Best states for a music composer

Q: What is the best state for music composers?

The best state to be a music composer is Nevada based on music composer salaries and job opportunities.

Q: What is the highest paying state for music composers?

The highest paying state for music composers is Wyoming based on Zippia’s salary database.

Q: What is the worst state for music composers?

The worst state for music composers is Wyoming, due to a combination of low salaries and few job opportunities.

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Do you wonder which states in the U.S. are the best for music composers? If so, we have the full list of best to worst states for music composer jobs for you to check out and see if you think it's time to move and start anew. Not all states fare the same when it come to job opportunity and pay.Our research found that Nevada is the best state for music composers, while Alaska and Arizona are ranked highest in terms of median salary. Nevada has a median salary of $64,783 and Alaska has the highest median salary among all 50 states for music composers.

To that end, we dove into our dataset of job and salary numbers to figure out which states have the best opportunities for music composers. Nevada is the best state for music composers, where the median salary is $64,783.Nevada is the best state, and Anchorage is the city with the highest pay for music composers.

10 best states for music composers in 2025

1. Nevada
Total music composer jobs: 11
Average annual salary: $64,783
Lowest 10 percent earn: $33,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $125,000
Location Quotient:
2.72
Music composer jobs in Nevada
2. Arizona
Total music composer jobs: 14
Average annual salary: $67,405
Lowest 10 percent earn: $35,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $127,000
Location Quotient:
1.24
Music composer jobs in Arizona
3. Connecticut
Total music composer jobs: 8
Average annual salary: $65,776
Lowest 10 percent earn: $34,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $124,000
Location Quotient:
1.25
Music composer jobs in Connecticut
4. West Virginia
Total music composer jobs: 3
Average annual salary: $63,981
Lowest 10 percent earn: $34,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $118,000
Location Quotient:
1.02
Music composer jobs in West Virginia
5. New York
Total music composer jobs: 54
Average annual salary: $63,996
Lowest 10 percent earn: $33,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $121,000
Location Quotient:
2.17
Music composer jobs in New York
6. Rhode Island
Total music composer jobs: 1
Average annual salary: $64,966
Lowest 10 percent earn: $34,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $123,000
Location Quotient:
0.42
Music composer jobs in Rhode Island
7. Alaska
Total music composer jobs: 0
Average annual salary: $70,325
Lowest 10 percent earn: $33,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $147,000
Location Quotient:
0
Music composer jobs in Alaska
8. Delaware
Total music composer jobs: 0
Average annual salary: $66,586
Lowest 10 percent earn: $35,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $125,000
Location Quotient:
0
Music composer jobs in Delaware
9. District of Columbia
Total music composer jobs: 4
Average annual salary: $63,978
Lowest 10 percent earn: $34,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $119,000
Location Quotient:
1.23
Music composer jobs in District of Columbia
10. Maryland
Total music composer jobs: 21
Average annual salary: $61,046
Lowest 10 percent earn: $32,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $114,000
Location Quotient:
1.71
Music composer jobs in Maryland

Music composer jobsNear Columbus, OH

How Zippia determines the best states to be a music composer

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

Detailed list of the best states for a music composer

Rank	State	Average salary	Lowest 10% earn	Population	Job count
1	Nevada	$64,783	$33,000	2,998,039	11
2	Arizona	$67,405	$35,000	7,016,270	14
3	Connecticut	$65,776	$34,000	3,588,184	8
4	West Virginia	$63,981	$34,000	1,815,857	3
5	New York	$63,996	$33,000	19,849,399	54
6	Rhode Island	$64,966	$34,000	1,059,639	1
7	Alaska	$70,325	$33,000	739,795	0
8	Delaware	$66,586	$35,000	961,939	0
9	District of Columbia	$63,978	$34,000	693,972	4
10	Maryland	$61,046	$32,000	6,052,177	21
11	Maine	$63,307	$33,000	1,335,907	1
12	New Mexico	$61,095	$32,000	2,088,070	3
13	Tennessee	$57,123	$31,000	6,715,984	12
14	California	$60,822	$31,000	39,536,653	77
15	New Hampshire	$62,852	$33,000	1,342,795	0
16	Texas	$59,256	$32,000	28,304,596	32
17	Virginia	$63,138	$33,000	8,470,020	10
18	Utah	$55,480	$28,000	3,101,833	8
19	Colorado	$56,041	$29,000	5,607,154	20
20	Arkansas	$55,696	$30,000	3,004,279	5
21	Indiana	$52,032	$28,000	6,666,818	18
22	Florida	$58,266	$31,000	20,984,400	19
23	Georgia	$57,753	$31,000	10,429,379	11
24	Mississippi	$55,545	$30,000	2,984,100	3
25	North Dakota	$55,490	$31,000	755,393	0
26	Idaho	$57,518	$28,000	1,716,943	0
27	South Carolina	$49,351	$26,000	5,024,369	11
28	Ohio	$53,587	$29,000	11,658,609	8
29	Vermont	$48,720	$25,000	623,657	3
30	Washington	$57,513	$27,000	7,405,743	4
31	Wisconsin	$52,829	$29,000	5,795,483	6
32	Montana	$45,779	$23,000	1,050,493	6
33	Michigan	$47,810	$26,000	9,962,311	15
34	Oregon	$48,076	$23,000	4,142,776	10
35	Massachusetts	$51,273	$26,000	6,859,819	18
36	Hawaii	$47,040	$30,000	1,427,538	2
37	Missouri	$45,047	$24,000	6,113,532	12
38	Oklahoma	$43,655	$23,000	3,930,864	5
39	South Dakota	$46,675	$25,000	869,666	0
40	Kentucky	$46,438	$25,000	4,454,189	2
41	Nebraska	$47,200	$25,000	1,920,076	1
42	Illinois	$36,404	$20,000	12,802,023	35
43	Minnesota	$36,928	$20,000	5,576,606	17
44	New Jersey	$40,106	$21,000	9,005,644	18
45	Pennsylvania	$43,003	$22,000	12,805,537	11
46	North Carolina	$40,744	$21,000	10,273,419	12
47	Louisiana	$43,434	$23,000	4,684,333	2
48	Kansas	$34,065	$18,000	2,913,123	7
49	Iowa	$34,798	$19,000	3,145,711	7
50	Alabama	$35,882	$19,000	4,874,747	6
51	Wyoming	$33,868	$17,000	579,315	0

Highest paying states for music composers

Rank	State	Avg. Music Composer Salary
1	Nevada	$64,783
2	Arizona	$67,405
3	Connecticut	$65,776
4	West Virginia	$63,981
5	New York	$63,996
6	Rhode Island	$64,966
7	Alaska	$70,325
8	Delaware	$66,586
9	District of Columbia	$63,978
10	Maryland	$61,046
11	Maine	$63,307
12	New Mexico	$61,095
13	Tennessee	$57,123
14	California	$60,822
15	New Hampshire	$62,852
16	Texas	$59,256
17	Virginia	$63,138
18	Utah	$55,480
19	Colorado	$56,041
20	Arkansas	$55,696
21	Indiana	$52,032
22	Florida	$58,266
23	Georgia	$57,753
24	Mississippi	$55,545
25	North Dakota	$55,490
26	Idaho	$57,518
27	South Carolina	$49,351
28	Ohio	$53,587
29	Vermont	$48,720
30	Washington	$57,513
31	Wisconsin	$52,829
32	Montana	$45,779
33	Michigan	$47,810
34	Oregon	$48,076
35	Massachusetts	$51,273
36	Hawaii	$47,040
37	Missouri	$45,047
38	Oklahoma	$43,655
39	South Dakota	$46,675
40	Kentucky	$46,438
41	Nebraska	$47,200
42	Illinois	$36,404
43	Minnesota	$36,928
44	New Jersey	$40,106
45	Pennsylvania	$43,003
46	North Carolina	$40,744
47	Louisiana	$43,434
48	Kansas	$34,065
49	Iowa	$34,798
50	Alabama	$35,882
51	Wyoming	$33,868

Music composer best states FAQs

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What is the highest paying state for music composers?

What is the worst state for music composers?

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Best states for Music Composers

Updated January 8, 2025

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Total music composer jobs:	11
Average annual salary:	$64,783
Lowest 10 percent earn:	$33,000
Highest 10 percent earn:	$125,000
Location Quotient:	2.72

Best states for a music composer

10 best states for music composers in 2025

1. Nevada

2. Arizona

3. Connecticut

4. West Virginia

5. New York

6. Rhode Island

7. Alaska

8. Delaware

9. District of Columbia

10. Maryland