Historians
Salary, job outlook, AI risk & career information
Historians in the United States earn a median salary of $76,750 per year — about $37 per hour, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Roughly 3K people work in this occupation nationwide, with projected employment growth of +2%.
AI & Automation Risk
Historians perform high-level knowledge work—researching, analyzing, and writing—that is increasingly digital and highly susceptible to AI-driven efficiency gains in document processing and synthesis. While the job requires human judgment and physical interaction with artifacts or archives, the core output of reports and articles faces significant restructuring as AI tools become capable of parsing vast historical datasets and drafting complex narratives.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHBEST VALUE | $121,710 | Above avg (108.3) | $112,418 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | $116,520 | Above avg (104.8) | $111,160 |
| San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX | $101,900 | Below avg (94.7) | $107,585 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $115,690 | Above avg (108.9) | $106,251 |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | $97,420 | Above avg (106.7) | $91,328 |
| New Orleans-Metairie, LA | $82,400 | Below avg (92.6) | $88,988 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN | $89,670 | Above avg (103.6) | $86,558 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $98,210 | Above avg (113.6) | $86,478 |
| Urban Honolulu, HI | $95,470 | Above avg (111.0) | $86,039 |
| Montgomery, AL | $76,400 | Below avg (89.7) | $85,190 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | $81,470 | Average (102.6) | $79,441 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $88,790 | Above avg (115.6) | $76,799 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | $80,400 | Above avg (112.6) | $71,427 |
| Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY | $68,010 | Below avg (95.8) | $70,959 |
| Dayton-Kettering-Beavercreek, OH | $58,640 | Below avg (92.7) | $63,262 |