Introduction
Imagine holding a letter written by a historical figure, its fragile paper and faded ink a direct link to a bygone era. Picture yourself organizing the digital blueprints of a groundbreaking technology, ensuring its story isn't lost in a sea of data. This is the world of the archivist—a profession that is part historian, part detective, and part information scientist. For those with a passion for preservation, a meticulous mind, and a deep respect for the stories that shape our world, a career as an archivist is more than a job; it's a calling.
But passion, while essential, must be balanced with practicality. A common and crucial question for anyone considering this path is, "What is the salary of an archivist?" The answer is complex and rewarding. While not typically a path to extravagant wealth, it offers a stable, professional income with significant growth potential for those who specialize and advance. The median annual salary for archivists hovers around $61,840, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, but this single number only scratches the surface. Salaries can range from around $40,000 for entry-level positions to well over $100,000 for senior, specialized, or management roles in high-demand sectors.
Years ago, while researching a personal project, I found myself in the quiet, climate-controlled room of a university's special collections. The archivist on duty didn't just hand me a box; she guided me through the personal papers of a local activist, explaining the context of the documents and pointing out connections I would have missed entirely. Her expertise transformed a pile of old paper into a living narrative, and I realized then that archivists are not mere keepers of things, but active interpreters and facilitators of memory. This guide is built on that understanding—that this career is a profound service, and those who perform it deserve to be well-informed about their financial and professional prospects.
This comprehensive article will serve as your ultimate resource, breaking down every facet of an archivist's salary, the factors that influence it, and the steps you need to take to build a successful and fulfilling career in this vital field.
### Table of Contents
- [What Does an Archivist Do?](#what-does-an-archivist-do)
- [Average Archivist Salary: A Deep Dive](#average-archivist-salary-a-deep-dive)
- [Key Factors That Influence an Archivist's Salary](#key-factors-that-influence-an-archivists-salary)
- [Job Outlook and Career Growth for Archivists](#job-outlook-and-career-growth-for-archivists)
- [How to Become an Archivist: A Step-by-Step Guide](#how-to-become-an-archivist-a-step-by-step-guide)
- [Conclusion: Is a Career as an Archivist Right for You?](#conclusion-is-a-career-as-an-archivist-right-for-you)
What Does an Archivist Do?
At its core, an archivist's job is to ensure that the records of our past and present are preserved and made accessible for the future. They are the professional stewards of information, whether it exists on parchment, photographic paper, magnetic tape, or a server farm. They work in a vast array of settings—universities, governments, museums, hospitals, corporations, and religious institutions—each with its own unique collections and challenges.
While the "quiet librarian" stereotype persists, the modern archivist's role is dynamic and multifaceted. Their work is governed by core principles of provenance (keeping records grouped by their creator) and original order (maintaining the records' original structure to preserve context).
Their primary responsibilities can be broken down into several key functions:
- Appraisal and Acquisition: Archivists don't—and can't—save everything. A critical part of their job is to appraise records to determine their long-term value. This involves rigorous analysis based on historical, legal, administrative, and intrinsic value. They then formally acquire, or "accession," these materials into their institution's collection.
- Arrangement and Description: Once a collection is acquired, it's often a jumble of papers, files, and photos. The archivist systematically arranges these materials into a logical order (often re-establishing the original order if it has been lost). They then create detailed descriptions and finding aids—documents that act as a map for researchers—outlining the collection's history, scope, and contents. This is a highly intellectual process that requires deep subject matter knowledge.
- Preservation and Conservation: This is the hands-on work of ensuring materials survive for centuries. It involves housing documents in acid-free folders and boxes, managing climate-controlled storage environments (monitoring temperature and humidity), and digitizing fragile materials to create access copies while protecting the originals. For digital-born records, preservation involves complex strategies for data migration, format sustainability, and preventing bit rot.
- Providing Access and Reference Services: Archives exist to be used. Archivists are expert guides who assist researchers—including academics, students, genealogists, journalists, and filmmakers—in navigating their collections. They answer queries, suggest relevant materials, and supervise the handling of rare and fragile items in a reading room.
- Outreach and Curation: Many archivists are also educators and storytellers. They create physical and digital exhibits, write blog posts, manage social media accounts, and give presentations to promote their collections and teach the public about history.
### A Day in the Life of a University Archivist
To make this tangible, let's follow a hypothetical day for "Dr. Lena Rivera," an archivist at a mid-sized university's Special Collections library.
- 9:00 AM - 10:30 AM: Researcher Support. Lena starts her day by responding to emails from researchers around the world. One is a PhD student from Germany requesting scans from a faculty member's papers. Another is a local journalist fact-checking a story about the university's founding. She pulls the requested materials and schedules a digitization request with the student worker.
- 10:30 AM - 1:00 PM: Processing a New Collection. Lena moves to the processing room to work on her main project: the papers of a recently retired, prominent professor. The 20 boxes are filled with correspondence, research notes, and drafts. She carefully sorts the materials, re-housing them in archival folders, and begins drafting the finding aid using the "Describing Archives: A Content Standard" (DACS) and encoding it in EAD (Encoded Archival Description) for online publication.
- 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM: Lunch & Professional Development. Over lunch, Lena reads the latest issue of *The American Archivist*, the journal from the Society of American Archivists, to stay current on new theories in digital preservation.
- 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM: Digital Project Meeting. Lena meets with the library's IT team and a history professor. They are planning a new digital exhibit on student activism in the 1960s. Lena, as the subject matter expert on the collections, advises on which photographs, pamphlets, and oral histories are most compelling and discusses the technical requirements for scanning and metadata creation.
- 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM: Reading Room Supervision & Wrap-up. Lena spends the last hour of her day supervising the reading room, ensuring patrons handle materials correctly. She answers a few final questions and, before leaving, checks the environmental monitoring system to confirm the temperature and humidity levels in the vaults are stable.
This day illustrates the blend of intellectual rigor, technical skill, customer service, and project management that defines the modern archival profession.
Average Archivist Salary: A Deep Dive
Understanding the earning potential is a crucial step in career planning. The salary of an archivist is influenced by a multitude of factors, but we can establish a strong baseline by examining data from authoritative sources. It's important to look at the median (the midpoint) rather than the mean (the average) salary, as the mean can be skewed by a few very high or very low earners.
### National Salary Benchmarks
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Outlook Handbook, the most definitive source for national employment data, the median annual wage for archivists was $61,840 in May 2022. This figure provides a solid central point for the profession.
However, a single number doesn't tell the whole story. The BLS also provides a salary spectrum:
- Lowest 10% earned less than: $38,520
- Highest 10% earned more than: $105,160
This wide range highlights the significant impact of factors like experience, location, and employer type, which we will explore in the next section.
Other reputable salary aggregators provide a similar, though slightly varied, picture, often updated more frequently:
- Salary.com: As of late 2023, reports the median archivist salary in the United States as $62,285, with a typical range falling between $52,242 and $74,258. Their data suggests the top 10% can earn over $85,000.
- Payscale.com: Provides an average base salary of $57,688 per year. Their model shows a range from approximately $42,000 to $83,000, not including bonuses or other compensation.
- Glassdoor.com: Estimates the total pay for an archivist in the U.S. to be around $73,737 per year, with a median base salary of $61,539. The "total pay" figure includes their model's estimate for additional compensation like cash bonuses.
Key Takeaway: A reasonable expectation for a mid-career archivist in the United States is a salary in the $60,000 to $65,000 range. However, entry-level positions will start lower, and senior or specialized roles will command significantly more.
### Salary Progression by Experience Level
An archivist's salary is not static; it grows with experience, expertise, and responsibility. Here is a typical salary trajectory, synthesized from data provided by Payscale and Salary.com:
| Experience Level | Typical Years of Experience |
| :--- | :--- |
| Entry-Level Archivist | 0-2 years |
| Mid-Career Archivist | 3-9 years |
| Senior Archivist / Supervising Archivist | 10-19 years |
| Late-Career / Archives Director | 20+ years |
Entry-Level Archivist (0-2 Years):
- Salary Range: $40,000 - $55,000
- Role Focus: Often work as a "Processing Archivist" or "Project Archivist" on temporary grant-funded projects. Tasks are heavily focused on arrangement and description, basic preservation, and digitization under supervision. This stage is critical for building core competencies.
Mid-Career Archivist (3-9 Years):
- Salary Range: $55,000 - $75,000
- Role Focus: More autonomy and responsibility. May manage small projects, supervise interns or student assistants, and take on more complex reference and outreach duties. This is often when archivists begin to develop a specialization (e.g., digital archives, records management).
Senior Archivist (10-19 Years):
- Salary Range: $70,000 - $95,000+
- Role Focus: Leadership and strategic roles. A Senior Archivist may be the head of a specific collection area (e.g., University Archivist, Corporate Archivist). Responsibilities include long-term collection development, policy creation, grant writing, budget management, and staff supervision. They are considered subject matter experts.
Archives Director / Head of Special Collections (20+ Years):
- Salary Range: $90,000 - $120,000+
- Role Focus: Executive-level leadership. Responsible for the entire archival program, including strategic planning, major fundraising and donor relations, representing the archives to external stakeholders, and managing a large team of archivists and other library professionals. These positions are most common at large universities, federal agencies, and major corporations.
### Beyond the Base Salary: Understanding Total Compensation
An archivist's compensation is more than just their annual salary. This is especially true in the public sector (government, universities) and for non-profits, where benefits packages can be exceptionally robust. When evaluating a job offer, it's crucial to consider the full package:
- Bonuses and Profit Sharing: These are more common in corporate archives than in academic or government settings. A corporate archivist might receive an annual bonus tied to company or department performance.
- Health Insurance: Most full-time archivist positions offer comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance. The value of this benefit can be substantial, especially for plans with low deductibles and premiums, which are common in state and university jobs.
- Retirement Plans: This is a major component of total compensation.
- Government/Public Universities: Often offer excellent defined-benefit pension plans or generous contributions to 401(a) or 403(b) retirement accounts.
- Private Sector/Non-Profits: Typically offer 401(k) or 403(b) plans with an employer match. A common match is 50% of the employee's contribution up to 6% of their salary.
- Paid Time Off (PTO): Academic and government positions are known for generous vacation, sick leave, and holiday schedules. It's not uncommon for university archivists to receive 20-25 vacation days per year, in addition to sick leave and university holidays.
- Professional Development Funding: Many institutions recognize the importance of continuous learning and will provide an annual budget for archivists to attend conferences (like the Society of American Archivists annual meeting), take workshops, and maintain their certifications. This is a valuable, tax-free benefit that directly invests in your career growth.
- Tuition Remission/Assistance: A significant perk for those working at a university. Employees (and often their dependents) may be able to take classes for free or at a heavily discounted rate, allowing them to pursue a second master's degree or other credentials.
When you factor in these benefits, a position with a $65,000 base salary at a state university could have a total compensation value closer to $90,000 or more, making it far more competitive than a private sector job with a higher salary but less robust benefits.
Key Factors That Influence an Archivist's Salary
The wide salary bands reported by the BLS and other sources exist because an archivist's pay is not one-size-fits-all. It is a dynamic figure shaped by a confluence of professional and market forces. Understanding these levers is the key to maximizing your earning potential throughout your career. This section provides an exhaustive breakdown of the six primary factors that determine the salary of an archivist.
### 1. Level of Education and Certifications
In the archival field, education is not just a prerequisite; it's a foundation upon which salary is built.
- Master's Degree (The Standard): A Master's degree from an American Library Association (ALA)-accredited program is the standard, non-negotiable credential for almost all professional archivist positions in the United States. The most common degrees are a Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) or a Master of Archival Studies (MAS), often with a specialization or concentration in archives management. Possessing this degree is the entry ticket to the profession and the baseline for professional-level salaries. An archivist with a Master's will earn significantly more than a paraprofessional "archives technician" who may only have a bachelor's degree.
- The Second Master's Degree (The Accelerator): For certain specialized roles, a second master's degree in a relevant subject area can provide a substantial salary boost and competitive advantage.
- Example: A university archives seeks a curator for its scientific manuscripts. A candidate with an MLIS and a Master's in the History of Science is far more valuable—and can command a higher salary—than a candidate with only the MLIS. The same applies to art history for a museum archivist, or public policy for a government archivist. This dual expertise allows for deeper appraisal, description, and researcher assistance.
- Ph.D. (The Academic Peak): A Ph.D. is generally only necessary for tenure-track faculty positions at universities that combine archival work with teaching and research, or for directorships at major research institutions. While it can lead to the highest salaries in the academic sector, it is not required for most archival jobs and may even make a candidate seem "overqualified" for some positions.
- Professional Certifications (The Enhancer): Certifications demonstrate a commitment to the profession and a mastery of a specific body of knowledge.
- Certified Archivist (CA): Offered by the Academy of Certified Archivists (ACA), this is the most recognized post-graduate certification. It requires passing a comprehensive exam and maintaining the credential through continuing education or re-examination. While not always directly tied to a salary increase in a job description, holding a CA designation makes a candidate more competitive for promotions and higher-level positions.
- Digital Archives Specialist (DAS): Offered by the Society of American Archivists (SAA), this certificate is earned by completing a series of advanced courses on managing electronic records. In a world grappling with a deluge of digital information, the DAS certificate is a powerful signal to employers that you have the in-demand skills needed for modern archives, often leading directly to higher salary offers, especially for "Digital Archivist" roles.
### 2. Years and Quality of Experience
As shown in the salary progression table, experience is arguably the single most powerful driver of salary growth. However, it's not just the number of years that matters, but the *quality and nature* of that experience.
- From Processing to Management: An archivist who spends ten years solely processing collections will see slower salary growth than one who, in the same timeframe, moves from processing to managing digitization projects, then to supervising staff, and finally to writing successful grants. Employers pay a premium for skills that scale and have a broad impact on the organization.
- Grant Writing and Fundraising: The ability to secure external funding is a highly valued skill, particularly in academic and non-profit archives that rely on soft money. An archivist who can demonstrate a track record of writing successful grant proposals to foundations like the NEH or NHPRC can command a significantly higher salary, as they generate revenue for the institution.
- Supervisory and Management Experience: Moving from "doing the work" to "managing the work" is a key inflection point for salary. Supervising interns, project staff, and eventually full-time archivists demonstrates leadership, project management, and interpersonal skills that are essential for senior-level, higher-paying roles.
- Project Management: Successfully leading a complex project, such as a major collection move, a CMS implementation, or a large-scale digitization initiative from start to finish, is a powerful resume-builder. It shows you can manage budgets, timelines, and stakeholders, justifying a higher salary.
### 3. Geographic Location
Where you work has a dramatic impact on your paycheck. Salaries are closely tied to the local cost of living and the concentration of employers.
#### High-Paying States and Metropolitan Areas
Salaries are highest in regions with a high cost of living and a dense concentration of federal agencies, major research universities, and large corporations.
- Washington, D.C. Metro Area (including VA, MD): This is often the highest-paying region due to the presence of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian Institution, and numerous other federal agencies. Government archivists are paid on the General Schedule (GS) scale, which is adjusted for the high cost of living in the D.C. area.
- California: Major tech companies in Silicon Valley have corporate archives, and the state is home to a massive public university system (the UC and CSU schools) and prestigious private institutions like Stanford. Cities like Los Angeles, San Francisco, and San Diego offer higher salaries to offset the high cost of living.
- Northeast Corridor (Boston, New York City, Philadelphia): This region is packed with Ivy League universities, major museums, financial institutions, and pharmaceutical companies, all of which employ archivists and offer competitive salaries.
Illustrative City Salary Comparison (Data synthesized from Salary.com):
| City | Median Archivist Salary |
| :--- | :--- |
| Washington, D.C. | ~$75,000 |
| San Francisco, CA | ~$78,000 |
| New York, NY | ~$74,000 |
| Boston, MA | ~$72,000 |
| National Median | ~$62,000 |
| Indianapolis, IN | ~$58,000 |
| Boise, ID | ~$56,000 |
#### Lower-Paying Regions
Conversely, salaries tend to be lower in states with a lower cost of living and fewer large-scale archival employers, such as in parts of the South and Midwest. However, the purchasing power of a $55,000 salary in a small Midwestern city may be equivalent to or greater than that of a $70,000 salary in New York City.
### 4. Employer Type and Size
The mission, funding model, and size of the employing institution are critical salary determinants.
- Federal Government: The largest single employer of archivists in the U.S. is the federal government, primarily NARA. Salaries are transparently determined by the GS pay scale. An entry-level archivist with a Master's degree typically starts at the GS-9 level, which in 2023 had a base salary range of $57,118 to $74,250, depending on location adjustments. Senior non-supervisory experts can advance to GS-13 or GS-14, with salaries well over $100,000.
- Corporate Archives: This can be one of the most lucrative sectors. Large corporations (e.g., Ford, Coca-Cola, Disney, Wells Fargo) maintain archives to preserve their brand heritage, protect intellectual property, and support marketing. Corporate archivist salaries often align with other business functions, leading to higher base pay, annual bonuses, and strong benefits packages. Salaries can easily exceed $80,000 for experienced professionals.
- Major Research Universities (R1 Institutions): Large, well-endowed private universities (like Harvard, Yale) and flagship state universities (like the University of Michigan, UC Berkeley) are major employers. They offer competitive salaries, excellent benefits, and significant opportunities for professional growth and specialization. Salaries at these institutions are often among the highest in the academic sector.
- Smaller Colleges, Non-Profits, and Religious Institutions: These organizations often have smaller budgets and endowments, which typically translates to lower salaries. However, they can offer other benefits, such as a strong sense of community, a direct impact on the organization's mission, and sometimes a better work-life balance. An archivist at a small historical society might earn in the $45,000 - $60,000 range.
- Museums: Salaries can vary dramatically based on the size and prestige