Advertising sales agents
Salary, job outlook, AI risk & career information
Advertising sales agents in the United States earn a median salary of $64,820 per year — about $31 per hour, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Roughly 104K people work in this occupation nationwide, with projected employment growth of -6%.
AI & Automation Risk
The core of this occupation involves digital knowledge work such as analyzing sales statistics, preparing media kits, and drafting contracts, all of which are highly susceptible to AI automation. While the role requires interpersonal relationship building, the shift toward programmatic advertising and AI-driven ad placement is already reducing the need for human intermediaries in the sales process, as reflected in the projected employment decline.
Salary by City — What You Actually Take Home
Real purchasing power = salary adjusted for cost of living. Higher = more money in your pocket.
| City | Local Salary | Cost of Living | Real Purchasing Power |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CABEST VALUE | $113,250 | Above avg (113.1) | $100,169 |
| Tulsa, OK | $89,820 | Below avg (89.9) | $99,917 |
| Richmond, VA | $95,680 | Average (98.3) | $97,298 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $105,320 | Above avg (112.7) | $93,426 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | $99,010 | Above avg (112.6) | $87,896 |
| Salt Lake City-Murray, UT | $81,750 | Average (97.1) | $84,153 |
| Champaign-Urbana, IL | $75,410 | Below avg (90.7) | $83,139 |
| Salisbury, MD | $74,230 | Below avg (92.6) | $80,125 |
| Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO | $84,540 | Above avg (105.8) | $79,930 |
| Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA | $80,410 | Average (100.9) | $79,673 |
| Charleston-North Charleston, SC | $80,410 | Average (101.1) | $79,537 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | $83,470 | Above avg (110.4) | $75,612 |
| Rockford, IL | $67,030 | Below avg (90.2) | $74,341 |
| Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT | $70,920 | Below avg (95.7) | $74,075 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN | $75,590 | Average (102.5) | $73,756 |