How Much Do Administrative Assistants Make?

Having a clear understanding of earnings potential is important, especially if you are researching career paths or considering changing jobs. If you're one of those people, and you're curious what kind of salary administrative assistants make, you've come to the right place.

Using data from Lightcast,™ the Best Adult Colleges and Careers Guide has compiled rich information about salary for administrative assistants and related jobs, including details about average compensation, salary trends and job growth. We've also gathered advertised salaries from actual job postings to provide insight into what employers of administrative assistants are offering as compensation.

Keep reading to learn more about how much administrative assistants can expect to make in the United States.

At a Glance: Salary & Jobs for Administrative Assistants

According to data from 2023, there were about 107,300 positions for administrative assistants in the United States. In terms of salary, the national median salary for administrative assistants was reported to be $47,715. Additionally, when examining job demand, employers across the country posted 99,038 job postings related to positions for administrative assistants.

How Much Money Do Administrative Assistants Make?

Median salary is just one data point. To build a better understanding of how much money administrative assistants and related positions can expect to make in the United States, it can be helpful to look at the full range of compensation for those jobs.

Let's look more deeply at data that was reported to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) for detail into the lowest and highest salary earnings for administrative assistants.

Annual Salary for Administrative Assistants

According to the BLS, the lowest earners for administrative assistants and related professions earned about $34,486 per year in 2023. Meanwhile, at the other end of the spectrum, the highest earners made about $64,251 annually.

As mentioned previously, the median salary for administrative assistants in the United States in 2023 was $47,715.

Hourly Salary for Administrative Assistants

The BLS also breaks down compensation for administrative assistants by hourly salary, and the median average hourly pay for administrative assistants in 2023 was $23. Lowest hourly earners took home $17 while the highest reported hourly salaries for administrative assistants was $31.

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Degree Options for Administrative Assistants

Advertised Compensation for Administrative Assistants

Data from the BLS is one way to dig into compensation for administrative assistants, but another way to build a more real-time understanding of salary is to look at actual job postings and see what compensation organizations are currently providing to fill open positions for administrative assistants.

Keep in mind that salary data is not included in every job posting, so the information compiled here is reflective of the data available through Lightcast.™

Annual Salary from Job Postings for Administrative Assistants

During a review of 78,912 job postings related to administrative assistants, advertised salary was included in 37,275 of them, which was 47%. Based on those postings, the median advertised salary for administrative assistants was $46,720 per year.

Hourly Salary from Job Postings for Administrative Assistants

A similar analysis of job postings provides insight into advertised hourly salary for administrative assistants. Based on 38% of postings with advertised compensation, the median hourly salary for open positions for administrative assistants in the United States is about $22.

Salary Trend for Administrative Assistants

If you're thinking about pursuing a career in the field, you may want to understand how compensation has changed over time for administrative assistants. The chart below provides a snapshot of advertised salaries over the past three years.

Based on compensation data that was included in job postings for administrative assistants dating back to September 2020, advertised salaries for administrative assistants have increased 21%.

What's the Job Growth for Administrative Assistants?

Another data point that someone thinking about a career path should consider is whether or not jobs are expected to see growth in the future. The chart below looks at projected employment for administrative assistants over the next 10 years.

According to the data obtained through Lightcast,™ there were 107,501 jobs for administrative assistants in the United States in 2023. By 2033, it is expected that about 1,427 jobs will be added. That's a 1.3% increase over the next 10-year period.

Additional Links

Ready to dig deeper into career information about administrative assistants? Visit our other pages focused on salary and education for administrative assistants.

What do administrative assistants do?
Administrative Assistants: How do you become one?

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