Executive Assistant salary in Columbia, SC

Pay in Columbia against South Carolina and the US

The middle half of executive assistants in Columbia earns $47,110–$65,900. Pay is tightly grouped: the top tenth starts at $77,400, only 1.9 times the bottom tenth, against 2.2 times across the US, so the going rate is easier to read. From the 25th to the 75th percentile, the local range is only $18,790 wide, against $26,870 across South Carolina and $33,000 nationally: employers in Columbia pay within a narrower band.

What to budget for an executive assistant here

An offer at the 75th percentile instead of the median adds $9,670 a year in pay and about $12,477 in employer cost. Going down to the 25th percentile saves $9,120 in pay. These percentiles describe what people in the job earn locally, not experience levels, so place your offer by the tasks and seniority you need.

For scale, the US median of $76,590 falls between the 75th and 90th percentiles in Columbia, and the South Carolina statewide median of $60,890 falls between the median and the 75th percentile. An offer at the national rate would beat what three quarters of local executive assistants earn.

What a hire really costs in Columbia

Pay is only part of it. Benefits and payroll taxes other than paid leave are 22.5% of total compensation in US private industry², which adds about $16,325 to the $56,230 median and brings it to $72,555 a year. Recruiting, equipment and office space come on top. Benefit levels vary by employer, so treat this as an estimate.

Our open executive assistant roles pay $800–$1,100 a month under a direct contract. The one-time fee is $2,500³ with a 180-day replacement; paying through Deel adds $49 a month⁴. Change any number below to match your plan.

A local hire here costs about 5.0 times as much as a remote hire in year one at the midpoint of our range. From year two, when the fee drops out, it is 6.1 times the remote figure of $11,988. About the candidates: most apply through our assessment platform with a written and a spoken English task; each profile shows the English level (B1–C2); Silkstaff interviews every shortlisted candidate live, in English, before you meet them.

Other roles in Columbia

Of the 17 roles we track in Columbia, this one ranks #7 by median pay, between paralegals ($57,220) and payroll specialists ($52,240). Project Coordinator is the highest at $85,260.

Measured against the US median, executive assistants rank #16 of the 17 roles we track in Columbia (-26.6%), between accountants (-17.3%) and sales development representatives (-30.6%). The typical role here is at -10.5%, so, measured against the US, executive assistants cost less in Columbia than the area's general pay level would suggest. Executive assistants hold 2.9% of the jobs in these 17 roles in Columbia, 1.6% across South Carolina and 2.9% nationally. That is close to the national mix.

Other areas in South Carolina

Across the 11 areas of South Carolina with data for this job, the median runs from $56,230 in Columbia to $71,130 in Greenville-Anderson, a gap of $14,900 a year. No other area in South Carolina has as many executive assistants, and none of the others pays less.

Columbia against other US metro areas

By number of jobs, Columbia is #51 of 506 US areas for this job. It is one of the larger markets for this job, yet its pay sits in the bottom quarter of US areas. Outside South Carolina, Idaho Falls and Harrisonburg pay just above Columbia and Gainesville and Jackson just below. All four are within $480 a year of the median in Columbia. Of the three markets with about as many executive assistants, all three pay more.

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Sources

How these pages are built: methodology and data sources. Last updated 2026-11-12.