Technical Writers: salary, outlook & degrees
Write technical materials, such as equipment manuals, appendices, or operating and maintenance instructions. May assist in layout work.
Middle half $70,880–$115,510. 45,500 jobs.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
83% hold a bachelor's or higher. Those with one: $72,413.
Census ACS 2020-2024 microdata, workers with at least a high school diploma; EducationGuide calculation
About 3,200 openings a year, including replacements.
BLS Employment Projections 2025-35
Considerable preparation (usually a bachelor's).
BLS; O*NET 31.0 job zone
Degrees that lead to this career
What workers ages 25-34 in this job studied, among those with a bachelor's or higher. This is what people actually did, not a requirement.
| Field of bachelor's degree | Share | Degree pages |
|---|---|---|
| English Language And Literature | 22% | English |
| Biology | 8% | Biology |
| Composition And Rhetoric | 6% | Writing |
| Psychology | 4% | Psychology |
| Communications | 4% | Communications · Communication, Journalism, and Related Programs, Other |
| History | 4% | History |
| Journalism | 2% | Journalism |
| Mass Media | 2% | Broadcasting / Digital Media |
| Political Science And Government | 2% | Political Science |
| Neuroscience | 2% | — |
Census ACS 2020-2024 microdata (ages 25-34, employed, bachelor's or higher; top 10 fields); EducationGuide calculation.
Education workers say the job requires
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers (“required level of education”); small samples, so treat shares as approximate.
Pay by state and metro
| State | Median wage |
|---|---|
| New Jersey | $122,320 |
| District of Columbia | $117,810 |
| Massachusetts | $109,200 |
| Washington | $104,070 |
| California | $104,000 |
| Rhode Island | $102,360 |
| Connecticut | $101,870 |
| Maryland | $100,990 |
| Colorado | $100,610 |
| New York | $98,310 |
| New Hampshire | $96,300 |
| New Mexico | $94,970 |
| Virginia | $93,600 |
| Delaware | $90,370 |
| Nevada | $88,750 |
| Illinois | $88,700 |
| Vermont | $87,860 |
| Pennsylvania | $87,620 |
| North Carolina | $86,320 |
| Florida | $86,240 |
| Alabama | $85,840 |
| Michigan | $85,270 |
| Oregon | $84,000 |
| Minnesota | $83,270 |
| Alaska | $83,200 |
| Texas | $82,750 |
| South Carolina | $82,540 |
| Kentucky | $81,070 |
| Missouri | $80,840 |
| Utah | $80,270 |
| Wisconsin | $80,030 |
| Arizona | $79,780 |
| Tennessee | $79,550 |
| Ohio | $76,480 |
| Indiana | $75,510 |
| Montana | $75,070 |
| Kansas | $73,550 |
| Georgia | $73,070 |
| North Dakota | $72,990 |
| Oklahoma | $69,760 |
| Iowa | $66,520 |
| Mississippi | $65,220 |
| Louisiana | $63,790 |
| South Dakota | $63,350 |
| Arkansas | $61,180 |
| PR | $46,950 |
Florida metro areas
- Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach$84,750
- Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford$86,600
- Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater$89,210
- Jacksonville$89,440
- Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville$80,640
- Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin$95,690
- North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota$94,750
- Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach$78,310
Virginia metro areas
- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria$99,910
- Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk$79,340
- Richmond$79,200
- Charlottesville$93,530
California metro areas
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim$104,000
- San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont$135,470
- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara$140,700
- San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad$101,750
- Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom$94,400
- Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario$85,500
- Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura$98,800
- Fresno$76,030
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025: median annual wage, all workers in the job. Metro areas: the largest by employment.
What the work takes
Top skills
- Writing
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Listening
- Speaking
- Critical Thinking
Knowledge used
- English Language
- Computers and Electronics
- Administrative
- Communications and Media
- Administration and Management
Work styles
- Attention to Detail
- Dependability
- Intellectual Curiosity
- Achievement Orientation
- Cautiousness
People in this job tend to have Conventional (organizing), Artistic (creative), Investigative (analytical) interests.
O*NET 31.0 (U.S. Department of Labor, CC BY 4.0): skills and knowledge by importance; work styles; interest high points.
Technical Writers: questions
How much do technical Writers make?
Technical Writers earn a U.S. median $90,390 a year; the middle half earn $70,880 to $115,510 (BLS, May 2025). Workers ages 25-34 in this job earn a median $71,594 (Census ACS 2020-2024).
Is technical Writers a growing field?
BLS projects growth of 0.8% from 2025 to 2035, with about 3,200 openings a year, including replacements.
What degree do you need to be a technical Writer?
BLS lists the typical entry education as bachelor's degree. In O*NET's survey, 42% of workers say a bachelor's or higher is required. Among workers ages 25-34 with a bachelor's, the most common field of degree is english Language And Literature (22%).
How much do technical Writers make in Florida?
The median in Florida is $86,240 a year (BLS, May 2025), compared with $90,390 nationally.
Sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2025-35); O*NET 31.0 (U.S. Department of Labor, CC BY 4.0); U.S. Census Bureau ACS microdata. SOC 27-3042. Method
Data: JSON · Markdown · all careers
Cite this: “Technical Writers: salary, outlook and degrees,” EducationGuide.com, https://educationguide.com/careers/technical-writers.