Editors Salary
In Durham-Chapel Hill, NC, editors earn $80,410 at the median, or about $38.66 an hour. The range runs from $49K at the entry level to $107K for experienced workers. Adjusted for local prices (RPP 97.57), that's roughly $82,413 in purchasing power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $1,711/month, about 33% of take-home, which is tight.
So what does $80K get you in Durham-Chapel Hill?
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by Durham-Chapel Hill’s Regional Price Parity (97.57). Rent from HUD Fair Market Rents. Taxes estimated for single filer, standard deduction. * Healthcare is the employee-paid share only (premiums + out-of-pocket). Actual costs vary by coverage type: employer-sponsored, ACA marketplace, or uninsured.
About editors
Sponsored links, AffordMap may earn a commission at no cost to you. Learn more
What this looks like in Durham-Chapel Hill
Editors pay in Durham-Chapel Hill tracks closely to the national median, $80K locally vs. $78K nationwide, a 3% difference. Rent runs $1,711/month for a 2-bedroom (HUD FMR), taking 33.5% of the median take-home. That's within the 30% rule, though not by much. Cost of living (RPP 97.57) is near the national average, so spending patterns here track the typical American budget fairly closely. Pay and costs are both near average, leaving limited margin for savings at the median wage.
Compared to nearby metros
Median pay for editors in metros near Durham-Chapel Hill, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia | $78K | $80K |
| Raleigh-Cary | $76K | $78K |
| Greensboro-High Point | $67K | $72K |
| Asheville | $66K | $69K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Durham-Chapel Hill, NC
Entry-level editors (10th percentile) start around $49K. Mid-career wages sit at $80K. Top earners bring in $107K or more, a $59K spread from bottom to top.
Editors pay across states
Median income ranked highest to lowest, compared to the national figure
View Editors salary in all states
| State | Median salary | vs. national | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York | $101K | +30% | 16,800 |
| California | $98K | +26% | 14,830 |
| Connecticut | $86K | +10% | 1,050 |
| District of Columbia | $84K | +8% | 3,310 |
| Massachusetts | $83K | +7% | 3,100 |
| New Jersey | $82K | +5% | 2,120 |
| Virginia | $81K | +3% | 2,720 |
| Rhode Island | $78K | +0% | 340 |
| Colorado | $78K | -0% | 1,830 |
| Washington | $78K | -0% | 1,860 |
| Georgia | $77K | -2% | 1,920 |
| Illinois | $76K | -2% | 4,560 |
| Maryland | $76K | -3% | 1,850 |
| Delaware | $75K | -4% | 170 |
| Florida | $74K | -5% | 3,790 |
| North Carolina | $74K | -5% | 1,870 |
| Nevada | $73K | -7% | N/A |
| Ohio | $72K | -7% | 1,800 |
| Oregon | $72K | -8% | 1,110 |
| Vermont | $67K | -14% | 240 |
| New Hampshire | $67K | -15% | 250 |
| Utah | $65K | -17% | 590 |
| Wisconsin | $64K | -18% | 1,510 |
| New Mexico | $64K | -18% | 230 |
| Alaska | $64K | -18% | 60 |
| Pennsylvania | $63K | -19% | 3,240 |
| Alabama | $63K | -19% | 530 |
| Arizona | $63K | -19% | 820 |
| Michigan | $63K | -19% | 1,690 |
| Minnesota | $63K | -20% | 1,970 |
| South Carolina | $62K | -20% | 500 |
| Kansas | $62K | -21% | 500 |
| Montana | $62K | -21% | 200 |
| Missouri | $62K | -21% | 880 |
| North Dakota | $61K | -22% | 200 |
| Tennessee | $60K | -24% | 1,390 |
| Kentucky | $59K | -24% | 490 |
| Louisiana | $59K | -24% | 330 |
| Iowa | $57K | -27% | 900 |
| South Dakota | $57K | -27% | 140 |
| West Virginia | $57K | -27% | 260 |
| Indiana | $56K | -28% | 830 |
| Hawaii | $55K | -29% | 100 |
| Mississippi | $54K | -30% | 290 |
| Oklahoma | $51K | -35% | 500 |
| Arkansas | $50K | -36% | 260 |
| Maine | $50K | -36% | 300 |
| Wyoming | $47K | -40% | 110 |
| Nebraska | $46K | -41% | 360 |
| Texas | $46K | -41% | 6,460 |
Showing 1–10 of 50 states with published data
BLS does not publish data for every state when sample sizes are too small
Track editors salary changes
BLS updates this data quarterly. We'll email you when Durham-Chapel Hill numbers change.
Related careers in Arts & Media
Frequently asked questions
Can a editor afford a 2BR apartment alone in Durham-Chapel Hill?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $80K, rent takes 33.5% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,711/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $1,500/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.
What’s the entry-level salary for editors in Durham-Chapel Hill?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new editors typically earn — is $49K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,916/month. At HUD’s $1,711/month FMR, rent would take 59% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.
Is editor a high-paying job in Durham-Chapel Hill?
Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $80K locally vs. $78K nationally, a 3% difference.
How does Durham-Chapel Hill compare to the national average for editors?
Durham-Chapel Hill pays $80K median vs. the U.S. average of $78K — that’s +3%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 97.57), the purchasing-power equivalent is $82K — still ahead of the national median.
How much do editors make in Durham-Chapel Hill, NC?
The median is $80,410 a year, that works out to about $39 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $48,600, and experienced editors can clear $107,220. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $80K enough to live in Durham-Chapel Hill?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $5,111/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,711/month, which eats 33.5% of your paycheck. That's above the 30% rule of thumb, housing will be a stretch at the median salary, though you can manage with roommates or a smaller place.
How far does a editors salary go in Durham-Chapel Hill?
Durham-Chapel Hill has a Regional Price Parity of 97.57 (100 is the national average). That's below average, your money stretches further here than the raw salary number suggests. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median editors salary is worth about $82,413 in national-average purchasing power.
Where do editors get paid the most?
The table above ranks every state by median pay for this role. Keep in mind that the highest-paying states tend to have the highest costs of living, so the top salary doesn't always mean the most money in your pocket.