A virtual assistant (VA) is a remote worker who takes recurring tasks off a business owner or a team: email, scheduling, data entry, customer support, social media, bookkeeping and similar work. Virtual assistants usually work as independent contractors from home, often in another country, for one client or for several. This guide is about human assistants, not voice software such as Siri or Alexa.
A useful rule of thumb: a virtual assistant can do any task that happens on a computer and can be explained in a written process. Below are the tasks by type of work, the skills that 26,968 candidates on DonutJobs list on their profiles (counted on 5 October 2026), what the work costs and where its limits are.
What a virtual assistant does, by type of work
| Type of work | Typical tasks | Common tools |
|---|---|---|
| Administrative | Sorting the inbox, scheduling meetings, booking travel, formatting documents, keeping files in order | Google Workspace, Microsoft Office, Zoom |
| Data entry and research | Updating spreadsheets and databases, cleaning contact lists, web research, putting reports together | Excel, Google Sheets, a CRM |
| Customer support | Answering email and live chat, order and refund questions, keeping tickets up to date | A help desk or a shared inbox |
| Social media | Scheduling posts, replying to comments and messages, simple graphics and short videos | Canva, CapCut, Meta Business Suite |
| Marketing | Newsletters, blog formatting, basic SEO tasks, campaign reports | An email platform, Google Analytics |
| Sales support | Building lead lists, CRM updates, follow-up emails, booking appointments | HubSpot, Calendly, spreadsheets |
| Ecommerce | Product listings, order processing, supplier messages, store customer service | Shopify, Amazon Seller Central |
| Bookkeeping | Invoices, receipts, sorting expenses, reconciliation | QuickBooks, Xero |
The administrative row is the oldest part of the job, and it matches what an assistant does in an office. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics lists the typical duties of secretaries and administrative assistants as scheduling appointments, preparing memos, invoices or reports, maintaining databases and filing systems, and basic bookkeeping (Occupational Outlook Handbook, page updated August 2026). O*NET, the occupation database of the US Department of Labor, adds running the email flow and entering information into databases for the same occupation (O*NET 43-6014.00).
A general virtual assistant does that list from another location. The duties tied to a building, such as greeting visitors or handling paper mail, do not move online. Phone work does when the line is a software phone.
What virtual assistants say they do: data from 26,968 profiles
Candidates on DonutJobs describe their own skills when they create a profile. This is how many of the 26,968 profiles name each kind of work.
| Skill area | Profiles | Share of all profiles |
|---|---|---|
| Customer support | 15,647 | 58% |
| "Virtual assistant" as a general tag | 14,456 | 53% |
| Data entry | 14,157 | 52% |
| Marketing of any kind, including social media and email | 10,184 | 37% |
| Social media | 7,432 | 27% |
| Sales and lead generation | 2,847 | 10% |
| Ecommerce | 2,715 | 10% |
| Chat work for creator agencies (OnlyFans, Fansly) | 2,320 | 8% |
| Executive, personal or office assistant | 1,712 | 6% |
| Bookkeeping and accounting | 1,195 | 4% |
Source: DonutJobs app database, counted on 5 October 2026. A profile is counted when its skill tags, headline or past job titles match the skill area. Shares are rounded down. One profile can appear in several rows, so the rows add up to more than 100%. These are skills the candidates report themselves. Nobody has verified them.
Three things stand out:
- Support and data entry are the common ground. More than half of all profiles list each of them. If your first tasks are inbox, chat and spreadsheet work, the pool is deep.
- Specialist skills are rarer. About one profile in 23 names bookkeeping or accounting, and about one in ten names sales work. Expect a smaller pool and a longer search for those roles.
- The executive assistant row is narrow on purpose. It counts only profiles that name that work, such as calendar or inbox management. Candidates who carry just the general tag are in the second row.
Most of these candidates live in the Philippines: 21,162 of the 26,968 profiles, or 78%. Candidates from 142 other countries make up most of the rest. For that market in detail, see hiring Filipino virtual assistants.
General and specialist virtual assistants
A general virtual assistant handles a mix of administrative tasks for one person or a small team. This is the right first hire when the problem is a founder who spends two hours a day on email, scheduling and follow-ups. The guide to virtual assistants for small businesses covers that setup.
A specialist virtual assistant does one function and should arrive knowing its tools. The most common specialist roles are:
- Customer support virtual assistants, who answer email, chat and sometimes phone calls.
- Social media virtual assistants, who schedule content and manage comments and messages.
- Marketing virtual assistants, who run newsletters, content tasks and reports.
- Sales virtual assistants, who build lead lists, update the CRM and book meetings.
An executive assistant sits between the two. The tasks are administrative, but the person works closely with one leader, makes more decisions alone and often keeps that leader's hours. See hiring an executive assistant for how that role is scoped.
If you cannot decide between one generalist and one specialist, this comparison of generalist and specialist VAs walks through the trade-off.
What a virtual assistant does not do
- Licensed work. Legal advice, a signed tax return and similar work stay with the licensed professional. A virtual assistant can collect the documents and prepare the file.
- Your judgment calls. Pricing, hiring and strategy decisions stay with you. An assistant can gather the facts you need to decide.
- Tasks nobody has explained. If the steps exist only in your head, the first job is to write them down or record your screen while you do the task once.
- Anything that needs a body in the room. Receiving parcels, hosting visitors and fixing the printer are not remote tasks.
Access is the other limit, and you set it. Share logins through a password manager, give the lowest permission level that lets the work get done, and keep payment approval with yourself until trust is built.
Contractor, employee or managed service
Virtual assistants usually work as independent contractors. In the United States the general rule from the tax authority is that someone is an independent contractor when the client "has the right to control or direct only the result of the work" and not the way the work is carried out (IRS, page updated August 2026). Rules differ by country. If you set fixed hours, supply the tools and direct every step, check the classification with an accountant before you sign anything.
There are three common ways to work with one:
- Hire directly. You post a job on a marketplace or job board, choose the person and manage them yourself. This costs the least and takes the most of your time.
- Use a managed service. A provider finds, contracts and manages the assistant and bills you a monthly fee. See managed virtual assistants for what that includes.
- Buy single tasks from a freelancer. This fits one-off projects better than ongoing daily work.
For named providers of each kind, see the best virtual assistant companies.
What a virtual assistant costs
Rates depend on where the assistant lives and how specialized the work is. Some reference points:
- Asking rates on DonutJobs. Candidates ask a median of $5 an hour, and half of them ask between $3 and $5 (1,697 profiles, measured on 10 October 2026).
- Posted rates on DonutJobs. Employers post a median base rate of $3 an hour (1,224 hourly job posts, same date). More than half of those posts add commission on top.
- Philippine job board guidance. OnlineJobs.ph recommends offering around $4 to $7 an hour for most positions in its salary guide (last updated April 2026).
- US office pay. The median wage for secretaries and administrative assistants in the US was $23.23 an hour, or $48,310 a year, in May 2025 (Bureau of Labor Statistics, linked above).
These are different measures: stated contractor rates on one marketplace, a recommendation from a job board, and a wage for employees. They show the order of magnitude and are not a like-for-like comparison. The full breakdown is in how much a virtual assistant costs and in the virtual assistant rates report.
How to check that a virtual assistant can do the work
A skill tag is a claim. Three checks turn it into evidence:
- Test scores. On DonutJobs, candidates can complete up to four optional checks: internet speed, English, typing speed and a recorded voice sample. 14,492 profiles (53%) have at least one. The median typing speed is 31 words a minute (12,782 profiles), the median English score is 73 out of 100 (10,919 profiles) and the median download speed is 69.1 Mbps (11,073 profiles). Counted on 5 October 2026.
- A work sample. Ask for one small task from the real job, such as five support replies or a cleaned-up spreadsheet.
- A paid trial. One to two weeks on real tasks tells you more than any interview.
How to start with a virtual assistant
- Write down everything you do for a week and mark the tasks that repeat. The delegation framework helps you pick which ones to hand over first.
- Document the first three tasks: the steps, the tools and what a finished result looks like.
- Decide on a generalist or a specialist, the weekly hours and the time zone overlap you need.
- Post the job. On DonutJobs, half of the job posts that drew an applicant got the first application within 17 minutes of going live (1,477 job posts, counted on 5 October 2026).
- Shortlist on test scores and work samples, then run a paid trial.
The step-by-step version is in how to hire a virtual assistant. On DonutJobs you pay the assistant directly and the platform charges a flat subscription. The free plan covers one active job post with up to 10 applications. The paid plan is $99 a month, or $55 a month on a six-month term. See DonutJobs pricing or browse virtual assistants by role.
Frequently asked questions
What does a virtual assistant do all day?
It depends on the role. A general virtual assistant usually starts with the inbox and calendar, then works through recurring tasks such as data entry, research, invoices and follow-ups. A specialist spends the day in one function, for example answering support tickets or scheduling social media posts.
What tasks should I give a virtual assistant first?
Start with tasks that repeat every week, follow clear steps and do not need your judgment: inbox sorting, scheduling, data entry and order or ticket updates. Write the steps down before the assistant starts.
Is a virtual assistant an employee?
Usually not. A virtual assistant typically works as an independent contractor and handles their own taxes. The answer depends on how much control you have over the work and on the law in your country, so check with an accountant if you set fixed hours and methods.
How much does a virtual assistant cost per hour?
On DonutJobs the median asking rate is $5 an hour and half of all candidates ask $3 to $5, based on 1,697 profiles measured on 10 October 2026. For comparison, the median wage of a secretary or administrative assistant employed in the US was $23.23 an hour in May 2025.
What is the difference between a virtual assistant and an executive assistant?
A virtual assistant handles defined tasks for a person or a team. An executive assistant works closely with one leader, manages that person's time and communication, and decides more things alone. Many executive assistants work remotely too.
Is a virtual assistant the same as an AI assistant?
No. In hiring, a virtual assistant is a person who works remotely. Voice assistants and chatbots are software. Many human virtual assistants use AI tools for drafts and research, and a person still checks the result.