the target audience with high accuracy and efficiency. They analyze opinions and testimonies, create eye-catching headlines, and ensure adherence to deadlines.
Technical writers and journalists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Technical Writer | Journalist | |
| Average salary | $65,329 | $60,828 |
| Salary range | Between $48,000 And $87,000 | Between $38,000 And $95,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | California | New York |
| Best paying company | Meta | Bloomberg |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Finance |
There are a few differences between a technical writer and a journalist in terms of educational background:
| Technical Writer | Journalist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Most common major | English | Journalism |
| Most common college | University of Houston | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
Here are the differences between technical writers' and journalists' demographics:
| Technical Writer | Journalist | |
| Average age | 46 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 49.7% Female, 50.3% | Male, 46.6% Female, 53.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.6% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 8.7% White, 71.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 6.4% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.6% Asian, 9.6% White, 66.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 10% |