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Hiring a court clerk in Boston, MA

Employers in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH area pay court, municipal, and license clerks a median of $62,850 a year, with the middle half of the market between $53,100 and $75,060 (BLS OEWS, May 2025, SOC 43-4031). Filling it through recruitlocalpros runs Tier I to Tier VI, $6,240 to $54,340 per search, set by the seniority of the role rather than by salary or location, and our vetted recruiting partner handles sourcing, screening and placement end to end.

Do Boston residents in office and administrative support work earn more than employers in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH area pay?

Boston residents working in office and administrative support occupations earn a median of $44,117 (Census ACS 5-year 2023, tables S2401 and B24011), against $55,655 as the median of the 52 wages BLS publishes for that same occupation group in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH area (BLS OEWS, May 2025), a difference of 21%, with the employers figure the higher of the two.

Both sides of that figure describe the whole office and administrative support group, not this one role. In the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH area the group covers 52 occupations BLS publishes a wage for, from hotel, motel, and resort desk clerks at $39,990 to executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants at $85,260 (BLS OEWS, May 2025), with court, municipal, and license clerks at $62,850 inside it.

That comparison is between two different measures, not a pay gap. The two weight the same occupation group differently: the Census figure is the midpoint across the people who actually hold those jobs, so a group carrying a few very well paid occupations is pulled toward them, while the BLS figure is the midpoint across the 52 published occupation wages, which counts each of those occupations once whatever its headcount. Census also counts where people live and BLS counts where the jobs are, and the two cover different populations, Census the civilian employed population 16 and over, BLS wage-and-salary jobs only. Read the number against other cities, where the same definitional difference applies on both sides, rather than as a shortfall.

Published wages across this group in the metro run above what Boston residents in it earn, which usually means employers here draw this talent from beyond the city line rather than from inside it.

What does a court clerk earn here?

Place of work

What employers pay

Annual wages paid to court, municipal, and license clerks by employers in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH area. BLS OEWS, May 2025, SOC 43-4031.
25th percentile$53,100
Median$62,850
75th percentile$75,060

Half of court, municipal, and license clerks in this area earn between $53,100 and $75,060 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). A band set below $53,100 competes for the bottom quarter of the market. Occupation detail for SOC 43-4031 at O*NET OnLine.

Place of residence

What Boston residents earn

$44,117

Median annual earnings of Boston residents working in office and administrative support occupations, 34,352 people (Census ACS 5-year 2023, tables S2401 and B24011). An occupation group rather than this one role, and where people live rather than where they work, so it is not the same measurement as the wages beside it.

What does the role actually involve?

Core tasks

  • Evaluate information on applications to verify completeness and accuracy and to determine whether applicants are qualified to obtain desired licenses.
  • Perform administrative tasks, such as answering telephone calls, filing court documents, or maintaining office supplies or equipment.
  • Verify the authenticity of documents, such as foreign identification or immigration documents.
  • Record and edit the minutes of meetings and distribute to appropriate officials or staff members.
  • Question applicants to obtain required information, such as name, address, or age, and record data on prescribed forms.

Task statements for SOC 43-4031, O*NET OnLine 29.1.

Tools and technologies in demand

Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software, Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Word, Adobe Acrobat, Microsoft Access, Zoom.

Flagged in demand or hot for SOC 43-4031 by O*NET OnLine 29.1. Useful as a screen, not as a checklist.

Is the talent actually in Boston?

This is a job zone two: some preparation needed occupation. These occupations usually require a high school diploma. O*NET OnLine, SOC 43-4031.

It does not require a degree, which widens the pool considerably. For context, 54.1% of Boston adults hold one. Census ACS 5-year 2023, table S1501, residents of Boston aged 25 and over.

The average Boston commute runs 30.2 minutes, which is roughly how far your catchment reaches before candidates start saying no. 18.8% of Boston workers already work from home, so a fully onsite requirement here is competing against that. Census ACS 5-year 2023, place-level commuting characteristics for Boston.

How often do these jobs turn over?

In Suffolk County, administrative and support services employs 33,671 and turns over 13.2% a quarter, with 7,434 hires against 7,408 separations. Average earnings in that industry run $7,207 a month. Census LEHD Quarterly Workforce Indicators, 2024 Q1, NAICS 56.

That figure covers every occupation in the industry, not this role alone, so read it as the local churn rate rather than as a number about court, municipal, and license clerks. It still tells you what you are hiring into: a high-churn market, where speed matters more than a perfect fit.

What does the search cost?

The fee is set by the seniority of the role, never by salary and never by location. Across all six tiers it runs $6,240 to $54,340 per search. A contingency firm hiring at this role's $62,850 median in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH area (BLS OEWS, May 2025) would bill roughly $12,570 to $18,855 on the first year salary alone.

One owner runs the search from market map to signed offer. Searches typically fill in 23 to 35 days, which is a typical window rather than a promise, and the replacement guarantee runs 45 days at 50% off.

Questions employers ask about hiring a court clerk in Boston

What does it cost to hire a court clerk in Boston?
Tier I to Tier VI, $6,240 to $54,340 per search, set by the seniority of the role and never by salary or location. A contingency firm billing 20 to 30% of this role's $62,850 median wage in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH area (BLS OEWS, May 2025) would charge roughly $12,570 to $18,855 on the first year salary alone.
What should an offer for a court clerk in Boston look like?
Employers in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH area pay court, municipal, and license clerks a median of $62,850, with the middle half of the market between $53,100 and $75,060 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). A band set below $53,100 competes for the bottom quarter of that market.
Do Boston residents in office and administrative support work earn more than employers in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH area pay?
Boston residents working in office and administrative support occupations earn a median of $44,117 (Census ACS 5-year 2023, tables S2401 and B24011), against $55,655 as the median of the 52 wages BLS publishes for that same occupation group in the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH area (BLS OEWS, May 2025), a difference of 21%. Both figures cover the whole occupation group rather than this one role, and one counts where people live while the other counts where the jobs are, so the percentage is not a pay gap.
Is the talent for this role already in Boston?
This is a job zone 2 occupation and does not require a degree, which widens the pool considerably. For context, 54.1% of Boston adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher (Census ACS 5-year 2023, table S1501).

Price this search

Eight questions about the role. Your tier range appears on screen.

Hiring a court clerk somewhere else?

Same role, different market. The wage band moves with the metro.

Other office and administrative support roles in Boston

Related

Boston is the largest of 2 Massachusetts cities in this dataset.