occupation · 43-6012 · detailed
Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants — wages and employment
Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants earned a median annual wage of $54,140 in the United States in May 2024, with 154,540 people employed, according to the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
What stands out
Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants earned a median annual wage of $54,140 in the United States in May 2024, with 154,540 people employed, according to the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The lowest-paid tenth earned $35,530 or less, the best-paid tenth $87,660 or more. Since May 2023 the median moved from $50,680 to $54,140, +6.8 %. The best-paying state is District of Columbia at $101,170; the lowest Puerto Rico at $32,810. Among metropolitan areas, San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA pays the highest median, $106,130. Wages are as published by BLS for May of each year; '≥ $239,200' is BLS's top code. Every value links to its fact record.
United States, year by year
Annual wages at the median, mean and four percentiles; employment is the May estimate.
| Reference | Employment | Median | Mean | 10th | 25th | 75th | 90th | Median hourly | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2024 | 154,540 | $54,140 | $60,320 | $35,530 | $42,720 | $72,090 | $87,660 | $26.03 | evidence → |
| May 2023 | 152,790 | $50,680 | $56,330 | $34,780 | $41,450 | $66,510 | $82,890 | $24.37 | evidence → |
By state
Median annual wage, May 2024, highest first. Each state has its own record with the full series.
| State | Median annual | Employment |
|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | $101,170 | 2,040 |
| New York | $74,400 | 15,430 |
| Delaware | $63,740 | 970 |
| Maryland | $63,110 | 1,410 |
| Rhode Island | $61,970 | — |
| Massachusetts | $61,440 | 3,880 |
| Connecticut | $61,440 | 1,140 |
| California | $61,320 | 23,960 |
| Minnesota | $61,300 | 2,500 |
| New Jersey | $60,400 | 3,910 |
| Washington | $59,680 | 4,090 |
| Alaska | $59,600 | 560 |
| Illinois | $58,070 | 8,860 |
| Hawaii | $57,030 | 520 |
| Colorado | $56,560 | 1,910 |
| Michigan | $56,030 | 3,070 |
| Oregon | $55,590 | 900 |
| Florida | $53,790 | 10,970 |
| North Dakota | $53,460 | 320 |
| Nevada | $51,540 | 1,450 |
| Virginia | $51,010 | 2,800 |
| Georgia | $51,000 | 1,990 |
| Maine | $49,950 | 610 |
| New Hampshire | $49,880 | 490 |
| Pennsylvania | $49,330 | 6,440 |
| Texas | $49,150 | 9,900 |
| Wisconsin | $48,980 | 1,160 |
| Guam | $48,660 | 50 |
| Arizona | $47,990 | 3,320 |
| New Mexico | $47,900 | 1,330 |
| Nebraska | $47,770 | 1,210 |
| Missouri | $47,650 | 2,320 |
| Oklahoma | $47,440 | 1,430 |
| Indiana | $47,260 | 2,400 |
| Vermont | $47,050 | 290 |
| West Virginia | $46,940 | 1,280 |
| Ohio | $46,710 | 5,170 |
| Alabama | $46,390 | 1,920 |
| Virgin Islands | $46,180 | 70 |
| Utah | $46,050 | 1,060 |
| South Dakota | $46,020 | 660 |
| Tennessee | $44,280 | 3,440 |
| North Carolina | $43,830 | 4,460 |
| Mississippi | $43,830 | 790 |
| Montana | $43,230 | 630 |
| Wyoming | $42,590 | 210 |
| Louisiana | $42,560 | 2,790 |
| Idaho | $41,920 | 550 |
| Kansas | $41,640 | 830 |
| South Carolina | $39,670 | 2,120 |
| Arkansas | $39,400 | 930 |
| Kentucky | $38,330 | 2,190 |
| Puerto Rico | $32,810 | 2,350 |
Highest-paying metropolitan areas
Top 20 by median annual wage.
| Metro area | Median annual | Employment |
|---|---|---|
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | $106,130 | 990 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $88,600 | 2,800 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $81,210 | 2,810 |
| Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT | $75,620 | 530 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | $74,400 | 14,530 |
| Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT | $73,740 | — |
| North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL | $67,980 | 510 |
| Manchester-Nashua, NH | $67,300 | 190 |
| Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA | $66,570 | 530 |
| Durham-Chapel Hill, NC | $65,750 | 380 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $64,010 | 2,520 |
| Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI | $63,970 | 1,830 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | $63,580 | 1,870 |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | $63,080 | 1,020 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | $62,630 | 2,960 |
| Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA | $62,480 | 200 |
| Trenton-Princeton, NJ | $62,320 | 340 |
| Napa, CA | $62,250 | 30 |
| Modesto, CA | $62,050 | 170 |
| Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA | $61,650 | 280 |
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