Average Government Relations Officer Salary in United States for 2024

In this article, we will look at the average Government Relations Officer salary for 2024 in United States and how that compares to other countries and professions. We'll also look at interesting salary data points like median salary, 25th and 75th percentile salaries, salary amounts based on experience, bonus ranges and more!

The data in this article has been compiled using official government salary data, salary surveys, and other sources such as job postings which contain salary information.

All salary information is in the local currency, which is the United States dollar. To keep things simple, we are using the USD currency code instead of the currency symbol $.

How Much Does a Government Relations Officer Make in United States?

A Government Relations Officer working in United States will typically earn around 92,100 USD per year, and this can range from the lowest average salary of about 43,800 USD to the highest average salary of 142,300 USD.

Average Annual Salary
92,100 USD
Average Monthly Salary
7,675 USD

Lowest Annual Salary
43,800 USD
Lowest Monthly Salary
3,650 USD

Highest Annual Salary
142,300 USD
Highest Monthly Salary
11,858 USD

These are average salaries for a Government Relations Officer in United States and include benefits such as housing and transport. It's also possible for a Government Relations Officer to earn more or less than the average salaries shown above.

Government Relations Officer salaries will vary a lot based on your experience, location, skills, and gender. Keep reading below to research more data on each of these areas.

Distribution of Government Relations Officer Salaries in United States

So we've looked at the average salaries a Government Relations Officer will earn in United States. The next interesting data point is the distribution of salaries.

Salary ranges

We already know that a Government Relations Officer can earn between 43,800 USD and 142,300 USD on average in United States. This is known as the range in statistics.

The difference between the maximum and minimum values is a good indicator of variability in salaries, and can be used by employers to figure out how much they can expect to pay, and for employees to know how much they can earn.

Median salary

The median salary for a Government Relations Officer in United States is 95,500 USD. This is the middle value in the distribution of salaries.

What this means is that approximately 50% of the population earn less than 95,500 USD, and 50% of the population earn more than 95,500 USD.

If you are earning more than the median salary, that's a good indicator that you are being paid well.

If you're not earning more than the median salary, your objective should be to increase your earnings to be at least as high as the median salary (which you can do by asking for a pay rise, looking for a better paying job, etc).

Percentiles

Percentiles are similar to the median salary, but instead of looking at the middle value, they look at the values in the top and bottom half of the distribution.

For the average Government Relations Officer salary in United States, 25% of the population are earning less than 61,400 USD while 75% of the population earn more than 61,400 USD.

75% of the population earn less than 123,800 USD, and 25% of the population earn more than 123,800 USD.

Like the median salary, the 25th and 75th percentile salaries can be used to determine which quartile you fall into so that you know whether you are being paid well enough compared to others in your profession and location.

The difference between a median and an average salary

The median and average salary are both indicators you can use to see if you are being paid fairly based on the overall population.

  • If your salary is higher than the average and the median salary, you are earning well compared to others.
  • If your salary is lower than the average and the median salary, it could indicate you are not being paid well enough.
  • If you are somewhere in between then it's tricky to determine if you are being paid well enough and you might need to research more closely.

Government Relations Officer Salary by Experience Level in United States

The most important factor in determining your salary after the specific profession is the number of years experience you have. It stands to reason that more years of experience will result in a higher wage.

We have researched the average government relations officer salary based on years of experience to give you an idea of how the average changes once you've worked for a certain amount of time.

  • 0 - 2 Years Experience. A Government Relations Officer in United States that has less than two years of experience can expect to earn somewhere in the region of 53,300 USD.
  • 2 - 5 Years Experience. With two to five years of experience the average Government Relations Officer salary would increase to 71,400 USD.
  • 5 - 10 Years Experience. From five to ten years of experience as a Government Relations Officer, the average salary would be 94,800 USD.
  • 10 - 15 Years Experience. Once you have more than ten years of experience the average salary reaches around 117,100 USD.
  • 15 - 20 Years Experience. A Government Relations Officer with 15 to 20 years of experience can earn an average of 127,700 USD.
  • 20+ Years Experience. For a Government Relations Officer with more than 20 years, the expected average salary increases to 139,100 USD.

Average Salary by Experience Chart

0-2 Years
53,300 USD
2-5 Years +42%
71,400 USD
5-10 Years +31%
94,800 USD
10-15 Years +23%
117,100 USD
15-20 Years +6%
127,700 USD
20+ Years +10%
139,100 USD

Government Relations Officer Salary by Education Level in United States

As well as experience in a job, your education plays a big role in how much you can earn. A lot of higher paying positions require a high level of education, but how much can a degree increase your salary?

In our research we have compared the salaries of employees in the same job and career level with different levels of education to see how much more you can earn at each education level.

The salary you can earn based on your education is very specific to both your location and the career path you choose.

In our research, we looked at the average salary for a Government Relations Officer in United States based on the education level of the employees in order to find out whether a better education level would increase your salary.

  • High School. A Government Relations Officer in United States with a high school education can earn an average salary of 66,000 USD.

  • Certificate or Diploma. A Government Relations Officer in United States with a certificate or diploma education can earn an average salary of 72,300 USD.

  • Bachelor's Degree. A Government Relations Officer in United States with a bachelor's degree education can earn an average salary of 109,000 USD.

  • Master's Degree. A Government Relations Officer in United States with a master's degree education can earn an average salary of 132,000 USD.

Average Salary by Education Chart

High School
66,000 USD
Certificate or Diploma +16%
72,300 USD
Bachelor's Degree +46%
109,000 USD
Master's Degree +23%
132,000 USD

How Much is a Master's Degree or MBA Program?

The approximate cost of a master's degree or post-graduate program like an MBA in United States is around 39,500 to 118,000 USD and takes two years to complete.

As you can see above, there are financial benefits from reaching master's degree level, but don't expect to see much of a salary increase until you have completed the degree.

It's common for people to pursue an MBA or other post-graduate program in order to switch to a a job that pays more. On average, you can expect to earn around 10% more when switching to a new company.

Whether you decide to pursue a master's degree depends on many factors. If you are able to afford it, the numbers suggest that the return on investment is worth it and you could recover the costs in a few years from the salary increase you would receive.

Government Relations Officer Salary Compared by Gender

In the modern age, we know that there should never be a pay gap between men and women. Unfortunately, in many professions, there is still a significant difference between the salaries earned by men when compared to the salary of women in the same job.

In United States, a male government relations officer will earn an average of 95,300 USD, while a female government relations officer will earn around 90,900 USD.

This means that a male government relations officer earns approximately 5% more than a female government relations officer for performing the same job.

Average Salary by Gender Chart in United States

Male
95,300 USD
Female -5%
90,900 USD

Government Relations Officer Average Pay Raise in United States

In many countries, an annual pay raise is often given to employees to reward their service with a salary increase.

From our research, we can see that the average pay raise for a Government Relations Officer in United States is around 11% every 17 months.

The national average pay raise across all professions and industries in United States is around 8% every 16 months.

In this case, we can see that the number of months between the average pay raise is higher than the typical 12 months.

To make the data more meaningful, we can calculate what the approximate annual pay raise would be using a simple formula:

Annual Increase = ( Increase Rate ÷ Months ) × 12

So for this example, it would be:

Annual Increase = ( 11 ÷ 17 ) × 12  = 8%

What this means is that a Government Relations Officer in United States can expect to receive an average pay raise of around 8% every 12 months.

Annual Pay Raise by Industry in United States for 2024

In the chart below, you can see the average annual pay raise percentages for each of the major industries in United States.

You will see that companies in bigger and more lucrative industries tend to have the higher annual pay raises.

Banking
4%
Energy
8%
Information Technology
3%
Healthcare
7%
Travel
2%
Construction
6%
Education
1%

Government Relations Officer Bonus and Incentive Rates in United States

Another part of your overall compensation in a job is how much bonus you receive. Some job roles will be more likely to pay a bonus than others and also more likely to have higher bonus rates.

Generally speaking, jobs that are more involved with direct revenue generation will receive higher bonuses based on the performance towards revenue goals.

A Government Relations Officer is a moderate bonus based job, with 58% of employees reporting at least one bonus in the last 12 months.

42% reported that they had not received any bonuses in the previous 12 months.

For the employees that did receive a bonus in the previous 12 months, the reported bonuses ranged from 3% to 6%.

Received Bonus
58%
No Bonus
42%

What are the Types of Bonus?

There are a number of difference types of bonus you can receive in a job. Including:

  • Individual performance bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to an individual employee for general performance in the job. It's the most common type of bonus.
  • Company performance bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to a company employees to share profit with the staff.
  • Goal based bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to an individual employee (or a team) for achieving specific goals, objectives, or milestones.
  • Holiday bonus - This type of bonus is usually paid around the holidays, often the end of the year, and is a token of appreciation for the hard work throughout the year.

Government vs Private Sector Salaries

Another commonly asked question is whether you get paid a higher salary working in the public (government) sector or the private sector.

Public sector employees in United States earn approximately 6% more than private sector employees in the same role.

Public Sector
98,800 USD
Private Sector -6%
93,100 USD

Salaries for Jobs Similar to a Government Relations Officer

In the table below, we have salary information for jobs that are similar to a Government Relations Officer in United States.

Job Title Category Salary
Communications Associate Public Relations 52,300 USD
Communications Project Manager Public Relations 114,300 USD
Communications Specialist Public Relations 62,600 USD
Director of Communications Public Relations 141,000 USD
Head of Communications Public Relations 128,400 USD
Head of Public Relations Public Relations 163,800 USD
Investor Relations Officer Public Relations 105,200 USD
Marketing Communications Executive Public Relations 127,700 USD
Media Relations Specialist Public Relations 116,400 USD
Meetings Coordinator Public Relations 42,300 USD
Public Relations Executive Public Relations 128,400 USD
Public Relations Manager Public Relations 148,300 USD
Public Relations Officer Public Relations 54,500 USD
Public Relations Practitioner Public Relations 69,400 USD
Public Relations Specialist Public Relations 63,200 USD
Relationship Management Officer Public Relations 44,500 USD

Salary Comparison by City

If you want to compare salaries with different cities in United States, you can use the links below to explore the data for each specific city we have researched.

City Average Salary
Atlanta 82,200 USD
Austin 97,600 USD
Baltimore 84,800 USD
Boston 88,300 USD
Bristol 69,800 USD
Chicago 109,700 USD
Cincinnati 74,700 USD
Cleveland 79,800 USD
Dallas 100,700 USD
Denver 95,400 USD
Detroit 96,600 USD
Honolulu 73,800 USD
Houston 103,600 USD
Indianapolis 95,900 USD
Iowa City 71,900 USD
Jacksonville 98,800 USD
Kansas City 90,900 USD
Kent 78,200 USD
Las Vegas 87,900 USD
Long Beach 83,200 USD
Los Angeles 105,800 USD
Memphis 86,100 USD
Miami 80,900 USD
Minneapolis 83,300 USD
New Orleans 77,300 USD
New York 109,700 USD
Oakland 79,600 USD
Oklahoma City 94,100 USD
Orlando 72,700 USD
Philadelphia 103,600 USD
Phoenix 97,900 USD
Sacramento 87,800 USD
San Antonio 107,300 USD
San Diego 107,300 USD
San Francisco 95,400 USD
San Jose 100,700 USD
Seattle 98,800 USD
Tampa 80,300 USD
Vancouver 76,900 USD
Washington D.C. 95,500 USD

Salary Comparison by State

The table below includes links to the average salary for each state in United States.

City Average Salary
Alabama 95,100 USD
Alaska 77,000 USD
Arizona 99,700 USD
Arkansas 90,900 USD
California 101,400 USD
Colorado 96,600 USD
Connecticut 89,400 USD
Delaware 80,300 USD
District of Columbia 75,800 USD
Florida 102,700 USD
Georgia 96,800 USD
Hawaii 81,000 USD
Idaho 86,600 USD
Illinois 100,300 USD
Indiana 90,900 USD
Iowa 88,700 USD
Kansas 88,600 USD
Kentucky 86,600 USD
Louisiana 94,800 USD
Maine 83,000 USD
Maryland 93,100 USD
Massachusetts 99,100 USD
Michigan 98,700 USD
Minnesota 91,700 USD
Mississippi 92,300 USD
Missouri 94,900 USD
Montana 80,400 USD
Nebraska 87,400 USD
Nevada 89,800 USD
New Hampshire 83,700 USD
New Jersey 103,600 USD
New Mexico 86,800 USD
New York 97,300 USD
North Carolina 91,700 USD
North Dakota 79,600 USD
Ohio 96,800 USD
Oklahoma 85,500 USD
Oregon 92,100 USD
Pennsylvania 100,300 USD
Rhode Island 79,000 USD
South Carolina 94,900 USD
South Dakota 82,300 USD
Tennessee 92,900 USD
Texas 105,800 USD
Utah 84,300 USD
Vermont 78,500 USD
Virginia 100,700 USD
Washington 98,100 USD
West Virginia 82,200 USD
Wisconsin 95,600 USD
Wyoming 79,000 USD

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