How much does a communications director make in Ohio?

Estimated salary for a communications director in Ohio ranges from about $41,018 at a small church to $74,797 at a large one, based on national church-comp data adjusted for Ohio's cost of living.

Salary benchmarks › Communications Director › Ohio

What does a communications director cost a church in Ohio?

Q: What does a communications director cost a church in Ohio?

In Ohio, a communications director costs a church roughly $51,948 to $68,571 per year in total — about $59,739 at a mid-size church (250–499 attendance) — including employer payroll taxes, before benefits. Because this is a non-clergy staff role, the church also pays the employer share of payroll taxes (about 7.65%), so the real cost runs above the salary, before benefits.

The short answer

In Ohio, a communications director costs a church roughly $51,948–$68,571 per year in total — about $59,739 at a typical mid-size church (250–499 attendance) — including employer payroll taxes, before benefits. Because this is a non-clergy staff role, the church also pays the employer share of payroll taxes (about 7.65%), so the real cost runs above the salary, before benefits.

The communications director runs a church's public voice — web, social, print, and the weekend's screens and messaging. Because it's a role borrowed from the broader marketing world, its pay is anchored to local market rates for communications work, which can make it competitive to fill and means it doesn't scale much with attendance.

Ohio's cost of living runs below the national average, which pulls church salaries down accordingly (BEA prices Ohio at 92.8 versus 100 nationally).

Communications Director cost in Ohio, by church size

Church size (avg. attendance)	Est. salary	Est. cost to the church
Under 100	$41,018	$44,156
100-249	$48,256	$51,948
250-499	$55,494	$59,739
500-999	$63,698	$68,571
1,000+	$74,797	$80,519

"Cost to the church" = salary + employer payroll tax (≈7.65%) , before retirement, health, or other benefits. Add those — and an optional clergy Social Security allowance — in the calculator.

Salary figures represent estimated cash salary, before employer payroll tax, benefits (retirement, insurance), and any housing allowance.

Benchmarks built on 2024–2025 source data (BEA 2024, BLS May 2025).

These are state-level estimates — costs in Ohio’s major metros can run meaningfully higher or lower. StaffClarity adjusts for your specific location.

Your church's real number

Estimates are a start. See your actual cost.

Plug in your communications director's salary, housing, and benefits and get the exact fully-loaded cost — clergy or staff — then plan your whole team.

Try the free calculator →Plan your whole team in StaffClarity →

Other roles in Ohio

Senior Pastor in Ohio Associate Pastor in Ohio Executive Pastor in Ohio Youth Pastor in Ohio Worship Director in Ohio Children's Ministry Director in Ohio Operations Director in Ohio

Communications Director in other states

Communications Director in Oklahoma Communications Director in Oregon Communications Director in North Carolina Communications Director in Georgia See all 50 states →

How these numbers are built: a national church-comp base for the role, scaled by church size and adjusted for state cost of living, then run through the same fully-loaded cost model our calculator uses. Sources: BEA Regional Price Parities (state cost of living, 2024); BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics (May 2025); Lifeway Research / GuideStone SBC Church Compensation Study (biennial, free). Figures are planning estimates, not a guarantee — your church's real numbers depend on experience, scope, and benefits.