Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants
Median $55,570
Occupation · SOC 43-6011
Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants: pay and where the jobs are
What executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.
National pay, May 2025
$76,590 median annual wage
- Mean (average) annual wage
- $79,140
- Median hourly wage
- $36.82
- Mean hourly wage
- $38.05
- Employment
- 459,910
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 43-6011.
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How much do executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants make?
The median annual wage for executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants was $76,590 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $50,560 and the highest-paid 10% more than $109,850. As an hourly rate, the median is $36.82. About 459,910 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in District of Columbia ($90,850), New Jersey ($89,520) and California ($89,000). After taxes and local prices, though, a median paycheck goes furthest in New Mexico.
Pay ladder
What each step of the pay range for executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants looks like per month. Take-home here includes federal tax, Social Security and Medicare for a single filer; add your state in the paycheck calculator.
| Step | Annual | Hourly | Monthly gross | Monthly after federal tax & FICA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $50,560 | $24.31 | $4,213 | $3,567 |
| 25th percentile | $61,390 | $29.52 | $5,116 | $4,292 |
| Median | $76,590 | $36.82 | $6,383 | $5,226 |
| 75th percentile | $94,390 | $45.38 | $7,866 | $6,269 |
| 90th percentile | $109,850 | $52.81 | $9,154 | $7,176 |
Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants: pay by state
54 states and territories have a published median, sorted from highest to lowest. The last two columns are our estimates: the median after 2026 federal and state taxes, and that take-home restated in national-average prices.
1
$63,446 take-home in national prices
2
$62,248 take-home in national prices
3
$61,864 take-home in national prices
Where a median executive secretaries and executive administrative assistant paycheck goes furthest after 2026 taxes and BEA price levels.
| State | Employment | Median | 10th pct. | 90th pct. | Median after tax* | In national prices† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | 4,560 | $90,850 | $64,890 | $121,000 | $67,989 | $61,864 |
| New Jersey | 11,690 | $89,520 | $60,000 | $119,990 | $67,728 | $62,248 |
| California | 59,640 | $89,000 | $58,060 | $130,510 | $66,253 | $59,838 |
| Massachusetts | 14,820 | $82,650 | $59,320 | $123,930 | $62,682 | $59,269 |
| Connecticut | 6,490 | $82,520 | $61,880 | $119,030 | $62,682 | $60,498 |
| Hawaii | 1,440 | $80,710 | $52,100 | $117,020 | $60,889 | $55,379 |
| New York | 88,890 | $80,640 | $61,420 | $122,440 | $61,423 | $56,915 |
| Virginia | 10,360 | $80,330 | $51,370 | $119,990 | $61,537 | $60,865 |
| Washington | 11,560 | $79,250 | $59,810 | $106,720 | $63,483 | $59,323 |
| Delaware | 1,320 | $78,920 | $53,940 | $100,130 | $60,167 | $60,283 |
| Maryland | 13,960 | $78,540 | $54,430 | $108,480 | $60,718 | $57,849 |
| Minnesota | 7,970 | $78,470 | $58,870 | $101,760 | $59,876 | $60,713 |
| Rhode Island | 950 | $77,820 | $47,310 | $97,960 | $60,419 | $59,072 |
| Oregon | 6,000 | $75,480 | $56,470 | $102,000 | $56,390 | $54,556 |
| Pennsylvania | 12,910 | $75,270 | $48,920 | $102,690 | $59,419 | $60,898 |
| Illinois | 14,900 | $74,390 | $50,750 | $104,850 | $57,626 | $57,650 |
| New Mexico | 2,800 | $73,890 | $52,000 | $92,710 | $58,504 | $63,446 |
| Texas | 34,520 | $71,990 | $50,740 | $103,080 | $59,475 | $61,278 |
| New Hampshire | 1,210 | $71,650 | $50,000 | $101,860 | $59,236 | $56,867 |
| Arizona | 6,490 | $70,770 | $50,710 | $103,080 | $57,241 | $56,856 |
| Vermont | 770 | $70,770 | $54,770 | $96,520 | $56,450 | $57,627 |
| North Carolina | 8,890 | $70,140 | $49,720 | $99,710 | $55,884 | $59,245 |
| Ohio | 10,940 | $69,600 | $47,480 | $99,330 | $56,323 | $60,710 |
| Alabama | 2,880 | $69,450 | $46,800 | $100,620 | $54,778 | $61,671 |
| Wisconsin | 4,480 | $68,920 | $51,250 | $93,190 | $54,733 | $58,167 |
| Georgia | 14,560 | $68,290 | $51,840 | $99,540 | $54,213 | $56,300 |
| Tennessee | 5,360 | $68,190 | $45,580 | $98,100 | $56,802 | $61,828 |
| Nevada | 2,670 | $67,830 | $36,630 | $100,450 | $56,548 | $56,560 |
| Michigan | 9,030 | $66,840 | $47,810 | $99,400 | $53,262 | $55,356 |
| Alaska | 1,320 | $66,210 | $50,290 | $92,610 | $55,109 | $53,839 |
| Nebraska | 1,860 | $66,210 | $48,570 | $94,690 | $53,247 | $59,095 |
| Colorado | 10,340 | $65,850 | $49,850 | $100,290 | $52,612 | $51,054 |
| Kansas | 2,750 | $64,860 | $48,160 | $90,970 | $51,476 | $57,152 |
| Florida | 19,220 | $64,710 | $42,830 | $99,220 | $54,174 | $52,386 |
| Maine | 2,320 | $64,100 | $49,850 | $88,160 | $50,715 | $52,256 |
| West Virginia | 860 | $63,820 | $40,670 | $95,090 | $51,426 | $57,461 |
| Kentucky | 2,700 | $62,410 | $44,800 | $92,740 | $50,260 | $55,746 |
| Iowa | 4,150 | $62,340 | $45,230 | $83,600 | $50,553 | $57,602 |
| North Dakota | 540 | $61,270 | $46,350 | $86,170 | $51,410 | $57,791 |
| Utah | 5,440 | $61,130 | $40,410 | $91,580 | $48,986 | $49,549 |
| South Carolina | 3,880 | $60,890 | $42,600 | $92,370 | $49,383 | $52,676 |
| Missouri | 8,500 | $60,320 | $42,340 | $95,030 | $48,749 | $53,679 |
| Idaho | 1,180 | $60,200 | $45,760 | $105,230 | $48,468 | $50,755 |
| Oklahoma | 2,810 | $59,910 | $41,760 | $86,560 | $48,167 | $54,833 |
| Montana | 550 | $59,750 | $48,830 | $80,080 | $48,138 | $50,861 |
| Indiana | 5,060 | $59,080 | $41,930 | $92,280 | $47,937 | $51,364 |
| Virgin Islands | 170 | $56,720 | $33,860 | $74,990 | — | — |
| Mississippi | 1,240 | $55,670 | $37,810 | $82,380 | $45,416 | $52,231 |
| South Dakota | 1,230 | $55,170 | $42,930 | $70,110 | $46,509 | $52,502 |
| Louisiana | 9,270 | $53,240 | $35,800 | $79,600 | $43,747 | $49,596 |
| Wyoming | 560 | $52,210 | $47,060 | $73,730 | $44,131 | $47,611 |
| Arkansas | 2,070 | $51,600 | $37,830 | $82,110 | $42,219 | $48,563 |
| Guam | 80 | $43,930 | $33,280 | $81,400 | — | — |
| Puerto Rico | 7,100 | $37,120 | $27,060 | $52,660 | — | — |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 43-6011. *Our estimate for a single filer paid biweekly with no pre-tax deductions or local tax, 2026 federal and state rules. †Take-home ÷ BEA Regional Price Parity × 100 (2024 price levels).
Sources
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25nat.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25st.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.