Survey: Search marketing gender pay gap is widening

Men earn an average of 36% more than women in search marketing in 2024, according to a new Search Engine Land survey.

While there is less of a gender pay gap disparity in senior positions, there is still a disparity. 

Additionally, women were more likely to have changed jobs or received promotions more recently than men. And men and women are similarly satisfied with their current role, the survey revealed.

Why we care. People should receive equal compensation for equal work, regardless of gender. However, Search Engine Land’s 2024 Salary and Career Survey indicates that isn’t happening. The gap between salaries for men and women in search marketing hasn’t closed. Rather, pay inequality has widened.

Men earn 36% more than women. Men earned an average of $130,000 in 2024 (vs. $105,250 in 2023) while women earned an average of $95,000 in 2024 (vs. $83,265 in 2023). 

• That means men earn $34,500 (or 36%) more, on average, than women in search marketing, according to our survey. 
• Men earned 26% more than women in 2023.

• For context, in the U.S., full-time working women are paid roughly 82% to 84% of what men earn. That means the disparity we see here is more than double the U.S. average.

Men in senior positions earn 8% more than women. The search marketing pay gap is less pronounced in senior positions. 

• For director-level and higher positions (i.e., director, senior director, VP, SVP, C-suite), there is an 8% pay difference – $175,479 for men compared to $161,943 for women in 2024. 
• For manager and staff positions, there is a 26% pay difference ($107,026 for men, $85,114 for women).

Job changes and promotions. 38% of women were promoted or changed jobs in the past 12 months, compared to 25% of men.

• 15% of women and men reported changing jobs or getting a promotion in the past six months.
• Another 23% of women changed jobs or were promoted within the past year, compared to 10% of men. 

Job satisfaction. Women are slightly more satisfied with their current roles. A majority of men and women reported being either extremely or somewhat satisfied with their roles:

• Extremely satisfied: 20% of men; 18% of women.
• Somewhat satisfied: 45% of men; 50% of women.

However, compared to last year, both men and women are less satisfied with their roles. In 2023, 24% of men and 27% of women said they were extremely satisfied, while 56% of men and 45% of women were somewhat satisfied.

Men and women were equally neutral about their roles – 14% – while 22% of men said they were somewhat or not satisfied with their roles, compared to 18% of women: 

• Men: 10% not satisfied; 12% somewhat unsatisfied.
• Women: 5% not satisfied; 13% somewhat unsatisfied. 

Methodology. Our survey results are based on responses from 291 individuals in North America (79%) and Western Europe (21%). Due to the limited number of respondents, other regions were excluded. We used the “median” results for salaries to filter out values that might skew the results. 

The 2024 Search Engine Land Salary and Career Survey was conducted between December and February. Invitations to take the survey were amplified on and by Search Engine Land. The survey included more than 20 questions related to career roles, salary, technology, job satisfaction and challenges/frustrations. Respondents were also asked to reveal their age and gender.