A executive assistant in San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara has a median wage of $106,220. In Puerto Rico nonmetropolitan area the median is $29,210. That is a 3.64-fold difference for the same job title, which is unusually wide even by the standards of a country this large — and it means a national average for this role is close to meaningless.
Ten per cent of executive assistants earn below $50,560 and ten per cent above $109,850 — a 2.17× band. The upside from median to 90th percentile is 43%, which is a normal amount of room for experience and specialisation to matter. An offer below the 25th percentile is worth questioning; one above the 75th is worth taking seriously.
7 of the ten best-paying metros for executive assistants are in CA. When one state dominates the top of the table like this, cost of living is doing part of the work but rarely all of it — state licensing rules, public-sector pay scales and the presence of a few large employers usually explain the rest. If you are comparing an offer in CA against one elsewhere, adjust for housing before concluding anything.
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara CA | $106,220 | $51.07 | 1.58 | 5,300 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont CA | $105,190 | $50.57 | 1.6 | 11,250 |
| Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury CT | $100,930 | $48.52 | 1.43 | 1,710 |
| Santa Rosa-Petaluma CA | $92,240 | $44.34 | 0.81 | 490 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria DC-VA-MD-WV | $90,320 | $43.42 | 1.4 | 12,960 |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom CA | $87,910 | $42.27 | 1.1 | 3,530 |
| Vallejo CA | $86,190 | $41.44 | 0.54 | 230 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton MA-NH | $85,260 | $40.99 | 1.41 | 11,290 |
| Napa CA | $84,640 | $40.69 | 0.76 | 180 |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad CA | $84,540 | $40.64 | 0.99 | 4,510 |
| Kahului-Wailuku HI | $84,330 | $40.54 | 0.74 | 160 |
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville CA | $84,090 | $40.43 | 0.9 | 260 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City NY-NJ | $83,840 | $40.31 | 2.74 | 76,950 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim CA | $82,850 | $39.83 | 1.12 | 20,850 |
| Santa Maria-Santa Barbara CA | $82,740 | $39.78 | 0.77 | 460 |
| Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura CA | $82,250 | $39.54 | 0.77 | 740 |
| Rochester MN | $82,230 | $39.54 | 0.42 | 150 |
| Waterbury-Shelton CT | $81,640 | $39.25 | 0.91 | 430 |
| Santa Fe NM | $81,410 | $39.14 | 3.3 | 600 |
| Corvallis OR | $80,960 | $38.92 | 1.22 | 140 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue WA | $80,860 | $38.87 | 1.19 | 7,370 |
| Trenton-Princeton NJ | $80,700 | $38.80 | 1.76 | 1,250 |
| Merced CA | $80,650 | $38.78 | 0.63 | 150 |
| Lexington Park MD | $80,630 | $38.76 | 1.09 | 230 |
| New Haven CT | $80,620 | $38.76 | 0.96 | 800 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Puerto Rico nonmetropolitan area | $29,210 | $14.04 | 1.37 | 120 |
| Aguadilla PR | $35,800 | $17.21 | 1.35 | 200 |
| Ponce PR | $36,080 | $17.34 | 1.66 | 310 |
| Arecibo PR | $36,130 | $17.37 | 1.4 | 140 |
| Guayama PR | $36,220 | $17.41 | 1.15 | 40 |
| San Juan-Bayamon-Caguas PR | $37,170 | $17.87 | 2.98 | 6,090 |
| Mayaguez PR | $38,000 | $18.27 | 1.25 | 190 |
| Bloomington IN | $40,770 | $19.60 | 2.15 | 470 |
| Lower East Mississippi nonmetropolitan area | $46,060 | $22.14 | 0.31 | 110 |
| Enid OK | $46,480 | $22.35 | 0.47 | 30 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ithaca NY | $69,310 | $33.32 | 4.13 | 590 |
| Santa Fe NM | $81,410 | $39.14 | 3.3 | 600 |
| San Juan-Bayamon-Caguas PR | $37,170 | $17.87 | 2.98 | 6,090 |
| Springfield IL | $73,510 | $35.34 | 2.8 | 830 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City NY-NJ | $83,840 | $40.31 | 2.74 | 76,950 |
| Albany-Schenectady-Troy NY | $74,730 | $35.93 | 2.56 | 3,400 |
| Binghamton NY | $72,230 | $34.72 | 2.56 | 730 |
| Syracuse NY | $76,350 | $36.71 | 2.39 | 2,120 |
| Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos TX | $69,600 | $33.46 | 2.24 | 8,560 |
| Bloomington IN | $40,770 | $19.60 | 2.15 | 470 |
| Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh NY | $74,260 | $35.70 | 2.14 | 1,710 |
| Kingston NY | $74,820 | $35.97 | 2.1 | 370 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York-Newark-Jersey City NY-NJ | $83,840 | $40.31 | 2.74 | 76,950 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim CA | $82,850 | $39.83 | 1.12 | 20,850 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria DC-VA-MD-WV | $90,320 | $43.42 | 1.4 | 12,960 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton MA-NH | $85,260 | $40.99 | 1.41 | 11,290 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont CA | $105,190 | $50.57 | 1.6 | 11,250 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin IL-IN | $77,770 | $37.39 | 0.8 | 10,620 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell GA | $72,090 | $34.66 | 1.18 | 10,060 |
| Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos TX | $69,600 | $33.46 | 2.24 | 8,560 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington TX | $80,230 | $38.57 | 0.69 | 8,290 |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson MD | $78,380 | $37.69 | 2.06 | 8,260 |
| Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands TX | $74,850 | $35.99 | 0.76 | 7,390 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue WA | $80,860 | $38.87 | 1.19 | 7,370 |
Figures come from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics programme, May 2025 release, SOC code 43-6011. OEWS surveys employers, so it reports what is actually paid rather than what job advertisements claim, and it excludes the self-employed. Estimates cover 513 of 528 metropolitan areas — near-complete coverage, which means the ranges above are reliable rather than drawn from a handful of markets. Read the methodology.