Technical writers are the technical communicators of today. In this position, you’ll write everything from user guides and manuals to white papers and help (knowledge) articles. As a technical writer, you need to be an excellent communicator — writing clear and concise language that helps your audience understand new concepts while providing guidance on how to perform tasks or using products.
Technical Writers typically earn an average salary of $62,000 per year. However, the actual amount of your salary will depend on your exact position and the industry that you work in. The best way to start getting a feel for how much money you can make in this field is calculating what other technical writers are earning at their chosen company.
Starting Salary For Technical Writer Overview
If you’re looking to become a technical writer, you’ve probably already looked up the salary and certification you’ll need. But what about the entry-level salary?
Well, we have good news: it’s pretty low, so you don’t need to worry about paying back your student loans any time soon.
According to Glassdoor, the average starting salary for a technical writer is $53,000 per year. That’s $26.86 per hour. And according to PayScale, the median salary for a technical writer is $59,200 per year—that’s $30.14 per hour!
But don’t let that fool you into thinking that this is an easy job; it takes years of study and practice to get where you can write code and create documentation that makes sense even if you’re not an engineer yourself.
What Factors Impact The Average Total Compensation Of A Technical Writer?
Several factors will impact the average salary of a technical writer. A few of the most important factors include:
- Cost of living: Without a doubt, the average salary of a technical writer will vary significantly depending on where the job is located. For example, someone who lives in an area with a higher cost of living, such as New York, Los Angeles, or Massachusetts, is going to command a higher salary than someone who lives in an area with a lower cost of living, such as Austin, Dallas, or Colorado.
- Years of experience: Of course, the experience of the technical writer is also going to play a role. Someone who has more years of experience is going to demand a higher salary than someone who is just entering the field. They may even have a slightly different job title.
- Scope of duties: The responsibilities of that technical writer will also play a role in how much money they make. Someone who has a lot more to do during the day is probably going to make more money.
- Additional cash compensation: Finally, there may also be situations where a technical writer may qualify for performance bonuses. For example, some jobs have an individual bonus, where someone is paid extra money based on their performance during the course of the year. Other positions may have something called profit sharing, where individual employees are paid a bonus based on the company’s overall performance.
These are a few of the most important factors that might play a role in how much money someone could make as a technical writer.
What are the most valuable skills for a technical writer?
Many job postings for technical writers ask for the following specialized skills:
- Technical writing/editing
- Project management
- Proposal writing
- Journalism
- Request for proposal (RFP)
- Adobe Acrobat
- Microsoft Sharepoint
In addition, there are a number of “soft skills” that also pop up frequently in postings, including:
- Writing (of course)
- Editing
- Communication skills
- Research
- Teamwork/collaboration
- Detail-oriented
Whether you’re a technical writer working full-time for a particular company or a freelancer, “soft skills” can help you convince stakeholders to buy into your vision (and clients to sign up for your services, in terms of freelancing). It’s an essential set of skills.
Average Technical Writer Salary
The technical writer position is a full-time job in most organizations; however, some organizations may hire technical writers in contractual or part-time positions. Meanwhile, some companies prefer hiring freelance technical writers. In any case, technical writer jobs tend to be slightly different depending on the company and industry. As a result, you may find several related jobs with the same job description with alternate job titles.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the average technical writer makes around $76,860 in the United States. According to their database, over 50,000 technical writer jobs exist in the U.S. The highest annual average salary for technical writers is in the computer science industry, followed by management, technical consulting, and employment services.
Therefore, technical writers make more while working in STEM-related companies due to the higher requirement of complex technical knowledge.
In any case, it’s best to look at a few other sources to understand how much a technical writer makes, according to anonymous individual salary reports.
Glassdoor
Glassdoor is a renowned website where you can find several salary estimates and reviews. Employees can upload anonymous annual salary reports, review their employers, and enter benefits information, cost of living estimates, and total compensation numbers.
According to Glassdoor, the national average base salary for technical writers is $77,812. Additionally, the average salary range is between $39,000 and $155,000.
Furthermore, Glassdoor lets you check different salary estimates by adding more filters. You can make a more precise search by adding the following filters:
- Choose the industry you’re in or that you would like to enter.
- Enter the estimated size of the company according to the total number of employees.
- Enter the full yearly experience for the position.
Adding the filters above refine your search and better estimate the technical writer’s salary according to your needs.
Authorities calculate using the salary reports entered by people. However, some companies also include their salaries at times.
You can also find the estimated salaries of related jobs, such as the senior technical writer salaries.
In any case, you can get one of the best estimates of the technical writer’s salary by using the filters on Glassdoor.
Indeed
Indeed is one of the most significant job-search engines used by millions of people in the U.S. alone. However, it’s also a great place to find reasonable salary estimates based on the thousands of jobs posted on the website.
The average salary for a technical writer in the United States is $59,097. Furthermore, technical writers can get approximately $2,000 in cash bonuses through additional cash compensation over a year.
The site also displays the most common benefits companies offer to technical writers. Some of the most common benefits given to technical writers include referral programs, health insurance, disability insurance, AD&D insurance, and 401k matching.
Indeed also shows you what cities offer the most salaries to technical writers. The highest-paying cities include San Diego, Washington, DC, Dallas, Austin, and New York.
Lastly, you can set up new job alerts based on specific salaries. Therefore, you’ll only get job alerts for technical writer jobs with one particular technical writer salary or above.
PayScale
PayScale is a dedicated website for getting salary data, estimates, total compensation values, and specific benefits. The site also offers cost of living estimates, gender-based pay estimates, and other pay-related information.
According to PayScale, the average median salary for technical writers in the U.S. is $61,553. That brings the average hourly rate to $24.99.
Furthermore, technical writers can earn up to $2,510 in bonuses and $1,979 through profit-sharing.
The average pay range for technical writers is between $43,000 and $89,000.
PayScale also shows what states offer the most impressive technical writer salaries. As a dedicated technical writer, you can earn the most in California and Massachusetts. Furthermore, the highest-paying cities for technical writers include Seattle, New York, San Francisco, and Houston.
What is a technical writer’s starting salary?
The starting salary for a technical writer (as well as the maximum salary) hinge on a number of factors, including their first company and their education. Emsi Burning Glass provides a handy breakdown of how education can impact median salary for this profession over the long term:
Technical Writer Salary, by Education
| Education | 25th Quartile | Median | 75th Quartile |
|---|---|---|---|
| High school or vocational training | $44,000 | $55,000 | $67,000 |
| Associate’s degree | $49,000 | $56,000 | $65,000 |
| Bachelor’s degree | $57,000 | $68,000 | $80,000 |
| Master’s degree | $69,000 | $78,000 | $88,000 |
It’s also worth paying attention to how experience can impact salary. As technical writers spend more years in the profession, their income can often climb considerably:
Technical Writer Salary, by Experience
| Experience | 25th Quartile | Median | 75th Quartile |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9+ years | $65,000 | $77,000 | $88,000 |
| 6 to 8 years | $67,000 | $78,000 | $87,000 |
| 3 to 5 years | $58,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
| 0 to 2 years | $49,000 | $59,000 | $70,000 |
