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How Much Does Travel Agents Make – It’s a simple question with a complicated answer. So I’d like to start with a video trailer to help answer the question.
The video provides a glimpse, but there’s a lot to consider when looking at how much travel agents make. The cost of living makes a big difference because average travel agent salaries vary greatly by region. In this case, the Minneapolis dollar is only worth 47¢ in Manhattan, NY, but if you go south to Des Moines, your Minneapolis dollar is worth $1.16.
How Much Does Travel Agents Make
Today, the majority of leisure travel agencies are independent contractor entrepreneurs who partner with a host agency.
How Does A Travel Agent Make Money In 2019?
Another important factor in travel agency profits is whether it is an employee or an entrepreneur. Today, the majority of leisure travel agencies are independent contractor entrepreneurs who partner with a host agency. This is a change from the days when most travel agents were storefront agency workers.
One last big factor in travel agency salaries? The type of travel that a travel consultant sells. A corporate consultant will typically earn a higher salary than a leisure/holiday travel agency.
Organizations that report on travel agent salaries outside the travel industry do not know the nuances of our field.
The point is that organizations that report travel agent salaries are not aware of the nuances outside of the travel industry. Most outdoor sites do not include independent travel agents in their data, although hosted travel agencies (those aligned with a host agency) are big players in leisure travel. Often, they only look at employee travel agent salaries.
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So that’s why we’re here! 🙂 As a company that focuses solely on travel advisors, we’ll break down some of these nuances to give you a more accurate picture of travel agent salaries. We’ll dig into some insider data to break down travel agency salaries and profits into digestible categories. Here’s what you can expect:
So take a seat. Grab the sweetest cotton candy you can because the travel agent salary show is about to begin (and it’s going to be great).
Didn’t guess? We have just finished our annual travel agency survey for June 2022. We are currently crunching the numbers and will update our travel agent salary numbers for 2022 soon!
Bureau of Labor and Statistics (BLS) data has shown a 26% increase in travel advisor salaries over the past decade. The graph below shows how it has increased over time.
How Much Money Can I Make As A Travel Agent In 2022?
So we looked at the BLS data, which you now know is heavily skewed towards employees and doesn’t reflect the true picture of the industry where most travel consultants are self-employed. Let’s take a look at the 2022 Travel Consultant Survey, which mainly profiles freelance consultants. The chart below provides an overview of HAR salaries
The results from the HAR survey clock in lower than the BLS number, and the data indicates that full-time consultants earned an average of $37,473 a year.
It is important to note that HAR’s survey profiles the income of self-employed consultants (any consultant who was not an employee of a travel agency). In our 2022 survey, only 4% of advisors responding to HAR’s survey were employees.
HAR’s 2020 Longitudinal Report indicated that income for full-time hosted consultants increased by 38% in the four years between 2016 and 2019.
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Our website helps travel agencies start and grow travel agencies because our readers skew heavily towards entrepreneurs. There is another big reason why HAR’s survey data on travel agency wages is lower than what is reported by the BLS. . . covid As an employee, you get paid whether or not the company makes a profit. But if you own your own travel agency and there’s a pandemic where no one can travel around the world, guess what happens to your income? It dries up.
In fact, HAR’s 2020 Longitudinal Report indicated that income for full-time hosted consultants increased by 38% in the four years between 2016 and 2019 (before the pandemic hit). According to BLS statistics, income grew by 26% in a decade, which is a much faster growth than the workforce.
Since it is difficult to obtain accurate information that combines all consultant categories (business/leisure, employee/freelance), we will look at the average salaries of freelance consultants, staff travel consultants, travel managers, travel agents. and corporate travel consultants. We want to cover all our bases!
I’ll throw in a few industry words for you now. are you ready There are two main segments of consultants in the self-employed category: hosted consultants (who use the accreditation number of another agency, called host agencies) and independent travel consultants (who have their own travel accreditation).
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Here’s an overview of what you need to know about freelance consultants. Over time, the number of freelance consultants has grown exponentially, while the number of storefront travel agencies has decreased over time. In particular, hospitality consultants and the hospitality agencies that support them have become the main means of bringing new talent into the travel agent distribution channel.
Our annual Travel Agent Income Survey provides results across the hosted and independently accredited travel advisor segment. In our 2021, full-time hosted consultants with 3+ years of experience earned an average of $24,982, while independently verified members earned $24,574.
It is important to note that income levels for hosted and independently accredited advisors are still affected by the impact of the pandemic. Check out our longitudinal report examining 5 years of travel agency revenue before the pandemic broke out for a more realistic perspective on earning potential freelance travel agents.
I want to bring up one last thing that complicates things when it comes to salary for freelance travel agents. Why not? You’ve read this far! 😊
How Do I Find A Travel Host Agency In 2022?
The following section on employee travel agent salary will give you the following numbers of what you can expect if you are hired by an agency. However, when we’re talking about self-employed income, the income/salary numbers can be artificially deflated.
Learn about the different types of business structures here. So keep those things in mind when you’re looking at earning potential.
The salaries of travel agency workers have less differences compared to independent travel agencies. For most travel consultant workers, income is not solely dependent on commissions. Typically, employees will earn a mix of salary and commission-based income.
In our 2022 survey, here’s what travel advisor employees reported getting paid in the 2022 Travel Agent Survey:
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Want to read more about how to get money in the bank? Read our article, How do travel agents make money?
A fixed salary provides income stability that is not available to freelance consultants. Additionally, employees often receive benefits and are not subject to the added complexity and expense of paying business taxes.
When we look only at travel advisor workers, HAR’s wage data is much closer to that reported by the BLS. In HAR’s 2022 survey, full-time travel agent workers earned $38,967.
Employee compensation models play a big role in determining how much a travel agent employee earns. 70% of workers earned a salary or wage (exclusively or in addition to commission income). The graph below shows the average income for the two most common compensation models.
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Corporate travel consultants typically earn more than those selling leisure travel. For corporate travel agent earnings, we rely primarily on third-party data, which is not our jam. We’re all about recreation here at HAR!
The average annual income for corporate agents ranges from $54,419 to $79,557 depending on the website you refer to. The following provides a snapshot of what third-party revenue reporting platforms publish by company revenue.
Are you interested in becoming a corporate Travel Agent? You can sink your teeth into some juicy information here:
Looking at the career path of corporate travel agents, Travel Manager / Supervisory positions start with a much higher base. Business Travel News (BTN) published a report dated August 12, 2022 on Travel Managers/Guides working for corporate entities as in-house consultants (not working for a travel agency). The average salary for corporate travel manager/supervisor positions was recorded at $114,955.
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We have looked at travel agency salaries from different perspectives. You did the spinning and spinning madness of data acrobats.
HAR’s past income and fee survey reports provide insight into what you can expect from travel agent salaries. But ultimately it depends on many factors. Not just what type of consultant you are (which we cover here), but also other factors like what type of travel you sell, experience you sell, hours worked and all that other fun stuff.
While trying to determine a consistent salary for travel agents is impossible, one thing that is consistent across all surveys is that most travel consultants are happy with a career rich in travel experience.
HAR’s 2022 Travel Consultant Survey found that 74% of full-time consultants are satisfied and satisfied (at least) with their income levels. 22% are “somewhat satisfied” and 4% are not satisfied with income levels. And this was during the pandemic!!!
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Travel managers surveyed by BTN were more lukewarm about income satisfaction. 48% of travel managers reported their earnings were fair, 12% felt “well compensated” and 41% felt their pay was “low due to responsibility.”
And here’s the thing
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