Technical Writers: Job Description
Write technical materials, such as equipment manuals, appendices, or operating and maintenance instructions. May assist in layout work.
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What Tasks Do Technical Writers Take On?
The day-to-day responsibilities of technical writers span:
- Organize material and complete writing assignment according to set standards regarding order, clarity, conciseness, style, and terminology.
- Maintain records and files of work and revisions.
- Edit, standardize, or make changes to material prepared by other writers or establishment personnel.
- Select photographs, drawings, sketches, diagrams, and charts to illustrate material.
- Interview production and engineering personnel and read journals and other material to become familiar with product technologies and production methods.
- Develop or maintain online help documentation.
- Assist in laying out material for publication.
- Study drawings, specifications, mockups, and product samples to integrate and delineate technology, operating procedure, and production sequence and detail.
Key Skills and Knowledge
Successful technical writers combine a mix of skills and domain knowledge.
Most Important Skills
The abilities most important for this role, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:
Top Knowledge Areas
Related Job Titles
Common job titles for this role include:
- Assembly Instructions Writer
- Clinical Writer
- Contracts Writer
- Document Specialist
- Documentation Designer
- Documentation Specialist
- Documentation Writer
- Engineering Documentation Specialist
How Many Technical Writers Are There?
The U.S. employs around 371,429 technical writers working in the United States today. Employment is projected to grow by +6.9% over the projection horizon.
Salary for Technical Writers
| Statistic | Value |
|---|---|
| Annual median | $52,099 |
| Hourly median | $25.05 |
| 10th percentile | $30,624 |
| 25th percentile | $41,361 |
| 75th percentile | $62,837 |
| 90th percentile | $73,575 |
Compensation varies based on experience, location, and industry.
Pay by State
| State | Annual median salary |
|---|---|
| Connecticut | $109,400 |
| Colorado | $103,960 |
| Massachusetts | $102,640 |
| Rhode Island | $100,580 |
| California | $100,440 |
| Maryland | $98,350 |
| Washington | $93,230 |
| New Hampshire | $91,710 |
| District of Columbia | $89,180 |
| North Carolina | $87,330 |
| New Jersey | $86,990 |
| Nevada | $85,860 |
| Virginia | $84,000 |
| Vermont | $83,680 |
| Oregon | $83,200 |
| New York | $82,980 |
| Arizona | $82,100 |
| Missouri | $81,150 |
| Florida | $80,840 |
| Alaska | $80,640 |
| Alabama | $80,570 |
| Illinois | $79,690 |
| Idaho | $79,490 |
| Texas | $79,060 |
| Pennsylvania | $78,970 |
| New Mexico | $78,840 |
| Michigan | $78,750 |
| South Carolina | $78,660 |
| Indiana | $78,240 |
| Tennessee | $76,950 |
| Minnesota | $76,770 |
| Wisconsin | $76,090 |
| Utah | $74,940 |
| Georgia | $72,440 |
| Kansas | $72,330 |
| Kentucky | $70,970 |
| Ohio | $70,640 |
| Maine | $70,570 |
| Oklahoma | $66,560 |
| North Dakota | $65,740 |
| Nebraska | $65,480 |
| Iowa | $63,680 |
| Montana | $63,090 |
| Mississippi | $62,680 |
| Arkansas | $62,490 |
| West Virginia | $62,250 |
| South Dakota | $60,310 |
| Louisiana | $59,250 |
| Puerto Rico | $46,450 |
Pay by U.S. Region
Pay for technical writers vary by region. These regions lead on median pay:
| Region | Median annual wage | Share of U.S. jobs | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| New England | $103,454 | 6.2% | 1.52 |
| Far Western US | $98,773 | 28.4% | 1.89 |
| Rocky Mountains | $94,306 | 5.0% | 1.47 |
| Middle Atlantic | $86,061 | 13.0% | 1.07 |
| Southeast | $79,845 | 21.2% | 1.03 |
| Southwest | $77,880 | 9.8% | 0.81 |
| Great Lakes | $76,281 | 10.4% | 0.75 |
| Plains States | $72,799 | 5.8% | 0.93 |
Where the Jobs Cluster
| Metro area | State | Median annual wage | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA | CA | $182,450 | 30 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | CA | $135,880 | 940 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | CA | $130,850 | 1,240 |
| Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT | CT | $125,760 | 540 |
| Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA | CA | $109,480 | 60 |
| Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA | CA | $107,690 | 40 |
| Kennewick-Richland, WA | WA | $106,220 | 90 |
| Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO | CO | $104,990 | 1,110 |
Industry Breakdown
The largest employers of technical writers are found across these industries:
| Industry | Employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 18,610 | $86,170 |
| Information | 6,670 | $83,380 |
| Manufacturing | 6,520 | $80,070 |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services | 4,170 | $91,480 |
| Wholesale Trade | 1,810 | $88,550 |
| Finance and Insurance | 1,620 | $79,360 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | 1,460 | $82,360 |
| Educational Services | 1,410 | $69,720 |
Below are examples of industries where technical writers work:
Tools and Technology
- Document management software: Adobe Acrobat (hot technology)
- Graphics or photo imaging software: Adobe Creative Cloud software (hot technology)
- Graphics or photo imaging software: Adobe Illustrator (hot technology)
- Desktop publishing software: Adobe InDesign (hot technology)
- Graphics or photo imaging software: Adobe Photoshop (hot technology)
- Project management software: Atlassian Confluence (hot technology)
- Content workflow software: Atlassian JIRA (hot technology)
- Computer aided design CAD software: Autodesk AutoCAD (hot technology)
- Web platform development software: Cascading style sheets CSS (hot technology)
- Computer aided design CAD software: Dassault Systemes SolidWorks (hot technology)
- Medical software: Epic Systems (hot technology)
- Enterprise application integration software: Extensible markup language XML (hot technology)
What the Workplace Is Like
The work environment for technical writers is shaped by the following characteristics:
- Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team
- Importance of Being Exact or Accurate
- Spend Time Sitting
- Importance of Repeating Same Tasks
Education and Training
Typical technical writers positions require an associate’s degree as the typical entry-level education. This career aligns with Considerable Preparation Needed (Job Zone 4), indicating the level of preparation typically expected.
Related Careers
Similar Occupations
- Project Management Specialists (Primary-Short)
- Management Analysts (Primary-Short)
- Computer Systems Analysts (Supplemental)
- Database Administrators (Supplemental)
- Computer Programmers (Supplemental)
- Software Developers (Supplemental)
- Web and Digital Interface Designers (Supplemental)
- Document Management Specialists (Primary-Short)
Top Programs to Study For This Career
Aspiring technical writers often complete programs in:
Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services
3 programs across 1 majors
English Language and Literature/Letters
2 programs across 1 majors
Communication, Journalism, and Related Programs
1 programs across 1 majors
Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences
1 programs across 1 majors
References
Data on this page comes from the following authoritative sources:
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) for employment and wage data by state and industry.
- BLS Employment Projections for total employment and growth forecasts.
- O*NET (Occupational Information Network) for skills, knowledge, tasks, work activities, work context, technology, and education-zone data.
SOC code: 27-3042.00 (Technical Writers).
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