Salary Survey 2026: Pay is stagnant. Workload isn’t.

We’ve got good news and bad news.

The good news is that of the nearly 500 communications professionals surveyed by Ragan Communications, most reported that their pay held relatively steady year over year.

The bad news is that the work they’re expected to do for that pay has increased. Oh yeah, and so has inflation.

The findings describe a workforce that isn’t in crisis, but isn’t feeling confident either. Most respondents don’t expect to lose their jobs in the next year. At the same time, just over half believe their total compensation falls short of what similar roles pay elsewhere.

Ragan’s 2026 Salary & Workplace Satisfaction Survey also points to a structural shift in how communications teams are staffed. Nearly 6 in 10 respondents said their team or department now uses freelancers or contract workers, up sharply from last year, and more than 1 in 5 said contractors have already replaced full-time positions. Artificial intelligence hasn’t uniformly lightened the load, either: Roughly equal shares of respondents said AI tools have increased their workload as those who says AI has decreased it.

Despite that, the report describes an industry that is somewhere between stable and stagnant. Job security concerns remain relatively low, even as dissatisfaction over pay and advancement builds.

The full report is available for purchase and includes detailed salary breakdowns by title, region, gender, industry and company size. It also contains insight for managers on the reasons employees leave and how to retain the best talent.

In the full report:

• How bonus amounts compare across those same categories, and where the biggest gaps show up
• This year’s raise data, adjusted against inflation
• How in-office and hybrid policies are actually enforced versus what’s written in company policy
• Why managers say they’re struggling to retain their best performers
• Where contractors and freelancers are showing up most, and where they’re replacing full-time roles
• How many communicators are taking on side work to make ends meet, and what they’re earning from it

Get the full report now.