Computer animator vs character animator

The differences between computer animators and character 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 character animator. Additionally, a computer animator has an average salary of $81,438, which is higher than the $72,126 average annual salary of a character animator.

The top three skills for a computer animator include animation, adobe photoshop and motion graphics. The most important skills for a character animator are animation, maya, and character animation.

Computer animator vs character animator overview

	Computer Animator	Character Animator
Yearly salary	$81,438	$72,126
Hourly rate	$39.15	$34.68
Growth rate	5%	5%
Number of jobs	13,790	416
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 character animator salary

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

	Computer Animator	Character Animator
Average salary	$81,438	$72,126
Salary range	Between $59,000 And $111,000	Between $46,000 And $111,000
Highest paying City	Las Vegas, NV	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Nevada	Nevada
Best paying company	The Walt Disney Company	The Walt Disney Company
Best paying industry	Technology	Technology

Differences between computer animator and character animator education

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

	Computer Animator	Character 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 character animator demographics

Here are the differences between computer animators' and character animators' demographics:

	Computer Animator	Character Animator
Average age	40	40
Gender ratio	Male, 86.5% Female, 13.5%	Male, 74.4% Female, 25.6%
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, 5.8% Hispanic or Latino, 14.0% Asian, 7.5% White, 67.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	11%	11%

Differences between computer animator and character 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.

Character animator example responsibilities.

Lead a team of artists to create the art and animation for motion comics aspects of the show.
Direct and create concise, detail storyboards for animation sequences and short animation promotional films.
Character animation, fixing models and directing needs, interactive design and function charts for development character animation.
Animate creatures, vehicles, props, and characters for a AAA title.
Establish key layout of scenes and render main characters to finish from storyboards.
Create character and asset designs with materials and storyboards from client alongside a production team.

Computer animator vs character animator skills

Common computer animator skills

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

Common character animator skills

Animation, 35%
Maya, 15%
Character Animation, 12%
Motion Capture, 7%
AAA, 6%
Demo Reel, 4%

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Computer Animator vs Character Animator

Updated January 8, 2025

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