What a content writer earns in a week
As a writer myself, I am so excited to share this. I’m a big fan of income transparency. It’s one of the reasons I give a behind the scenes look at my Medium earnings.
And, why I share my monthly income reports to paid members of my Substack.
Writer pay can swing wildly in both directions.
I’ve personally made as little as around $200 for the month as a writer and as much as nearly $10K/month!
It boils down to several factors like:
- The kind of writing you do
- Amount of projects you’re working
- If you have a growth or decline in work for the month
- And, more factors
Here’s a sneak peek at the income behind two content writers.
One I found recently on social media. The other is a long-time Medium wrier.
Learn the kind of work they both do, income, and more.
Let's go!
What does a content writer do for a living?
First, what the heck is a content writer?
When I first started my career, I was confused about the different kinds of writers out there.
For a long time, I called myself a copywriter, which I was not. I was actually a content writer.
There’s a difference between a copywriter, a content writer, a ghostwriter, a direct response copywriter, etc.
This income report will be for the pay a content writer earns.
A content writer is someone that writes content for websites for a living. This could be:
- Articles
- Blog posts
- White papers
- Newsletters
You don’t need a formal background or education to break into content writing. It’s a unique job in that you can break into this field and make a lot of money, even as a beginner.
Almost anybody can do it and if you have a love for writing, it’s a beginner-friendly writing profession you should consider.
Freelance content writer vs staff content writer
A freelance content writer is an independent contractor. They work for themselves and get hired on a contract or project basis to produce content for their client.
A freelance content writer can take on as many clients as they can handle, charge the rates they want, work the hours they desire, and get a lot more freedoms and flexibility than a staff content writer.
Freelance content writers typically earn more than staff writers (not always) but, they’re in charge of paying their own taxes.
And, you will be missing out on those W2 employee benefits like health/vision/dental insurance, 401(k), paid time off, workplace amenities and other perks.
On the other hand, a staff content writer works for an employer.
You will likely have a set schedule like working 9am to 5pm or other set schedule and your pay may not be as high as a freelancer but, you get employee benefits like health insurance and other perks.
And, there tends to be more work stability with W2 jobs than freelancing, in my opinion.
So, there are pros and cons to both.
How much does a content writer make in a week?
Looking at two content writers to compare…
First up is JustLukeMorgan on Tik Tok. This is his video…
He shares that he makes minimum wage as a content writer. It’s £8.36/hr in the UK.
He’s a staff writer and commented that if he worked freelance, he would charge a higher rate.
In the U.S., according to Payscale, the average content writer salary is just over $49,000/year or $23.55/hour. Your wage will differ based on the job you work, background, and experience so there will be a lot of variation in pay here.
Next, I’ll share my content writing income, to compare.
I’ve been writing off and on for more than 7 years. I generally make $5,000 to $8,000 per month from writing.
This comes from:
- Writing clients
- Working for publications
Find writing clients online on sites like: Upwork and Problogger Job Board
Join “Writers Twitter” and you will find a wealth of resources and job leads.
Just head to Twitter.
Type “writer” or a similar keyword
Follow one or more of these People.
I follow Who Pays Writers?
When I click on their page, it will suggest other related accounts to follow:
Right here (on the righthand side, for desktop)…
Follow one or more of those accounts. Then, engage, which means like, retweet, or comment on their posts.
After a day or so, Twitter will start serving you content from “Writers Twitter” so it continues to stay in your feed.
If I’m using the wrong lingo, feel free to make fun of me. I’m not a big Twitter person (not yet).
Top writers make six figures
This is 100% on target.
Writers from Medium are making a ton from writing, like Zulie Rane and others. This could be directly or indirectly.
Making money directly from writing means you write and you earn money (blog posts, white papers, client work, etc.).
Making money indirectly from writing could mean you create a writing course and make money when students enroll, or you talk about writing on YouTube and earn YouTube partner income, earn money by mentoring others on how to become a top writer, etc.
If you’re on Tik Tok, you’ll come across Alex Fasulo who is known for her $30K+ months from writing on Fiverr. Her story is really interesting.
Check out this podcast which shares more on how she started…
Onto You!
Are you surprised by how much content writers can make?
Let’s open up the income transparency gates, shall we? Comment below with how much you earned from content writing last month?
I hope you enjoyed reading this. If you’d like to support me as a writer, consider signing up to become a Medium member. It’s just $5 a month and you get unlimited access to Medium.