Pay by state · 51 states
Editor Salary by State (2026)
Editors earn the most in New York at $101,480 a year and the least in Puerto Rico at $39,640 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). The national median is $77,920. All 51 states and territories with reported data are ranked below, with a cost-of-living adjusted column.
- Highest median
- $101,480New York
- National median
- $77,920BLS OEWS, May 2025
- Lowest median
- $39,640Puerto Rico
- States reporting
- 51of 54 OEWS areas
All states
Editor salary in every state
Sort by any column. Employment is the number of editors OEWS estimates in that state; blank cells are estimates BLS suppressed because the sample was too small.
| # | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | NYNew York | $101,480 | $76,790 | $140,320 | 16,800 | $94,032 |
| 2 | CACalifornia | $98,030 | $71,090 | $136,820 | 14,830 | $88,539 |
| 3 | CTConnecticut | $85,950 | $61,160 | $123,380 | 1,050 | $82,955 |
| 4 | DCDistrict of Columbia | $83,920 | $77,400 | $130,360 | 3,310 | $76,360 |
| 5 | MAMassachusetts | $83,170 | $61,490 | $103,620 | 3,100 | $78,643 |
| 6 | NJNew Jersey | $81,680 | $64,990 | $107,830 | 2,120 | $75,070 |
| 7 | VAVirginia | $80,590 | $58,990 | $109,090 | 2,720 | $79,710 |
| 8 | RIRhode Island | $77,960 | $59,000 | $82,020 | 340 | $76,222 |
| 9 | COColorado | $77,870 | $58,510 | $98,170 | 1,830 | $75,564 |
| 10 | WAWashington | $77,850 | $56,900 | $100,580 | 1,860 | $72,748 |
| 11 | GAGeorgia | $76,650 | $60,770 | $90,360 | 1,920 | $79,601 |
| 12 | ILIllinois | $76,060 | $62,370 | $100,750 | 4,560 | $76,092 |
| 13 | MDMaryland | $75,550 | $60,820 | $100,300 | 1,850 | $71,980 |
| 14 | DEDelaware | $75,020 | $48,980 | $102,160 | 170 | $75,164 |
| 15 | FLFlorida | $73,950 | $47,880 | $95,740 | 3,790 | $71,509 |
| 16 | NCNorth Carolina | $73,740 | $55,950 | $84,050 | 1,870 | $78,176 |
| 17 | NVNevada | $72,510 | $53,840 | $89,240 | N/A | $72,525 |
| 18 | OHOhio | $72,160 | $51,270 | $98,440 | 1,800 | $77,780 |
| 19 | OROregon | $71,540 | $57,740 | $90,740 | 1,110 | $69,214 |
| 20 | VTVermont | $66,860 | $60,170 | $97,030 | 240 | $68,254 |
| 21 | NHNew Hampshire | $66,510 | $54,980 | $88,590 | 250 | $63,851 |
| 22 | UTUtah | $65,040 | $49,360 | $82,130 | 590 | $65,787 |
| 23 | WIWisconsin | $64,270 | $47,490 | $82,950 | 1,510 | $68,303 |
| 24 | NMNew Mexico | $64,250 | $44,730 | $81,240 | 230 | $69,676 |
| 25 | AKAlaska | $63,630 | $59,220 | $76,640 | 60 | $62,164 |
| 26 | PAPennsylvania | $63,460 | $46,530 | $87,770 | 3,240 | $65,039 |
| 27 | ALAlabama | $63,330 | $43,510 | $87,990 | 530 | $71,299 |
| 28 | AZArizona | $63,090 | $56,280 | $83,730 | 820 | $62,666 |
| 29 | MIMichigan | $63,090 | $49,120 | $77,370 | 1,690 | $65,571 |
| 30 | MNMinnesota | $62,650 | $48,200 | $79,710 | 1,970 | $63,526 |
| 31 | SCSouth Carolina | $62,000 | $48,250 | $76,300 | 500 | $66,134 |
| 32 | KSKansas | $61,920 | $50,770 | $77,640 | 500 | $68,748 |
| 33 | MTMontana | $61,750 | $44,230 | $82,370 | 200 | $65,244 |
| 34 | MOMissouri | $61,620 | $45,330 | $82,420 | 880 | $67,851 |
| 35 | NDNorth Dakota | $60,520 | $43,750 | $68,170 | 200 | $68,031 |
| 36 | TNTennessee | $59,550 | $46,010 | $80,940 | 1,390 | $64,820 |
| 37 | KYKentucky | $59,430 | $45,540 | $84,160 | 490 | $65,917 |
| 38 | LALouisiana | $58,860 | $44,640 | $76,030 | 330 | $66,729 |
| 39 | IAIowa | $57,200 | $45,800 | $75,180 | 900 | $65,176 |
| 40 | SDSouth Dakota | $56,730 | $55,940 | $63,320 | 140 | $64,039 |
| 41 | WVWest Virginia | $56,630 | $39,490 | $82,980 | 260 | $63,276 |
| 42 | INIndiana | $56,440 | $39,930 | $77,900 | 830 | $60,474 |
| 43 | HIHawaii | $55,070 | $49,820 | $77,360 | 100 | $50,086 |
| 44 | MSMississippi | $54,380 | $36,980 | $74,620 | 290 | $62,540 |
| 45 | OKOklahoma | $50,780 | $39,460 | $65,160 | 500 | $57,808 |
| 46 | ARArkansas | $50,180 | $38,090 | $62,390 | 260 | $57,720 |
| 47 | MEMaine | $50,180 | $46,280 | $73,390 | 300 | $51,705 |
| 48 | WYWyoming | $46,710 | $40,230 | $65,570 | 110 | $50,393 |
| 49 | NENebraska | $46,320 | $39,120 | $58,730 | 360 | $51,408 |
| 50 | TXTexas | $45,950 | $29,950 | $73,160 | 6,460 | $47,343 |
| 51 | PRPuerto Rico | $39,640 | $35,300 | $51,670 | 300 | N/A |
Method
How the cost-of-living adjustment works
The adjusted column divides each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity (RPP) and multiplies by 100. RPPs measure how much a fixed basket of goods, services and rents costs in one state relative to the national average, so the result restates local pay in national-average dollars.
For Editors, that changes the ranking: New York leads on raw pay at $101,480, while New York leads once prices are taken into account at $94,032.
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities by State, 2024 (public domain). The adjustment is NueCareer's calculation, not a BLS or BEA published statistic.
Questions
Editor pay by state: FAQ
Which state pays Editors the most?
New York reports the highest median wage for Editors at $101,480 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025), followed by California ($98,030) and Connecticut ($85,950).
Which state pays Editors the least?
Puerto Rico reports the lowest median for Editors at $39,640 a year, $61,840 below the highest-paying state (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Where do Editors earn the most after cost of living?
Dividing each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity puts New York first at $94,032 in national-average dollars, from a raw median of $101,480. BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024.