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Artist salary
Average artist salary
$68,690
Understanding Artist Salaries
As of October 2025, the average salary for an artist in the United States is $68,690 annually, translating to approximately $33 per hour. This figure can fluctuate based on various factors, including geographic location, years of experience, and the specific industry. For instance, artists in metropolitan areas often command higher salaries due to increased demand and cost of living.
Salary by State
States like California and New York typically offer higher average salaries for artists, influenced by their vibrant art scenes and numerous opportunities. In contrast, regions with less emphasis on the arts may present lower salary averages.
Career Paths and Earnings
Artists can pursue various career paths, including fine arts, graphic design, and multimedia art. Each field presents unique earning potentials, with specialized roles often providing greater financial rewards. By investigating these career trajectories, aspiring artists can make informed decisions and strategically align their skills with market needs.
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Where can an Artist earn more?
Artist salary estimates from across the web
Average artist salary by state
The highest-paying states for artists are California, Nevada, and Oregon. The lowest average artist salary states are Mississippi, Missouri, and Tennessee.
- State view
- County view
Highest paying states for artists
| Rank | State | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oregon | $73,421 | $35.30 |
| 2 | Rhode Island | $70,146 | $33.72 |
| 3 | California | $75,539 | $36.32 |
| 4 | Washington | $71,839 | $34.54 |
| 5 | Connecticut | $70,130 | $33.72 |
| 6 | New Hampshire | $68,398 | $32.88 |
| 7 | Utah | $67,184 | $32.30 |
| 8 | Nevada | $74,007 | $35.58 |
| 9 | New York | $70,092 | $33.70 |
| 10 | Idaho | $68,722 | $33.04 |
| 11 | Pennsylvania | $69,508 | $33.42 |
| 12 | Massachusetts | $69,461 | $33.39 |
| 13 | Arizona | $69,240 | $33.29 |
| 14 | Michigan | $66,190 | $31.82 |
| 15 | Delaware | $69,636 | $33.48 |
| 16 | Wisconsin | $63,767 | $30.66 |
| 17 | District of Columbia | $68,399 | $32.88 |
| 18 | Wyoming | $61,810 | $29.72 |
| 19 | Maryland | $68,747 | $33.05 |
| 20 | Maine | $65,685 | $31.58 |
| 21 | Vermont | $66,413 | $31.93 |
| 22 | New Mexico | $66,108 | $31.78 |
| 23 | Indiana | $62,138 | $29.87 |
| 24 | New Jersey | $70,113 | $33.71 |
| 25 | Ohio | $64,923 | $31.21 |
| 26 | Virginia | $66,721 | $32.08 |
| 27 | West Virginia | $64,729 | $31.12 |
| 28 | Texas | $62,669 | $30.13 |
| 29 | Kentucky | $60,236 | $28.96 |
| 30 | Iowa | $60,370 | $29.02 |
| 31 | North Dakota | $62,333 | $29.97 |
| 32 | Montana | $64,374 | $30.95 |
| 33 | North Carolina | $61,092 | $29.37 |
| 34 | South Dakota | $60,289 | $28.99 |
| 35 | Minnesota | $62,831 | $30.21 |
| 36 | Hawaii | $61,135 | $29.39 |
| 37 | Illinois | $62,625 | $30.11 |
| 38 | Colorado | $61,763 | $29.69 |
| 39 | Louisiana | $60,554 | $29.11 |
| 40 | Nebraska | $59,055 | $28.39 |
| 41 | Georgia | $58,393 | $28.07 |
| 42 | Alaska | $62,887 | $30.23 |
| 43 | Tennessee | $58,556 | $28.15 |
| 44 | Florida | $59,501 | $28.61 |
| 45 | Oklahoma | $59,108 | $28.42 |
| 46 | Alabama | $58,506 | $28.13 |
| 47 | Arkansas | $58,365 | $28.06 |
| 48 | Mississippi | $58,819 | $28.28 |
| 49 | Kansas | $58,954 | $28.34 |
| 50 | South Carolina | $58,845 | $28.29 |
| 51 | Missouri | $58,711 | $28.23 |
Highest paying cities for artists
The highest-paying cities for artists are San Rafael, CA, Reno, NV, and Hillsboro, OR.
| Rank | City | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Rafael, CA | $79,430 | $38.19 |
| 2 | Reno, NV | $76,609 | $36.83 |
| 3 | Hillsboro, OR | $73,173 | $35.18 |
| 4 | Vancouver, WA | $72,903 | $35.05 |
| 5 | Greenwich, CT | $70,246 | $33.77 |
| 6 | New York, NY | $70,244 | $33.77 |
| 7 | Glendale, AZ | $69,596 | $33.46 |
| 8 | Boston, MA | $69,451 | $33.39 |
| 9 | Baltimore, MD | $69,002 | $33.17 |
| 10 | Portland, ME | $66,438 | $31.94 |
| 11 | Austin, TX | $63,285 | $30.43 |
| 12 | Chicago, IL | $62,945 | $30.26 |
| 13 | Minneapolis, MN | $62,850 | $30.22 |
| 14 | Durham, NC | $62,403 | $30.00 |
| 15 | Littleton, CO | $61,849 | $29.74 |
| 16 | Miami, FL | $60,055 | $28.87 |
| 17 | Atlanta, GA | $58,437 | $28.09 |
| 18 | Franklin, TN | $58,422 | $28.09 |
Artists are the most in-demand in these five cities:
Artist salary details
An artist's salary ranges from $42,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $110,000 at the 90th percentile.
What is an artist's salary?
| Percentile | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90th Percentile | $110,000 | $9,167 | $53 |
| 75th Percentile | $88,000 | $7,333 | $42 |
| Average | $68,690 | $5,724 | $33 |
| 25th Percentile | $53,000 | $4,417 | $25 |
| 10th Percentile | $42,000 | $3,500 | $20 |
Highest paying artist jobs
The highest paying types of artists are interactive designer, animator, and 3d artist.
| Job title | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Visual Merchandiser | $38,037 | $3,170 | $18.29 | 74,351 |
| Freelance Designer | $57,260 | $4,772 | $27.53 | 45,914 |
| Graphic Designer Internship | $35,800 | $2,983 | $17.21 | 93,292 |
| Graphic Designer/Production | $48,619 | $4,052 | $23.37 | 95,831 |
| Graphic Designer, Marketing | $48,763 | $4,064 | $23.44 | 115,113 |
| Motion Graphics Designer | $62,558 | $5,213 | $30.08 | 44,960 |
Top companies hiring artists now:
Which companies pay artists the most?
Artist salaries at Meta and Microsoft are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average artist salary at companies like Apple and Lucid Motors are highly competitive.
| Rank | Company | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Meta | $132,470 | $63.69 |
| 2 | Microsoft | $126,796 | $60.96 |
| 3 | Apple | $118,731 | $57.08 |
| 4 | Lucid Motors | $93,787 | $45.09 |
| 5 | The Tipping Point | $92,437 | $44.44 |
| 6 | Autodesk | $90,949 | $43.73 |
| 7 | WayForward | $89,512 | $43.03 |
| 8 | The Walt Disney Company | $87,875 | $42.25 |
| 9 | Digital Domain | $87,121 | $41.89 |
| 10 | PIXOMONDO | $87,000 | $41.83 |
| 11 | Video Gaming Technologies | $85,972 | $41.33 |
| 12 | Warner Bros. | $85,756 | $41.23 |
| 13 | TikTok | $85,399 | $41.06 |
| 14 | Pixar Animation Studios | $84,174 | $40.47 |
| 15 | Amazon | $83,935 | $40.35 |
| 16 | PlayStation | $83,692 | $40.24 |
| 17 | Sony Interactive Entertainment America | $82,906 | $39.86 |
| 18 | School of the Art Institute of Chicago | $82,682 | $39.75 |
| 19 | DreamWorks Animation | $82,661 | $39.74 |
| 20 | Future | $82,075 | $39.46 |
Wage gap by gender, race and education
Artist salary by industry
The average artist salary varies across industries:
- The average artist salary in the technology industry is $80,623, the highest of any industry.
- The average artist salary in the finance industry is $73,767.
- Artists in the manufacturing industry earn an average salary of $52,564, the lowest of any industry.
Highest paying industries for artists
| Rank | Industry | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Technology | $80,623 | $38.76 |
| 2 | Media | $73,767 | $35.46 |
| 3 | Hospitality | $65,161 | $31.33 |
| 4 | Retail | $53,558 | $25.75 |
| 5 | Manufacturing | $52,564 | $25.27 |
High paying artist jobs
Artist salary trends
The average artist salary has risen by $8,100 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average artist earned $60,590 annually, but today, they earn $68,690 a year. That works out to a 7% change in pay for artists over the last decade.
Compare artist salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.
Average artist salary over time
Compare artist salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.
Artist salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $68,700 | $33.02 | +2.0% |
| 2024 | $67,300 | $32.37 | -1.4% |
| 2023 | $68,300 | $32.82 | +2.8% |
| 2022 | $66,300 | $31.89 | +3.4% |
| 2021 | $64,100 | $30.80 | +4.7% |
Recently added artist salaries
| Company | Job | Location | Date added | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nbcuniversal | Dreamworks Feature-Previs Artist | Glendale, CA | 06/29/2025 | $78,312 |
| Scanline VFX | Houdini FX Artist | Vancouver, WA | 06/27/2025 | $135,000 |
| Nbcuniversal | Dreamworks Feature-Previs Artist | Glendale, AZ | 06/13/2025 | $78,312 |
| Gungho Online Entertainment America, Inc. | Lighter/Look Development Artist | Redondo Beach, CA | 06/13/2025 | $60,000 |
| Fanatics | Artist | Winona, MN | 06/10/2025 | $37,566 |
| Gungho Online | Lighter/Look Development Artist | Redondo Beach, CA | 06/10/2025 | $60,000 |
| Hudson | Mac Beauty Artist | Houston, TX | 06/09/2025 | $37,566 |
| Magnopus | Veo2 Inference Artist | Los Angeles, CA | 05/26/2025 | $100,000 |
| Cocreativ | Flame/Nuke VFX Artist | New York, NY | 05/25/2025 | $110,000 |
| Avolta | Mac Beauty Artist | Houston, TX | 05/25/2025 | $37,566 |
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