Writers and Authors Salary — Lexington, Kentucky

The average Writers and Authors in Lexington, Kentucky earns $56,940 a year.

$56,940 / year, mean
↓ 31.4% below national average 50th percentile in Kentucky

Lexington sits roughly in the middle of the pack for this role within Kentucky — neither a standout nor a laggard. That's well below the national average for writers and authors — one of the largest gaps in this dataset. Cost of living here is close to the national average — not a major factor either way. This is a reasonably reliable estimate, though the underlying sample is moderate in size.

Percentile within Kentucky

0th 50th 100th
Employment (this metro)
50
Estimate confidence
RSE 12.5%
Cost of living 93 #127 most expensive of 188 cities in this dataset 100 = U.S. average · Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
Crime index 1461 #33 safest of 188 cities in this dataset Per 100k residents · Source: FBI Crime Data Explorer
Median home value $327,671 #90 priciest of 188 cities in this dataset Source: zillow_real
Median household income $70,717 #103 highest of 188 cities in this dataset Source: Census Bureau ACS 5-year

Combining these four figures gives a fuller picture than salary alone: Lexington ranks #127 for cost of living and #90 for home prices among the 188 cities in this pilot dataset, which matters as much as the headline salary number when comparing where to live.

San Jose $120,540 Santa Rosa $113,000 Oxnard $102,320 San Diego $101,560 Baltimore $101,430 Deltona $99,910 Seattle $98,430 Los Angeles $98,070 Philadelphia $95,850 San Luis Obispo $94,260 Portland $94,070 Austin $92,620 Sacramento $92,290 Albany $88,960 Riverside $88,320 Trenton $84,730 Santa Maria $84,700 Detroit $83,390 Medford $82,240 Bakersfield $81,820 Rochester $81,120 Charlottesville $80,940 Chicago $80,510 Syracuse $80,160 Houston $79,840 Harrisburg $79,410 Dallas $78,900 San Antonio $78,740 Fresno $78,550 Glens Falls $78,160 Orlando $77,770 Tampa $76,290 Bend $75,820 Buffalo $75,260 Virginia Beach $74,730 Fort Wayne $73,160 Lansing $72,480 Richmond $71,390 Tallahassee $70,840 Lancaster $70,700 Fort Myers $70,180 Miami $69,200 Charleston $68,970 Spokane $65,180 Sarasota $63,530 Atlantic City $63,280 Jacksonville $62,210 Louisville $57,290 Lexington $56,940 Ann Arbor $46,040
CityMean salaryvs. Lexington
Albany, New York$88,960+56.2%
Ann Arbor, Michigan$46,040-19.1%
Atlantic City, New Jersey$63,280+11.1%
Austin, Texas$92,620+62.7%
Bakersfield, California$81,820+43.7%
Baltimore, Maryland$101,430+78.1%
Bend, Oregon$75,820+33.2%
Buffalo, New York$75,260+32.2%
Fort Myers, Florida$70,180+23.3%
Charleston, West Virginia$68,970+21.1%
Charlottesville, Virginia$80,940+42.1%
Chicago, Illinois$80,510+41.4%
Dallas, Texas$78,900+38.6%
Deltona, Florida$99,910+75.5%
Detroit, Michigan$83,390+46.5%
Fort Wayne, Indiana$73,160+28.5%
Fresno, California$78,550+38.0%
Glens Falls, New York$78,160+37.3%
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania$79,410+39.5%
Houston, Texas$79,840+40.2%
Jacksonville, Florida$62,210+9.3%
Lancaster, Pennsylvania$70,700+24.2%
Lansing, Michigan$72,480+27.3%
Los Angeles, California$98,070+72.2%
Louisville, Kentucky$57,290+0.6%
Medford, Oregon$82,240+44.4%
Miami, Florida$69,200+21.5%
Sarasota, Florida$63,530+11.6%
Orlando, Florida$77,770+36.6%
Oxnard, California$102,320+79.7%
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania$95,850+68.3%
Portland, Oregon$94,070+65.2%
Richmond, Virginia$71,390+25.4%
Riverside, California$88,320+55.1%
Rochester, New York$81,120+42.5%
Sacramento, California$92,290+62.1%
San Antonio, Texas$78,740+38.3%
San Diego, California$101,560+78.4%
San Jose, California$120,540+111.7%
San Luis Obispo, California$94,260+65.5%
Santa Maria, California$84,700+48.8%
Santa Rosa, California$113,000+98.5%
Seattle, Washington$98,430+72.9%
Spokane, Washington$65,180+14.5%
Syracuse, New York$80,160+40.8%
Tallahassee, Florida$70,840+24.4%
Tampa, Florida$76,290+34.0%
Trenton, New Jersey$84,730+48.8%
Virginia Beach, Virginia$74,730+31.2%
Gross salary
56,940/yr
Estimated take-home
44,490/yr
Est. total withheld
21.9%

Single filer, federal + Kentucky state tax + FICA, 2026 rates. Does not include state-specific payroll withholdings beyond income tax (see Data transparency). Not tax advice — verify with a professional for your specific situation.

View cost of living in this state All Writers and Authors salaries in Kentucky → All Writers and Authors salaries →
Data transparency

Sources used for this page

Official occupation and area metadata behind the visible salary, cost, housing and safety signals.

Occupation 27-3043 SOC code
Official area Lexington-Fayette, KY BLS metro/geographic area
Area code 30460 Stable geographic key
Reference year 2025 BLS OEWS
Cost: bea_realHousing: zillow_realCrime: latest availableNet-pay source: ky_dor_verificado 2026
Metro also includes
Fayette
No additional caveats are attached to this row.
Methodology

How this page is built

The salary figure is the mean annual wage reported by the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) program for this occupation and metro area. Percentile and national-average comparisons are calculated directly from the 188 cities currently in this dataset, not from a fixed external benchmark. Cost of living, crime and housing figures come from BEA, FBI and Zillow respectively — see "Data transparency" above for the exact sources and reference years used on this specific page.

Confidence: the RSE (relative standard error) shown under Overview indicates how reliable the salary estimate is for this metro — a lower RSE means a larger underlying sample.

On this page

Where this is

AK HI

Highlighted: Kentucky

Population (metro area)
517,378