Computer animator vs 3d animator

The differences between computer animators and 3d animators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a computer animator and a 3d animator. Additionally, a computer animator has an average salary of $81,438, which is higher than the $73,596 average annual salary of a 3d animator.

The top three skills for a computer animator include animation, adobe photoshop and motion graphics. The most important skills for a 3d animator are animation, storyboards, and visualization.

Computer animator vs 3d animator overview

	Computer Animator	3D Animator
Yearly salary	$81,438	$73,596
Hourly rate	$39.15	$35.38
Growth rate	5%	5%
Number of jobs	13,790	571
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 66%	Bachelor's Degree, 72%
Average age	40	40
Years of experience	2	2

Computer animator vs 3d animator salary

Computer animators and 3d animators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Computer Animator	3D Animator
Average salary	$81,438	$73,596
Salary range	Between $59,000 And $111,000	Between $50,000 And $108,000
Highest paying City	Las Vegas, NV	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Nevada	Nevada
Best paying company	The Walt Disney Company	NVIDIA
Best paying industry	Technology	Media

Differences between computer animator and 3d animator education

There are a few differences between a computer animator and a 3d animator in terms of educational background:

	Computer Animator	3D Animator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 66%	Bachelor's Degree, 72%
Most common major	Computer Science	Animation
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Computer animator vs 3d animator demographics

Here are the differences between computer animators' and 3d animators' demographics:

	Computer Animator	3D Animator
Average age	40	40
Gender ratio	Male, 86.5% Female, 13.5%	Male, 83.4% Female, 16.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 4.4% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 14.3% Asian, 7.7% White, 67.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 5.9% Hispanic or Latino, 14.0% Asian, 7.6% White, 67.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	11%	11%

Differences between computer animator and 3d animator duties and responsibilities

Computer animator example responsibilities.

Lead a team of artists to create the art and animation for motion comics aspects of the show.
Design and produce animation and graphics for local television commercials and corporate videos.
Facilitate product marketing, in-house video production and YouTube video development.
Base on personal interest and curiosity, create and direct group project exploring animation using OpenGL graphics library.
Analyze and troubleshoot equipment and software reliability to identify and define problem areas to establish computer and telecommunication performance levels.
Analyze and troubleshoot equipment and software reliability to identify and define problem areas to establish computer and telecommunication performance levels.

3d animator example responsibilities.

Manage design collaboration and storyboard creations.
Attend pre-production meetings and film shootings to assist directors in vfx shoot execution.
Animate in-game characters and cinematic sequences for transmedia projects on iOS and PC.
Animate monster truck 3D characters in Maya for a children's programming Youtube channel.
Develop episodes from concept to completion (design, color, cleanup, FX, audio editing).
Create the game animations for the enemies in the game as well as all VFX that appear in game.

Computer animator vs 3d animator skills

Common computer animator skills

Animation, 62%
Adobe Photoshop, 10%
Motion Graphics, 9%
Character Animation, 8%
Autocad, 7%
Body Mechanics, 4%

Common 3d animator skills

Animation, 30%
Storyboards, 5%
Visualization, 5%
Motion Capture, 4%
Motion Graphics, 4%
Game Engine, 4%

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Computer Animator vs 3D Animator

Updated January 8, 2025

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