Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive Salary

It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $62K, rent takes 86.7% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $3,604/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $1,200/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.

The 10th-percentile wage — what new secretaries and administrative assistants, except legal, medical, and executives typically earn — is $46K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,733/month. At HUD’s $3,604/month FMR, rent would take 132% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.

Local pay is 31% above the national median — $62K here vs. $48K nationally. Keep in mind cost of living here is 16% above the national average, which offsets some of that premium.

San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont pays $62K median vs. the U.S. average of $48K — that’s +31%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 115.61), the purchasing-power equivalent is $54K — still ahead of the national median.

The median is $62,110 a year, that works out to about $30 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $45,550, and experienced secretaries and administrative assistants, except legal, medical, and executives can clear $90,220. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.

On that salary, you'd take home roughly $4,156/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $3,604/month, which eats 86.7% 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.

San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont has a Regional Price Parity of 115.61 (100 is the national average). Prices are above average here, so your dollar buys less than the same salary would in a cheaper metro. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median secretaries and administrative assistants, except legal, medical, and executive salary is worth about $53,724 in national-average purchasing power.

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.