Editors
Median $77,920
Occupation · SOC 27-3042
Technical Writers: pay and where the jobs are
What technical writers earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.
National pay, May 2025
$90,390 median annual wage
- Mean (average) annual wage
- $96,970
- Median hourly wage
- $43.46
- Mean hourly wage
- $46.62
- Employment
- 45,500
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 27-3042.
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How much do technical writers make?
The median annual wage for technical writers was $90,390 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $57,440 and the highest-paid 10% more than $145,270. As an hourly rate, the median is $43.46. About 45,500 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in New Jersey ($122,320), District of Columbia ($117,810) and Massachusetts ($109,200). New Jersey also comes out on top after taxes and local prices.
Pay ladder
What each step of the pay range for technical writers 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 | $57,440 | $27.62 | $4,787 | $4,028 |
| 25th percentile | $70,880 | $34.08 | $5,907 | $4,891 |
| Median | $90,390 | $43.46 | $7,533 | $6,035 |
| 75th percentile | $115,510 | $55.53 | $9,626 | $7,508 |
| 90th percentile | $145,270 | $69.84 | $12,106 | $9,213 |
Technical Writers: pay by state
46 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
$81,399 take-home in national prices
2
$78,427 take-home in national prices
3
$77,037 take-home in national prices
Where a median technical writer paycheck goes furthest after 2026 taxes and BEA price levels.
| State | Employment | Median | 10th pct. | 90th pct. | Median after tax* | In national prices† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Jersey | 1,550 | $122,320 | $69,400 | $163,390 | $88,566 | $81,399 |
| District of Columbia | 440 | $117,810 | $74,720 | $148,770 | $84,664 | $77,037 |
| Massachusetts | 1,850 | $109,200 | $71,120 | $165,060 | $79,910 | $75,560 |
| Washington | 1,620 | $104,070 | $60,420 | $169,810 | $80,600 | $75,318 |
| California | 5,280 | $104,000 | $69,630 | $175,510 | $75,215 | $67,933 |
| Rhode Island | 150 | $102,360 | $77,480 | $115,380 | $76,480 | $74,775 |
| Connecticut | 770 | $101,870 | $63,710 | $127,830 | $75,124 | $72,507 |
| Maryland | 1,780 | $100,990 | $72,880 | $149,740 | $75,369 | $71,808 |
| Colorado | 1,320 | $100,610 | $69,730 | $160,950 | $75,448 | $73,214 |
| New York | 1,610 | $98,310 | $53,560 | $152,570 | $72,788 | $67,446 |
| New Hampshire | 230 | $96,300 | $63,500 | $130,970 | $76,577 | $73,515 |
| New Mexico | 420 | $94,970 | $53,280 | $130,260 | $72,319 | $78,427 |
| Virginia | 2,280 | $93,600 | $60,930 | $139,470 | $70,110 | $69,344 |
| Delaware | 80 | $90,370 | $60,990 | $117,210 | $67,420 | $67,550 |
| Nevada | 230 | $88,750 | $56,710 | $124,800 | $71,266 | $71,281 |
| Illinois | 1,040 | $88,700 | $58,800 | $130,890 | $66,985 | $67,013 |
| Vermont | 60 | $87,860 | $61,220 | $223,650 | $67,345 | $68,749 |
| Pennsylvania | 1,330 | $87,620 | $54,220 | $158,180 | $67,719 | $69,405 |
| North Carolina | 2,860 | $86,320 | $53,790 | $139,950 | $66,621 | $70,628 |
| Florida | 2,550 | $86,240 | $59,520 | $132,380 | $69,500 | $67,205 |
| Alabama | 630 | $85,840 | $60,700 | $123,140 | $65,669 | $73,933 |
| Michigan | 970 | $85,270 | $57,600 | $127,070 | $65,444 | $68,017 |
| Oregon | 590 | $84,000 | $58,990 | $150,220 | $61,672 | $59,667 |
| Minnesota | 910 | $83,270 | $58,670 | $127,390 | $62,905 | $63,785 |
| Alaska | 130 | $83,200 | $61,020 | $102,120 | $67,090 | $65,544 |
| Texas | 3,340 | $82,750 | $50,590 | $127,920 | $67,045 | $69,078 |
| South Carolina | 700 | $82,540 | $57,360 | $120,930 | $63,740 | $67,990 |
| Kentucky | 340 | $81,070 | $54,300 | $120,350 | $63,143 | $70,035 |
| Missouri | 500 | $80,840 | $51,170 | $192,040 | $62,839 | $69,193 |
| Utah | 570 | $80,270 | $50,610 | $132,590 | $61,887 | $62,598 |
| Wisconsin | 910 | $80,030 | $56,460 | $119,930 | $61,889 | $65,773 |
| Arizona | 730 | $79,780 | $60,100 | $119,930 | $63,354 | $62,928 |
| Tennessee | 480 | $79,550 | $50,430 | $108,890 | $64,793 | $70,527 |
| Ohio | 1,350 | $76,480 | $48,970 | $125,150 | $60,974 | $65,723 |
| Indiana | 540 | $75,510 | $52,350 | $106,680 | $59,753 | $64,024 |
| Montana | 160 | $75,070 | $65,630 | $89,280 | $58,761 | $62,086 |
| Kansas | 480 | $73,550 | $49,250 | $102,440 | $57,268 | $63,583 |
| Georgia | 1,680 | $73,070 | $57,970 | $122,290 | $57,337 | $59,544 |
| North Dakota | 70 | $72,990 | $50,460 | $110,150 | $60,014 | $67,463 |
| Oklahoma | 600 | $69,760 | $48,130 | $103,440 | $55,312 | $62,967 |
| Iowa | 640 | $66,520 | $52,750 | $98,970 | $53,751 | $61,246 |
| Mississippi | 70 | $65,220 | $45,740 | $85,980 | $52,707 | $60,616 |
| Louisiana | 320 | $63,790 | $53,220 | $94,680 | $51,908 | $58,848 |
| South Dakota | 70 | $63,350 | $49,490 | $84,090 | $53,082 | $59,921 |
| Arkansas | 150 | $61,180 | $45,170 | $81,330 | $49,562 | $57,009 |
| Puerto Rico | 60 | $46,950 | $28,440 | $97,070 | — | — |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 27-3042. *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.