District of Columbia · BLS May 2025

Medical Secretary Salary in District of Columbia

Also called medical administrative assistant. SOC 43-6013.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics counted 1,930 medical secretaries and administrative assistants working in District of Columbia. Here is what they are paid, what the median leaves after federal, state and FICA tax, and what that is worth against local prices.

Median pay · District of Columbia

$49,180A year, or $23.64 an hour.
Take-home a month$3,320After federal, state and FICA tax at 19%
Worth at national prices$44,749Prices here sit at 109.9 against 100
Against the nation7.1% aboveNational median $45,930
What medical secretaries and administrative assistants earn in District of Columbia, May 2025
PercentileAnnualHourly
10th percentileEntry and lowest-paid$45,400$21.83
25th percentile$46,920$22.56
MedianHalf earn more, half less$49,180$23.64
75th percentile$58,170$27.97
90th percentileMost experienced and senior$59,810$28.76
MeanThe average, pulled up by the top$52,770$25.37
How we got this
  1. Median wage in District of ColumbiaBLS OEWS May 2025. Half of medical secretaries and administrative assistants earned more than this, half less.$49,180
  2. Median hourly wagePublished separately by BLS, not divided out of the annual figure.$23.64
  3. Take-home after federal, state and FICA tax$3,320 a month at an effective rate of 19%.$39,845 a year
  4. Worth at national average pricesPrices in District of Columbia sit at 109.9 against a national 100 (BEA, 2024).$44,749
  5. Against the national medianThe national median is $45,930.7.1% above
  6. Jobs countedA concentration of 0.44 against the nation's 1.00.1,930
What we assumed
  • Wages are BLS OEWS survey estimates for May 2025, not job postings or offers.
  • OEWS surveys wage and salary workers. The self-employed and business owners are outside it.
  • Take-home assumes one 2026 filer, filing single, taking the standard deduction, with no dependents, pre-tax retirement contributions or local income tax.
  • Regional price parities compare price levels between places in one year. They are not inflation, and they do not adjust for what a household actually buys.
Technical details

Method occupation-wage-v1Data bls-oews-2025-05-v1, us-tax-2026-v1, bea-rpp-2024-v1, census-acs5-2024-v1

What lands in the bank

A $49,180 salary in District of Columbia, for one single filer taking the standard deduction in 2026.

  • Federal income tax. $3,722 a year.
  • State income tax. $1,851 a year.
  • Social Security and Medicare. $3,762 a year.
  • Left over. $39,845 a year, $3,320 a month, an effective rate of 19%.

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What $49,180 is worth in District of Columbia

Prices in District of Columbia sit at 109.9 against a national average of 100, so $49,180 earned here buys what $44,749 buys at national average prices.

  • Rents. 155 against 100, the component that moves most between states.
  • Against local households. The median household in District of Columbia takes in $109,870, so this occupation's median is 0.45 times that, on one income.
  • How common the job is here. 56% less concentrated in District of Columbia than in the country as a whole.

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Common questions

Medical Secretary pay in District of Columbia, answered

How much does a medical secretary make in District of Columbia?

The median wage for medical secretaries in District of Columbia is $49,180 a year, or $23.64 an hour.

Half earn more than that and half earn less. The figure comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics occupational wage survey for May 2025.

What is the take-home pay for a medical secretary in District of Columbia?

On the median wage of $49,180, one filer taking the standard deduction keeps about $39,845 a year, or roughly $3,320 a month.

That is after federal, state and FICA tax, an effective rate of 19%.

District of Columbia takes $1,851 of it in state income tax.

Do medical secretaries earn more in District of Columbia than in the rest of the country?

Yes. The median in District of Columbia is 7.1% above the national median of $45,930.

Nominal pay is only half the comparison: prices in District of Columbia sit at 109.9 against a national 100, so the gap in what the money buys is different from the gap in the salary.

Is $49,180 a good salary in District of Columbia?

It is 0.45 times the median household income of $109,870. A household often has more than one earner, so a single salary at this level goes further than the ratio alone suggests.

Prices in District of Columbia run at 109.9 against a national average of 100, with rents at 155, so $49,180 here buys about what $44,749 buys at national average prices.

What do the highest-paid medical secretaries earn in District of Columbia?

The top tenth earn $59,810 a year or more, against $45,400 at the bottom tenth.

Experience, specialism, employer and the part of District of Columbia someone works in all move a wage inside that range; the survey reports the spread, not the reason for it.

How many medical secretaries are there in District of Columbia?

The survey counted 1,930 of these jobs in District of Columbia for May 2025.

That makes the occupation 56% less concentrated here than in the country as a whole. It counts wage and salary jobs, so the self-employed are outside it.

Sources

Where this data comes from