Executive Assistant salary in the Southeast Iowa nonmetro area

Pay in the Southeast Iowa nonmetro area against Iowa and the US

Executive assistants at the 90th percentile earn $87,280, 2.1 times the 10th percentile; the US ratio is 2.2. The middle half of executive assistants in the Southeast Iowa nonmetro area earns $50,020–$70,220. From the 25th to the 75th percentile, the local range is $20,200 wide, between the figure for Iowa ($19,940) and the US figure ($33,000).

What to budget for an executive assistant here

An offer at the 75th percentile instead of the median adds $11,000 a year in pay and about $14,194 in employer cost. Going down to the 25th percentile saves $9,200 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 the Southeast Iowa nonmetro area, and the Iowa statewide median of $62,340 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 the Southeast Iowa nonmetro area

At the $59,220 median, a local hire costs about $76,413 a year: benefits and payroll taxes other than paid leave are 22.5% of total compensation in US private industry², about $17,193 here. 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 5.3 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 6.4 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 the Southeast Iowa nonmetro area

Of the 17 roles we track in the Southeast Iowa nonmetro area, this one ranks #7 by median pay, between office managers ($62,440) and e-commerce order specialists ($53,590). Project Coordinator is the highest at $84,430.

Measured against the US median, this job is the lowest paid of the 17 roles we track in the Southeast Iowa nonmetro area (-22.7%); e-commerce order specialists come first (+16.1%). The typical role here is at -10.2%, so, measured against the US, executive assistants cost less in the Southeast Iowa nonmetro area than the area's general pay level would suggest. Executive assistants hold 2.1% of the jobs in these 17 roles in the Southeast Iowa nonmetro area, 3.0% across Iowa and 2.9% nationally. The job is a smaller part of the local workforce in these roles than it is nationally.

Other areas in Iowa

Across the 12 areas of Iowa with data for this job, the median runs from $52,730 in the Southwest Iowa nonmetro area to $64,990 in Des Moines-West Des Moines, a gap of $12,260 a year. Of the 4 areas in Iowa with more executive assistants than the Southeast Iowa nonmetro area, 1 pays less: Cedar Rapids, IA ($57,500).

the Southeast Iowa nonmetro area against other US metro areas

By number of jobs, the Southeast Iowa nonmetro area is #186 of 506 US areas for this job. Both its size and its pay sit in the middle half of US areas. Outside Iowa, Grand Junction and Missoula pay just above the Southeast Iowa nonmetro area and Grand Island and Lebanon just below. All four are within $290 a year of the median in the Southeast Iowa nonmetro area. 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 2026-11-13.