{"id":6995,"date":"2021-03-11T16:30:57","date_gmt":"2021-03-11T16:30:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uxwritinghub.com\/?p=6995"},"modified":"2022-06-01T06:52:50","modified_gmt":"2022-06-01T06:52:50","slug":"ux-writing-salary-survey-2021","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uxwritinghub.com\/ux-writing-salary-survey-2021\/","title":{"rendered":"How much do UX writers actually make? Salary survey report 2021"},"content":{"rendered":"

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UPDATE: For the latest figures, check out the 2022 salary survey report<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n

757 people all over the world completed UX Writing Hub<\/a>\u2019s recent salary survey. Thanks everyone! Over the last few weeks, we\u2019ve been digging into the numbers and found tons of fascinating insights.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

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Good times for UX writers<\/h2>\r\n

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Before we dive in, it\u2019s good to know that there has never been a better time to become a writer in tech. The interest in the role has been growing in line with increasing demand for digital products that truly resonate with the users<\/strong>. Not surprising then that Google Trends reveals a massive increase in web searches for UX writing over the last few years:<\/p>\r\n

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Shortcuts<\/h2>\r\n

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Jump straight to:<\/p>\r\n

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Global average UX writing salary 2021<\/a>
UX writing can be a six-figure salary job<\/a>
What\u2019s in a name? $, it seems!<\/a>
Company size (and type) is a big deal<\/a>
Experience counts<\/a>
Writer:designer ratio<\/a>
Gender insights<\/a>
Negotiate your salary<\/a>
An average UX writer’s profile<\/a>
Limitations of this survey<\/a>
Become a UX writer<\/a><\/p>\r\n

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\ud83c\udf0d<\/a>Global average UX writing salary 2021<\/h2>\r\n

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The global average salary for writers in tech 2021 is 65K USD. But as you can imagine, this figure alone doesn\u2019t say much in itself as it varies enormously across countries, age groups, and years of experience, to name a few things. Let\u2019s look into some of the most important points that affect salaries for writers in tech.<\/p>\r\n

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\ud83d\udcb0<\/a>UX writing can be a six-figure salary job<\/h2>\r\n

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In some places in the world, UX writers earn six-figure salaries. Here are the top 10 countries based on median salary:<\/p>\r\n

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\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Country<\/strong><\/td>\r\nMedian annual salary for writers in tech<\/strong><\/td>\r\nAverage income <\/strong>
<\/strong>(data from <\/strong>worlddata.info<\/strong><\/a>)<\/strong><\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Switzerland<\/td>\r\n$117,500<\/td>\r\n$85,500<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
USA<\/td>\r\n$105,000\u00a0<\/td>\r\n$65,850<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Australia<\/td>\r\n$88,000\u00a0<\/td>\r\n$55,100\u00a0<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Ireland<\/td>\r\n$86,500<\/td>\r\n$64,000<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Germany<\/td>\r\n$72,600<\/td>\r\n$48,580<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Norway<\/td>\r\n$71,400<\/td>\r\n$82,500<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
United Kingdom<\/td>\r\n$69,000<\/td>\r\n$42,220<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Denmark<\/td>\r\n$66,600<\/td>\r\n$63,950<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Israel<\/td>\r\n$66,340<\/td>\r\n$43,110<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
New Zealand<\/td>\r\n$66,000<\/td>\r\n$42,760<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<\/tbody>\r\n<\/table>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n

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We can see that UX writers, content designers<\/a>, and other writers in the tech industry are earning significantly above-average incomes.<\/p>\r\n

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Check the median salary for your country here<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n

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Of course, it\u2019s good to remember that the gross salary is only one piece of a person\u2019s actual income pie. There are many things to take into account, for example the general tax rate and cost of living<\/strong>. It doesn\u2019t include things like overtime pay, bonuses, and other benefits either. Plus, there are big differences within each country.<\/p>\r\n

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Still, who\u2019s not curious about how high we can go in our profession? Here are the 10 top reported salaries:<\/p>\r\n

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Country<\/strong><\/td>\r\nMax reported annual salary<\/strong><\/td>\r\nJob title<\/strong><\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
United Kingdom<\/td>\r\n$376,895<\/td>\r\nContent Designer<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
USA<\/td>\r\n$360,000<\/td>\r\nContent Designer<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Sweden<\/td>\r\n$240,479<\/td>\r\nUX Writer<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Germany<\/td>\r\n$194,085<\/td>\r\nUX Copywriter<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Switzerland<\/td>\r\n$168,527<\/td>\r\nContent Strategist<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Netherlands<\/td>\r\n$163,759<\/td>\r\nContent Strategist<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Canada<\/td>\r\n$146,000<\/td>\r\nContent Designer<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Ireland<\/td>\r\n$133,640<\/td>\r\nUX Writer<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Australia<\/td>\r\n$116,912<\/td>\r\nUX Writer<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<\/tbody>\r\n<\/table>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n

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This table brings us to another interesting point, which is that certain job titles earn significantly more than others.<\/p>\r\n

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\ud83d\udca1<\/a>What\u2019s in a name? $, it seems!<\/h2>\r\n

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We all know that the job titles in our industry are a mess. There is zero consistency and there can be a lot of overlap between roles such as content strategist, content marketer, and content writer.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

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The salary survey results revealed that UX writer is the most common job title<\/strong>, but it only accounts for just over \u2153 of the responses \u2014\u00a034.6%<\/strong> to be exact.<\/p>\r\n

This is followed by content designer at 14.3%, content strategist at 11.2%, and technical writer at 11%. And we had a whopping 64 different job titles submitted through the survey!<\/p>\r\n

You often hear that the job title doesn\u2019t matter. Well in terms of salary, that\u2019s not true. There is a clear tendency for some job titles to earn more than others. Check out the median salary for these common job titles:<\/p>\r\n

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Job Title<\/strong><\/td>\r\nMedian annual salary (USA)<\/strong><\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Content Designer<\/td>\r\n$117,500<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
UX Writer<\/td>\r\n$110,000<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Content Strategist<\/td>\r\n$105,600<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Conversation Designer<\/td>\r\n$105,000<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Content Director<\/td>\r\n$100,000<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Technical Writer<\/td>\r\n$93,000<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Content Marketer<\/td>\r\n$80,000<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Content Writer<\/td>\r\n$70,800<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Content\/Copy Editor<\/td>\r\n$70,000<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Copywriter<\/td>\r\n$65,449<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<\/tbody>\r\n<\/table>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n

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As you can see, the top 3 high-earning titles are Content Designers, UX Writers, and Content Strategists<\/strong>.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

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What does that tell us? That as a writer in tech, you should consider re-branding yourself<\/strong> if you want more money in your pocket.<\/p>\r\n

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\ud83d\udcbc <\/a>Company size (and type) is a big deal<\/h2>\r\n

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According to the survey, there\u2019s a mahoosive difference in pay depending on the size of the company. You can expect a significantly higher salary at enterprises of over 1,000 people<\/strong>, compared to both medium-sized companies and smaller startups. And when it comes to company type, governmental organizations are the most generous employers:<\/p>\r\n

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What size company do you work for?<\/strong><\/td>\r\nMedian annual salary (USA)<\/strong><\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Government<\/td>\r\n$128,000<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Enterprise (more than 1000 people)<\/td>\r\n$117,000<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Medium-sized company (30 to 200 people)<\/td>\r\n$80,000<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Small startup (up to 30 people)<\/td>\r\n$80,000<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<\/tbody>\r\n<\/table>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n

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Not that salary alone says anything about job satisfaction or quality of life \u2013 some people are simply happier in a smaller company. In general, there is often more scope to take on a wider variety of tasks and roles in smaller companies, and it may be easier to get involved in and affect how the company develops on many levels. For a large enterprise, your role and tasks are probably more clearly defined, and you\u2019ll have to get used to corporate rules and processes.<\/p>\r\n

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<\/a>Experience counts<\/h2>\r\n

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Not surprisingly, work experience is another biggie when it comes to salaries. Those with 10 years of professional writing experience report that they earn around twice as much<\/strong> compared to those who have worked for 1 year or less. This pattern is more or less consistent across job titles.<\/p>\r\n

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\u270f\ufe0f:\ud83c\udfa8 <\/a> Writer:designer ratio<\/h2>\r\n

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As for the writer:designer ratio, around 60% of those who answered this question confirmed that there are up to 5 designers for every writer in their company. The rest reported 6-10 designers or 11-30 designers. Their answers reveal two other interesting points: The higher the ratio, the more people earn, but the lower the ratio, the more writers feel that they have a seat at the table:<\/p>\r\n

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Writer:Designer<\/em><\/td>\r\nEarn<\/td>\r\nCount<\/td>\r\nSeat at the table<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
1:1<\/td>\r\n$68,584<\/td>\r\n77<\/td>\r\n3.35<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
1:11-1:30<\/td>\r\n$79,575<\/td>\r\n76<\/td>\r\n3.37<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
1:2-1:5<\/td>\r\n$69,827<\/td>\r\n275<\/td>\r\n3.52<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
1:6 – 1:10<\/td>\r\n$77,393<\/td>\r\n147<\/td>\r\n3.34<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<\/tbody>\r\n<\/table>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n

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In terms of salary, the survey shows that the golden ratio of writers and designers in a team is 1:3.<\/p>\r\n

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\ud83d\udc69\ud83c\udffd\u200d\ud83d\udcbb\ud83e\uddd1\u200d\ud83d\udcbb<\/a> Gender insights<\/h2>\r\n

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A positive insight from the salary survey is that there is hardly any salary difference between men and women. Over 70% of the respondents identify as female, and the median salary is pretty much the same for guys and gals<\/strong>.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

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What’s your gender?<\/em><\/td>\r\nMEDIAN of Annual USD<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Female<\/td>\r\n$105,000<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
Male<\/td>\r\n$105,000<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<\/tbody>\r\n<\/table>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n

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Responses for non-binary, trans, genderfluid, and related responses were too few to allow for meaningful insights.<\/p>\r\n

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\ud83d\udea8 <\/a>Negotiate your salary<\/h2>\r\n

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52% of the respondents stated that they negotiated their salaries. Interestingly enough, the data shows that those who did don\u2019t just earn up to 5K more per year, they also state that they are happier with their income<\/strong>. If that\u2019s not an incentive to negotiate your salary, I don\u2019t know what is! Having that salary conversation with your boss could give you enough of a raise for an extra vacation in Mexico every year.<\/p>\r\n

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\ud83d\udd75\ufe0f\u200d\u2640\ufe0f <\/a>Average writer in tech\u2019s profile<\/h2>\r\n

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Based on the salary survey numbers, what kind of profile does the average writer in tech have?<\/p>\r\n

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Suzannah Andrade (not a real name)<\/strong>
Location: <\/strong>USA
Age: <\/strong>29<\/p>\r\n

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Earns:<\/strong> $72,000 per year
Title:<\/strong> UX Writer
Employment:<\/strong> Full time, Enterprise
Experience:<\/strong> 2 years
Tools she uses:<\/strong> Slack, Zeplin, Figma, Google Docs, Google Sheets, and Google Slides
Skills to develop:<\/strong> UX Research, Ethical design, New design tools<\/p>\r\n

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\u26a0\ufe0f <\/a>Limitations of this survey<\/h2>\r\n

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We are confident that the survey gives a good overview of the current salary landscape for writers in tech in the world today. Still, it is a good idea to be aware of a few limitations of this survey:<\/p>\r\n

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