Creative & Media

Editor

Choose, shape, and improve stories, articles, or books, guiding writers so the final piece is strong and clear

Open interactive guide

What does an Editor do?

Editors work at book publishers, magazines, newspapers, and websites. They decide what gets published, give writers feedback on big ideas and structure, and keep projects on schedule. It suits people who read closely, give honest feedback kindly, and enjoy helping others do their best work.

A day in the life

9:00 AMRead a new manuscript and note where the middle chapters drag
10:30 AMTalk with a writer about how to fix a confusing opening
12:30 PMMeet with the team to choose which stories run this week
2:00 PMCut a long article down to fit the page
3:30 PMCheck the schedule to make sure every piece is ready on time
5:00 PMRead pitches from freelancers and send back yes or no

What's great

  • You help good writing reach readers
  • You read new ideas before anyone else
  • Work with creative, curious people
  • You choose which stories get told

The hard parts

  • Crunch days come right before publishing
  • Pay is low early in the career
  • Publishing jobs cluster in big cities
  • You have to tell many writers no

What is an Editor's salary and outlook?

$36k – $90k
Salary Range
Bachelor's degree
Typical Education
Stable

Typical pay in this guide runs from about $36,000 to $90,000 a year, with a midpoint around $60,000. These are planning figures for students, not a job offer or an official wage.

CareerLens rates the outlook as Stable.

For the official national outlook, see BLS Occupational Data.

How do you become an Editor?

A common path is Bachelor's degree in English, journalism, or communications, plus writing experience. The ladder often runs from Editorial Assistant to Editor, then Senior Editor, and Editor-in-Chief or Editorial Director. Other routes: Work on a school paper or literary magazine; Publishing course or certificate program; Start as a proofreader or assistant; Freelance editing for small presses.

  • Work on a school paper or literary magazine
  • Publishing course or certificate program
  • Start as a proofreader or assistant
  • Freelance editing for small presses

Career path

Entry level
Editorial Assistant
Mid career
Editor
Senior
Senior Editor
Executive
Editor-in-Chief or Editorial Director

Will AI replace an Editor?

How much will AI change this job?

A lot

AI will change many everyday tasks in this job. The work shifts toward judgment, checking, and people.

AI will handle more editing tasks, but editors still lead.

AI tools can now check grammar, suggest edits, and even rewrite sentences quickly. This means editors will spend less time fixing small errors and more time shaping big ideas. Editors will focus on judgment, style, and working closely with writers.

AI can help with

  • Catching spelling and grammar mistakes fast
  • Suggesting clearer or shorter sentence options
  • Summarizing long drafts to spot main points quickly

What stays human

  • Deciding what story or message truly matters
  • Giving writers thoughtful, personal feedback
  • Making final calls on tone, voice, and accuracy

Skills to build now

  • Read widely and notice different writing styles
  • Practice giving helpful feedback on friends' writing
  • Join a school newspaper or writing club

Based on public research from Anthropic and OpenAI, drafted with AI, checked automatically, and read by a person. How we know

This describes how the work may change. It is not a prediction that the job will disappear.