Best states for a character animator

Q: What is the best state for character animators?

The best state to be a character animator is Rhode Island based on character animator salaries and job opportunities.

Q: What is the highest paying state for character animators?

The highest paying state for character animators is Hawaii based on Zippia’s salary database.

Q: What is the worst state for character animators?

The worst state for character animators is South Carolina, due to a combination of low salaries and few job opportunities.

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Are you wondering which place in the United States is the best state for character animators? Knowing how challenging it is to figure out where to start your career or where to move to advance your career, we decided to bring you a list of best states for character animator jobs.In fact, our research shows that Rhode Island is the best state for character animators in America. The best city in America for character animators with the highest pay is San Francisco, CA.

We figured that the best places for character animator jobs has three things everyone would agree on. There would be high annual wages, good career prospects (no matter what phase of the career you are in), and a lot of job opportunities.We found that Rhode Island is the best state for character animator jobs, whereas South Carolina is the worst.

10 best states for character animators in 2025

1. Rhode Island
Total character animator jobs: 26
Average annual salary: $114,084
Lowest 10 percent earn: $75,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $173,000
Location Quotient:
1.52
Character animator jobs in Rhode Island
2. New Hampshire
Total character animator jobs: 42
Average annual salary: $113,270
Lowest 10 percent earn: $74,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $172,000
Location Quotient:
1.7
Character animator jobs in New Hampshire
3. Connecticut
Total character animator jobs: 63
Average annual salary: $113,391
Lowest 10 percent earn: $74,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $172,000
Location Quotient:
1.35
Character animator jobs in Connecticut
4. New York
Total character animator jobs: 313
Average annual salary: $92,226
Lowest 10 percent earn: $60,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $140,000
Location Quotient:
1.73
Character animator jobs in New York
5. District of Columbia
Total character animator jobs: 30
Average annual salary: $108,970
Lowest 10 percent earn: $70,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $167,000
Location Quotient:
1.27
Character animator jobs in District of Columbia
6. California
Total character animator jobs: 705
Average annual salary: $92,614
Lowest 10 percent earn: $58,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $145,000
Location Quotient:
1.71
Character animator jobs in California
7. Maryland
Total character animator jobs: 94
Average annual salary: $94,526
Lowest 10 percent earn: $61,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $145,000
Location Quotient:
1.05
Character animator jobs in Maryland
8. Delaware
Total character animator jobs: 15
Average annual salary: $110,842
Lowest 10 percent earn: $72,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $169,000
Location Quotient:
0.85
Character animator jobs in Delaware
9. Idaho
Total character animator jobs: 22
Average annual salary: $80,716
Lowest 10 percent earn: $51,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $127,000
Location Quotient:
0.95
Character animator jobs in Idaho
10. Nevada
Total character animator jobs: 16
Average annual salary: $119,754
Lowest 10 percent earn: $77,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $186,000
Location Quotient:
0.54
Character animator jobs in Nevada

Character animator jobsNear Columbus, OH

How Zippia determines the best states to be a character animator

You can read about how the best state rankings are calculated here.

Detailed list of the best states for a character animator

Rank	State	Average salary	Lowest 10% earn	Population	Job count
1	Rhode Island	$114,084	$75,000	1,059,639	26
2	New Hampshire	$113,270	$74,000	1,342,795	42
3	Connecticut	$113,391	$74,000	3,588,184	63
4	New York	$92,226	$60,000	19,849,399	313
5	District of Columbia	$108,970	$70,000	693,972	30
6	California	$92,614	$58,000	39,536,653	705
7	Maryland	$94,526	$61,000	6,052,177	94
8	Delaware	$110,842	$72,000	961,939	15
9	Idaho	$80,716	$51,000	1,716,943	22
10	Nevada	$119,754	$77,000	2,998,039	16
11	Maine	$81,591	$53,000	1,335,907	17
12	Washington	$78,858	$49,000	7,405,743	148
13	Michigan	$77,912	$50,000	9,962,311	98
14	North Carolina	$77,428	$49,000	10,273,419	118
15	Iowa	$75,274	$49,000	3,145,711	48
16	Oregon	$75,885	$47,000	4,142,776	76
17	Illinois	$81,054	$52,000	12,802,023	124
18	Virginia	$76,714	$49,000	8,470,020	130
19	West Virginia	$74,746	$48,000	1,815,857	13
20	New Mexico	$75,999	$48,000	2,088,070	19
21	Kansas	$73,687	$48,000	2,913,123	28
22	Wisconsin	$64,861	$42,000	5,795,483	99
23	Vermont	$69,290	$45,000	623,657	10
24	Utah	$63,063	$40,000	3,101,833	66
25	Tennessee	$68,430	$43,000	6,715,984	62
26	Massachusetts	$66,212	$43,000	6,859,819	145
27	Indiana	$72,848	$47,000	6,666,818	49
28	Kentucky	$69,586	$45,000	4,454,189	35
29	Colorado	$69,807	$45,000	5,607,154	66
30	New Jersey	$74,052	$48,000	9,005,644	67
31	Texas	$61,987	$38,000	28,304,596	283
32	North Dakota	$70,622	$47,000	755,393	6
33	Wyoming	$53,782	$35,000	579,315	12
34	Arkansas	$68,102	$43,000	3,004,279	22
35	Pennsylvania	$62,208	$40,000	12,805,537	114
36	Alaska	$65,919	$44,000	739,795	8
37	Arizona	$65,543	$42,000	7,016,270	54
38	Oklahoma	$56,187	$36,000	3,930,864	35
39	Florida	$57,804	$35,000	20,984,400	179
40	Minnesota	$56,501	$37,000	5,576,606	74
41	Georgia	$51,066	$32,000	10,429,379	142
42	Nebraska	$50,857	$33,000	1,920,076	29
43	Hawaii	$38,331	$29,000	1,427,538	13
44	South Dakota	$43,711	$28,000	869,666	14
45	Missouri	$50,791	$33,000	6,113,532	55
46	Ohio	$47,617	$30,000	11,658,609	98
47	Alabama	$49,725	$31,000	4,874,747	38
48	Mississippi	$48,649	$30,000	2,984,100	20
49	Louisiana	$42,078	$26,000	4,684,333	36
50	Montana	$46,652	$30,000	1,050,493	9
51	South Carolina	$41,268	$25,000	5,024,369	38

Highest paying states for character animators

Rank	State	Avg. Character Animator Salary
1	Rhode Island	$114,084
2	New Hampshire	$113,270
3	Connecticut	$113,391
4	New York	$92,226
5	District of Columbia	$108,970
6	California	$92,614
7	Maryland	$94,526
8	Delaware	$110,842
9	Idaho	$80,716
10	Nevada	$119,754
11	Maine	$81,591
12	Washington	$78,858
13	Michigan	$77,912
14	North Carolina	$77,428
15	Iowa	$75,274
16	Oregon	$75,885
17	Illinois	$81,054
18	Virginia	$76,714
19	West Virginia	$74,746
20	New Mexico	$75,999
21	Kansas	$73,687
22	Wisconsin	$64,861
23	Vermont	$69,290
24	Utah	$63,063
25	Tennessee	$68,430
26	Massachusetts	$66,212
27	Indiana	$72,848
28	Kentucky	$69,586
29	Colorado	$69,807
30	New Jersey	$74,052
31	Texas	$61,987
32	North Dakota	$70,622
33	Wyoming	$53,782
34	Arkansas	$68,102
35	Pennsylvania	$62,208
36	Alaska	$65,919
37	Arizona	$65,543
38	Oklahoma	$56,187
39	Florida	$57,804
40	Minnesota	$56,501
41	Georgia	$51,066
42	Nebraska	$50,857
43	Hawaii	$38,331
44	South Dakota	$43,711
45	Missouri	$50,791
46	Ohio	$47,617
47	Alabama	$49,725
48	Mississippi	$48,649
49	Louisiana	$42,078
50	Montana	$46,652
51	South Carolina	$41,268

Character animator best states FAQs

What is the best state for character animators?

What is the highest paying state for character animators?

What is the worst state for character animators?

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Character Animator
Best states for Character Animators

Updated January 8, 2025

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Total character animator jobs:	26
Average annual salary:	$114,084
Lowest 10 percent earn:	$75,000
Highest 10 percent earn:	$173,000
Location Quotient:	1.52

Best states for a character animator

10 best states for character animators in 2025

1. Rhode Island

2. New Hampshire

3. Connecticut

4. New York

5. District of Columbia

6. California

7. Maryland

8. Delaware

9. Idaho

10. Nevada