Advertising Sales Agents Salaries by State

Mean and median pay, wage percentiles, employment, and top-paying metro areas for advertising sales agentss across the U.S. Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 (data.bls.gov OEWS tool /OESServices/combo/table, all-occupation crawl by area).

National mean salary $80,670 ≈ $39/hr
National median salary $64,820
Total employment 91,700 nationwide

Job Outlook, 2024–2034

Source: BLS Employment Projections 2024-2034.

Projected growth -6.4% Decline
Annual openings 9,300 per year (avg)
Employment 2024→2034 103,700 → 97,100 (-6,600)
Typical entry education High school diploma or equivalent

Salary Map

Brighter tiles = higher average pay; dashed tiles have no data. Click a state for details.

💰 Top 5 Highest-Paying States

  1. Washington$111,590
  2. New York$111,380
  3. District of Columbia$94,310
  4. California$90,780
  5. Massachusetts$90,640

📉 5 Lowest-Paying States

  1. West Virginia$49,720
  2. Tennessee$50,950
  3. New Mexico$54,290
  4. Montana$54,710
  5. Kentucky$55,630
#StateMeanMedian Hourlyvs. U.S.Employment
1 Washington $111,590 $101,320 $54 +38.3% 3,510
2 New York $111,380 $98,360 $54 +38.1% 13,570
3 District of Columbia $94,310 $75,030 $45 +16.9% 320
4 California $90,780 $80,360 $44 +12.5% 9,620
5 Massachusetts $90,640 $80,500 $44 +12.4% 1,480
6 Colorado $89,370 $73,420 $43 +10.8% 1,110
7 Nebraska $88,100 $62,890 $42 +9.2% 1,190
8 Utah $87,110 $74,260 $42 +8% 1,110
9 Michigan $84,030 $64,800 $40 +4.2% 2,040
10 Illinois $79,460 $66,290 $38 -1.5% 3,790
11 New Jersey $79,150 $69,620 $38 -1.9% 2,110
12 Maryland $78,370 $59,830 $38 -2.9% 880
13 South Carolina $76,080 $68,200 $37 -5.7% 1,770
14 Missouri $75,940 $61,440 $37 -5.9% 1,640
15 Minnesota $75,620 $62,660 $36 -6.3% 1,750

Top-Paying Metro Areas

Highest median pay among 286 metro areas.

#Metro areaMedianMeanEmployment
1 San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA $113,250 $117,470 380
2 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA $105,320 $118,960 2,770
3 New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ $99,010 $111,940 13,210
4 Richmond, VA $95,680 $95,870 330
5 Tulsa, OK $89,820 $100,040 260
6 Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO $84,540 $102,280 620
7 San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA $84,390 $100,910 1,340
8 Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH $83,470 $94,630 1,100
9 Salt Lake City-Murray, UT $81,750 $93,280 710
10 Charleston-North Charleston, SC $80,410 $80,250 520

Pay by Industry

Highest-paying industries employing advertising sales agentss (BLS OEWS, by median).

#IndustryMedianMeanEmployment
1 Sectors 48 and 49 - Transportation and Warehousing $127,410 $133,560 320
2 Web Search Portals, Libraries, Archives, and Other Information Services $113,770 $111,430 2,890
3 Web Search Portals, Libraries, Archives, and Other Information Services $113,770 $111,430 2,890
4 Insurance Carriers and Related Activities $98,990 $93,530 200
5 Agencies, Brokerages, and Other Insurance Related Activities $98,990 $93,530 200
6 Insurance Agencies and Brokerages $98,990 $93,530 200
7 Other Support Services $96,760 $102,700 70
8 Sector 52 - Finance and Insurance $96,240 $92,890 200
9 Software Publishers $92,830 $89,230 370
10 Computer Systems Design and Related Services $90,150 $95,680
11 Business Support Services $89,900 $81,760 100
12 Motion Picture and Sound Recording Industries $86,050 $105,710 700

Workforce Deep-Dive

Distribution and demographics from Census ACS (2023, self-reported). Wage figures here are ACS averages and run lower than the authoritative BLS wages above; use them for shape, not exact pay.

Annual wage distribution

< $10K
26,425
$10-20k
4,833
$20-30k
6,105
$30-40k
5,742
$40-50k
11,716
$50-60k
10,569
$60-70k
9,117
$70-80k
8,076
$80-90k
6,273
$90-100k
2,814
$100-110k
6,550
$110-120k
1,531
$120-130k
3,385
$130-140k
3,533
$140-150k
2,672
$150-160k
2,817
$160-170k
1,792
$170-180k
848
$180-190k
775
$190-200k
253
$200k+
11,668

Pay by age band

16-24
$47,780
25-34
$79,325
35-44
$109,131
45-54
$87,586
55-64
$88,500
65+
$38,106

Education level

Bachelors Degree
$94,277
1 or more years of college credit, no degree
$58,417
Masters Degree
$106,541
Regular high school diploma
$37,644
Associates Degree
$61,739
Some college, but less than 1 year
$53,150
GED or alternative credential
$203,800
Professional degree
$44,806
Grade 10
$6,054
Grade 11
$41,274
12th grade - no diploma
$10,451
No schooling completed
$20,622
Grade 6
$24,468
Doctorate degree
$141,233
Grade 9
$11,087
Grade 5
$37,722
Grade 8

Full-time vs part-time

Full-time
92,716 · $104,004
Part-time
10,259 · $38,761

Race / ethnicity

White
$84,077
Black
$76,691
Two or More Races
$79,733
Asian
$61,034
Other
$46,451
American Indian
$60,266
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
$50,976
Alaska Native
$6,321

Top fields of study

Marketing And Marketing Research
$101,485
Communications
$93,168
General Business
$108,798
Advertising And Public Relations
$133,901
Business Management And Administration
$113,031
Journalism
$84,603
English Language And Literature
$118,500
Economics
$127,595

Top Skills

Most important skills for this role (O*NET importance, 1–5 scale).

Speaking
4.1
Persuasion
4.0
Service Orientation
3.9
Social Perceptiveness
3.9
Active Listening
3.8
Negotiation
3.8
Reading Comprehension
3.4
Critical Thinking
3.3
Judgment and Decision Making
3.3
Writing
3.1
Coordination
3.1
Monitoring
3.0

Frequently Asked Questions

How much do advertising sales agents make in the U.S.?

The median advertising sales agents salary in the United States is $64,820 per year (mean $80,670), and about 80% earn between $35,240 and $146,010.

How much do advertising sales agents make per hour?

Roughly $39 per hour, based on a mean annual wage of $80,670 and 2,080 work hours per year.

Which state pays advertising sales agents the most?

Washington has the highest average pay for advertising sales agents at $111,590 per year (median $101,320).

What is the job outlook for advertising sales agents?

Employment is projected to change -6.4% from 2024 to 2034 (Decline), with about 9,300 openings per year.