Executive Assistant salary in Portland-South Portland, ME

Pay in Portland-South Portland against Maine and the US

The middle half of executive assistants in Portland-South Portland earns $56,990–$77,990. Pay is tightly grouped: the top tenth starts at $90,100, only 1.8 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 $21,000 wide, against $21,080 across Maine and $33,000 nationally: employers in Portland-South Portland pay within a narrower band.

What to budget for an executive assistant here

An offer at the 75th percentile instead of the median adds $11,240 a year in pay and about $14,503 in employer cost. Going down to the 25th percentile saves $9,760 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 median and the 75th percentile in Portland-South Portland, and the Maine statewide median of $64,100 falls between the 25th percentile and the median.

What a hire really costs in Portland-South Portland

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 $19,379 to the $66,750 median and brings it to $86,129 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 5.9 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 7.2 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 Portland-South Portland

Of the 17 roles we track in Portland-South Portland, this one ranks #7 by median pay, between sales development representatives ($68,370) and paralegals ($64,280). Project Coordinator is the highest at $105,530.

Measured against the US median, this job is the lowest paid of the 17 roles we track in Portland-South Portland (-12.8%); virtual receptionists come first (+17.8%). The typical role here is at +2.8%, so, measured against the US, executive assistants cost less in Portland-South Portland than the area's general pay level would suggest. Executive assistants hold 4.4% of the jobs in these 17 roles in Portland-South Portland, 4.2% across Maine and 2.9% nationally. The job is a bigger part of the local workforce in these roles than it is nationally.

Other areas in Maine

Across the 5 areas of Maine with data for this job, the median runs from $59,550 in the Southwest Maine nonmetro area to $67,480 in the Northeast Maine nonmetro area, a gap of $7,930 a year. No other area in Maine has as many executive assistants, and 3 of the other 4 pay less.

Portland-South Portland against other US metro areas

By number of jobs, Portland-South Portland is #60 of 506 US areas for this job. It is one of the larger markets for this job, with pay near the middle of the US range. Outside Maine, Fayetteville and Wheeling pay just above Portland-South Portland and Beaumont-Port Arthur and Blacksburg-Christiansburg just below. All four are within $180 a year of the median in Portland-South Portland. 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.