Search engine optimization is performed under several job titles, so national labor statistics do not isolate every SEO position. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) occupation Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists includes search-marketing work. In May 2023, that occupation covered 846,370 jobs in the United States, with a mean annual wage of $83,190. The figures below show the industries, states, metropolitan areas, pay levels, and employment projections most relevant to in-house SEO careers.
Contents
- How many in-house SEO-related employees are measured?
- Which industries employ these specialists?
- What do specialists earn by industry?
- Where are in-house jobs concentrated?
- What is the employment outlook?
- What do SEO management roles look like?
How many in-house SEO-related employees are measured?
The BLS May 2023 employment count is a broad occupational measure rather than a headcount of people whose exact title is “SEO specialist.” It includes marketing specialists and market research analysts working across many kinds of employers. For readers assessing the size of the in-house SEO labor market, it is best understood as the closest supplied national occupation measure, not as a dedicated SEO census.
The occupation had 846,370 U.S. jobs in May 2023. Its mean hourly wage was $40.00, and its mean annual wage was $83,190. Annual pay varied substantially across the distribution:
| BLS measure | Annual wage, May 2023 |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $40,040 |
| 25th percentile | $52,840 |
| Median | $74,680 |
| Mean | $83,190 |
| 75th percentile | $102,450 |
| 90th percentile | $137,040 |
These figures are from Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2023: Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists. The percentiles describe the occupation as a whole, so they should not be read as guaranteed salaries for a specific SEO title, level, or employer. They do show why in-house SEO compensation can range from entry-level marketing work to highly paid technical, analytical, or strategic roles.
Which industries employ these specialists?
In-house SEO work appears in both companies whose products are digital and companies that use search to reach customers. BLS recorded the largest published industry count in management, scientific, and technical consulting services, with 93,900 Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists in May 2023. Management of companies and enterprises employed 70,300.
Other substantial employer industries included computer systems design and related services, with 48,930 workers; advertising, public relations, and related services, with 40,760; and software publishers, with 24,820. These counts describe employment in the broader occupation, including roles that may not be SEO-focused.
The occupation’s share of an industry’s employment helps show where these skills are especially concentrated. Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists represented 3.80% of employment in software publishers, 2.54% in management of companies and enterprises, and 1.93% in computer systems design and related services. The share was 3.62% in web search portals, libraries, archives, and other information services, and 5.42% in lessors of nonfinancial intangible assets, excluding copyrighted works.
Those concentration figures point to several in-house settings: software businesses, corporate headquarters, technology services, information businesses, and companies built around intangible digital assets. They do not establish that every worker in those industries performs SEO, but they identify employer groups where marketing-specialist work is relatively prominent.
What do specialists earn by industry?
Industry-level mean wages show how the same broad occupation can be paid differently depending on the employer’s business, labor market, and role mix. In May 2023, the highest supplied industry mean was $136,560 for Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists in web search portals, libraries, archives, and other information services.
The next listed industry means were $132,580 in aerospace product and parts manufacturing, $130,840 in pipeline transportation of crude oil, $125,720 in monetary authorities and central banking, and $120,660 in computing infrastructure providers, data processing, web hosting, and related services. These high figures are industry averages, not SEO-specific salary offers.
| Industry | Mean annual wage, May 2023 |
|---|---|
| Web search portals, libraries, archives, and other information services | $136,560 |
| Aerospace product and parts manufacturing | $132,580 |
| Pipeline transportation of crude oil | $130,840 |
| Monetary authorities and central banking | $125,720 |
| Computing infrastructure providers, data processing, web hosting, and related services | $120,660 |
| Management of companies and enterprises | $97,970 |
| Computer systems design and related services | $94,570 |
| Advertising, public relations, and related services | $74,980 |
For industries commonly associated with digital marketing, the BLS mean was $97,970 in management of companies and enterprises, $94,570 in computer systems design and related services, and $74,980 in advertising, public relations, and related services. Comparing these means requires care: the categories contain different job mixes, and a mean can be influenced by senior or specialized positions.
The later BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook profile for Market Research Analysts reports May 2025 median wages by industry. The median was $102,670 in information industries and $99,850 in management of companies and enterprises. These are May 2025 medians, while the industry means above are from May 2023; the measures and periods should not be treated as a single time series.
Where are in-house jobs concentrated?
California had the highest reported state employment level in May 2023, with 113,630 Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists. New York had 83,450, Florida had 55,760, Texas had 52,200, and Illinois had 37,790. These are total employment counts, so larger states and states with large business centers naturally can rank highly by volume.
Concentration tells a different story. Colorado had the highest state concentration, at 9.49 Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists per 1,000 jobs. New York had a location quotient of 1.59, indicating a higher occupational concentration than the national reference used by BLS. The state with the highest mean annual wage was Washington, at $106,420.
| Geography | BLS measure, May 2023 |
|---|---|
| California | 113,630 jobs |
| New York | 83,450 jobs; 1.59 location quotient |
| Florida | 55,760 jobs |
| Texas | 52,200 jobs |
| Illinois | 37,790 jobs |
| Colorado | 9.49 jobs per 1,000 jobs |
| Washington | $106,420 mean annual wage |
At the metropolitan level, the New York-Newark-Jersey City area had 81,100 workers in the occupation. Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue had 18,820. The San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward area had a mean annual wage of $125,670. Boulder had the highest metropolitan concentration, at 13.66 workers per 1,000 jobs.
Together, these measurements separate scale, concentration, and pay. New York is prominent by employment and location quotient; Colorado and Boulder stand out by concentration; and Washington and San Francisco stand out in the supplied wage measures. None of these measures alone identifies the best place for an individual SEO professional, because the occupation includes more than SEO and the data does not describe cost of living or remote-work availability.
What is the employment outlook?
The current BLS outlook profile lists 952,700 Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists in 2025 and projects 1,019,000 in 2035. That is a projected numeric increase of 66,300 over the period. BLS describes projected growth of 7% from 2025 to 2035 and about 82,000 annual openings for Market Research Analysts during those years.
The same profile reports a May 2025 median annual wage of $78,760 for Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists. The lowest 10% of Market Research Analysts earned less than $43,390 annually, while the highest 10% earned more than $155,480. These 2025 wage figures are distinct from the May 2023 occupational wage distribution and from the 2025–2035 employment forecast.
The projection is an estimate of future employment, not a promise that SEO-specific hiring will grow at exactly the same rate. It does provide a current BLS benchmark for the broader group of analysts and marketing specialists whose responsibilities can include search-related work. For an in-house candidate, the forecast supports a labor market view that combines ongoing openings with variation by industry, geography, seniority, and specialization.
What do SEO management roles look like?
SEO careers can progress into marketing management roles that coordinate broader acquisition, brand, content, analytics, or digital programs. BLS projected 421,600 marketing managers in 2025 and 450,800 in 2035. The projected increase was 29,100 jobs, equivalent to 6.9% employment growth from 2025 to 2035, with an average of 34,000 annual openings.
The 2025 median annual wage for marketing managers was $166,790, according to BLS Occupational projections and worker characteristics. That figure applies to marketing managers, not specifically to SEO managers. It illustrates the compensation difference between a broad management occupation and the specialist occupation used for most of the SEO-related measures above.
For preparation, BLS says advertising, promotions, and marketing managers typically need a bachelor’s degree and 5 years or more of related work experience. The Advertising, Promotions, and Marketing Managers Occupational Outlook Handbook describes the education and experience requirement. In-house SEO management therefore sits within a wider marketing career path: the supplied statistics measure the broader occupations, while an SEO professional’s actual scope depends on the employer and the responsibilities attached to the role.