Housekeepers and maids may work both in residential and commercial facilities, while butlers tend to work solely in homes. Job duties for these positions vary depending on the employer, but may include cleaning, cooking, laundry and caretaking. Butlers usually take on a supervisory role of the housekeeping staff. The average salary of butlers, housekeepers and maids depend on their duties, level of experience and location.

Average Salary

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, maids and housekeepers earned an average salary of $20,840 as of May 2009, with the salary scale ranging from less than $15,400 in the 10th percentile to over $29,210 in the 90th percentile. Butler Bureau claims that the starting salary for a new butler should be between $50,000 and $60,000 a year, moving up to between $80,000 and $150,000 a year after two to three years of experience.

Housekeepers and Maids

In the industry of services to buildings and dwellings, including homes, the bureau states that maids and housekeepers earned an average of $20,130 as of 2009. Those working in the industry of traveler accommodation, including hotels and resorts, earned an average of $20,250. Others worked in medical facilities, earning an average of $22,900 in hospitals and $20,620 in nursing care facilities.

Butlers

Butlers are typically employed in homes, earning between $60,000 and $125,000 a year, according to Butler Bureau. Those with cooking skills earned higher at between $70,000 and $150,000, while those in charge of a small staff earned between $80,000 and $150,000 and those in charge of a staff of four or more housekeepers earned between $90 and $180,000. Head butlers earned the highest salaries at between $140,000 and $250,000 a year.

Location

The bureau names Nevada as the state with the highest concentration of maids and housekeepers, offering an average salary of $25,700 a year. The highest paying state in the country for these professions is the District of Columbia at an average salary of $30,770 a year. Hawaii, New York, Nevada and Massachusetts follow with salary averages ranging from $24,850 to $29,480 annually.