Table of Contents
Demand for virtual administrative assistance climbed 18% among small and mid-sized businesses in a single month, and the skill broke into the ten most-requested freelance skills for the first time that same month, while federal projections put U.S. secretarial and administrative employment down 2% through 2035. The work stays; the payroll behind it shrinks.
We verified every number below on the publisher’s own page and dropped whatever failed that check. Federal projections refreshed to a 2025–35 window this year and moved nearly every administrative occupation, retiring figures that still circulate. What follows shows where virtual assistant hiring grows and what it costs against a U.S. hire.
Key Takeaways
- Small and mid-sized businesses adopt at six times the market rate, posting 18% growth in virtual admin assistance demand against 3% across all client sizes.
- U.S. administrative employment falls 2% through 2035, and medical secretaries alone add jobs at +5%, or 47,100 positions.
- Benefits add 45.6% on top of wages for U.S. office staff, lifting a $42,000 administrative assistant to roughly $61,200.
- A full-time bilingual Latin American assistant runs $21,120 to $30,720, cutting 60% to 65% off the fully loaded U.S. equivalent.
U.S. Administrative Employment Through 2035
Federal analysts project the occupation to shrink while employers keep replacing everyone who leaves it. The table below breaks that down by specialty.
| Occupation | 2025 Employment | Change, 2025–35 | 2025 Median Pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Secretaries and administrative assistants, all | 3,515,600 | -2% | $48,310 |
| Medical secretaries | 979,000 | +5% (+47,100) | $45,930 |
| Executive secretaries | 489,300 | 0% (-100) | $76,590 |
| Legal secretaries | 157,600 | -5% (-8,300) | $55,570 |
| All other secretaries | 1,889,800 | -6% (-114,100) | $47,540 |
Key Insights:
- Medical secretaries add 47,100 jobs while every other specialty holds flat or declines, leaving healthcare as the sole growth area in U.S. administrative staffing.
- Employers still fill 314,400 openings a year on replacement demand alone, so hiring pressure persists on a shrinking base.
Where Virtual Assistant Hiring Demand Is Moving
Platform hiring data captures contracted work that federal counts miss, because those track W-2 employment only. Our analysis below shows which categories moved.
| Skill Category | Demand Change | Period (MoM = month over month) |
|---|---|---|
| Virtual admin assistance, SMB | +18% | Dec 2025, MoM |
| Virtual admin assistance, all clients | +3% | Dec 2025, MoM |
| Project management | +23% | Dec 2025, MoM |
| Accounting and bookkeeping | +15% | Dec 2025, MoM |
| Quality assurance testing, SMB | +20% | June 2026, MoM |
| Data entry and transcription, SMB | +19% | June 2026, MoM |
| Lead generation and telemarketing | +9% | June 2026, MoM |
| AI apps and integration | +34% | June 2026, MoM |
| AI skills against non-AI skills | +109% vs +23% | Full-year 2025, YoY |
Key Insights:
- SMB demand runs six times the all-client rate, so the businesses least able to absorb a six-figure hire adopt fastest.
- Monthly figures swing hard and signal direction only, which leaves the year-over-year AI gap as the durable trend.
Virtual Assistant Rates Against U.S. Starting Salaries
Rates cover a wide band, and the spread separates general administrative coverage from specialized work. The table below prices coverage both ways.
| Hiring Model | Hourly Rate | Annual, Full-Time |
|---|---|---|
| Bilingual LATAM VA, general administrative | $11–$16 | $21,120–$30,720 |
| Bilingual LATAM VA, specialized | $14–$40 | $26,880–$76,800 |
| U.S. administrative assistant, salary only | – | $42,000–$52,750 |
| U.S. executive assistant, salary only | – | $58,250–$86,750 |
| U.S. senior executive assistant, salary only | – | $76,750–$97,250 |
Key Insights:
- Specialized bilingual support commands roughly triple the general administrative floor, mirroring the 83% of U.S. administrative leaders who pay more for specialized skills in the same role.
- U.S. administrative pay rises 2.5% in 2026 and executive assistant pay 2.6%, so a steady Latin American rate card widens the gap yearly.
What a U.S. Hire Actually Costs
Starting salary understates a U.S. administrative hire by close to half, because employer benefit costs reach 45.6% of wages for private-industry office staff. Our analysis below applies that load.
| Cost Component | U.S. Administrative Assistant | Bilingual LATAM VA |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 starting salary or annual rate | $42,000–$52,750 | $21,120–$30,720 |
| Employer benefit cost at 45.6% of wages | $19,169–$24,075 | None |
| Fully loaded annual cost | $61,169–$76,825 | $21,120–$30,720 |
| Annual difference | – | $40,049–$46,105 |
| Cost reduction | – | 60%–65% |
Key Insights:
- Benefits alone cost $19,169 to $24,075 a year on a U.S. administrative hire, nearly matching the full annual cost of a bilingual Latin American assistant.
- Executive support widens the gap, because a U.S. executive assistant reaches $84,835 to $126,343 fully loaded against $26,880 to $76,800 for a specialized bilingual placement.
Further Reading
- What a Latin American Virtual Assistant Costs
- How to Hire a Latin American Virtual Assistant
- Administrative Virtual Assistant Duties
- Top Countries to Hire Virtual Assistants
- Bilingual Virtual Assistants in Latin America
About This Report
This report was created for LatinoPro
