Average photography major salary

Updated September 14, 2023

$47,855

$24,00010%

$47,855Median

$92,00090%

What is the average photography major salary in the US?

The national average salary for a photography major graduate in the United States is $47,855 per year or $23.01 per hour.There is a huge gap between the top 10 percent earners and the bottom 10 percent earners -- about $68,000. The top 10 percent earn over $92,000, while the bottom 10 percent make less than $24,000 annually.professional companies and technology companies are the best when it comes to the number of employment opportunities.States with the highest salaries for photography major graduates include New York, Connecticut, California, Massachusetts, and New Jersey.

Best paying cities

$62,791

$60,782

$53,245

Average photography salary by company

Photography major graduates report their job security as good. But just as in every field, some employers pay higher wages than others.professional companies and technology companies are the best when it comes to the number of employment opportunities.Companies like Apple or Yahoo will get you the highest pay packages.In addition, companies like School of Visual Concepts and ESPN report highly competitive salaries for photography majors.

Average salary by company

Rank	Company	Zippia score	Average photography salary
1	1.Apple	4.8	$87,142
2	2.Yahoo	4.8	$84,780
3	3.School of Visual Concepts	4.3	$81,976
4	4.ESPN	4.6	$71,295
5	5.Deloitte	4.7	$70,512
6	6.New York Film Academy	4.1	$69,563
7	7.Lyft	4.4	$68,689
8	8.HBO	4.8	$64,577
9	9.Fox News	4.1	$63,756
10	10.New York University	4.8	$63,267
11	11.Clear Channel Airport	4.5	$61,388
12	12.Amazon	4.7	$61,142
13	13.NBCUniversal	4.8	$60,861
14	14.ViacomCBS	4.6	$58,967
15	15.Sony Pictures	4.8	$58,861
16	16.ICF	4.5	$58,146
17	17.Uline	4.8	$57,512
18	18.Deluxe Entertainment Services Group Inc.	4.6	$57,346
19	19.Event Services	3.7	$57,106
20	20.Discovery	4.7	$55,830

Average photography major salary by city

Photography major graduates in the United States of America make on average $47,855 a year or $23.01 per hour.photography major graduates make the most in New York, NY at about $62,791 per year.Not only that, New York, NY also has an average entry-level salary of $31,000.Other top cities with competitive salaries are San Francisco, CA, Boston, MA, Washington, NJ, Des Moines, WA, Washington, DC, and Arlington, VA.Some of the states with the best salaries for photography majors are New York, Connecticut, California, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Hampshire, and Washington.The lowest earning states are Louisiana, Iowa, South Carolina, Mississippi, and Missouri.

Average salary by location

Rank	City	Average photography salary	Salary range
1	New York, NY	$62,791	$30k $90k
2	San Francisco, CA	$60,782	$30k $90k
3	Boston, MA	$53,245	$30k $90k
4	Washington, NJ	$52,352	$30k $90k
5	Des Moines, WA	$51,031	$30k $90k
6	Washington, DC	$49,603	$30k $90k
7	Arlington, VA	$49,346	$30k $90k
8	Portland, OR	$47,387	$30k $90k
9	Baltimore, MD	$47,296	$30k $90k
10	Philadelphia, PA	$47,031	$30k $90k
11	Las Vegas, NV	$46,177	$30k $90k
12	Chicago, IL	$46,121	$30k $90k
13	Portland, ME	$46,054	$30k $90k
14	Washington, UT	$45,767	$30k $90k
15	Minneapolis, MN	$45,711	$30k $90k
16	Denver, CO	$44,542	$30k $90k
17	Cleveland, OH	$44,315	$30k $90k
18	Detroit, MI	$43,890	$30k $90k
19	Phoenix, AZ	$43,366	$30k $90k
20	Milwaukee, WI	$43,296	$30k $90k

Average photography major salary by state

The darker areas on the map show where photography majors earn the highest salaries across all 50 states.

Average salary

Photography major average salary by state

State	Average photography major salary	Average hourly rate
New York	$62,642	$30.12
Connecticut	$56,997	$27.40
California	$56,885	$27.35
Massachusetts	$53,520	$25.73
New Jersey	$53,102	$25.53
New Hampshire	$52,676	$25.32
Washington	$50,954	$24.50
Vermont	$48,930	$23.52
North Dakota	$48,852	$23.49
Alaska	$48,018	$23.09
Oregon	$47,666	$22.92
Virginia	$47,543	$22.86
Maryland	$47,204	$22.69
Pennsylvania	$46,861	$22.53
West Virginia	$46,803	$22.50
Rhode Island	$46,737	$22.47
Nevada	$46,642	$22.42
Delaware	$46,242	$22.23
Illinois	$45,912	$22.07
Minnesota	$45,809	$22.02
Maine	$45,449	$21.85
Idaho	$45,368	$21.81
Hawaii	$44,658	$21.47
Colorado	$44,579	$21.43
Wyoming	$44,166	$21.23
Michigan	$43,802	$21.06
Utah	$43,532	$20.93
Arizona	$43,404	$20.87
New Mexico	$43,288	$20.81
Kentucky	$43,262	$20.80
Wisconsin	$43,211	$20.77
Ohio	$42,672	$20.52
Texas	$41,871	$20.13
Montana	$41,630	$20.01
Georgia	$41,503	$19.95
South Dakota	$40,918	$19.67
Indiana	$40,319	$19.38
North Carolina	$40,026	$19.24
Oklahoma	$39,969	$19.22
Kansas	$39,665	$19.07
Alabama	$39,594	$19.04
Arkansas	$39,456	$18.97
Tennessee	$39,282	$18.89
Nebraska	$39,052	$18.77
Louisiana	$38,647	$18.58
Iowa	$38,609	$18.56
South Carolina	$38,565	$18.54
Mississippi	$37,540	$18.05
Missouri	$37,403	$17.98
Florida	$37,108	$17.84

Highest paying jobs for photography majors

Rank	Job title	Average salary	Open jobs
1	Executive Producer	$117,841	74,007
2	Senior Producer	$112,392	10,191
3	Product Designer	$102,032	98,465
4	Video Engineer	$100,343	8,900
5	School Photographer	$98,356	25,482
6	Real Estate Agent	$91,787	41,399
7	Digital Producer	$82,842	24,881
8	News Photographer	$76,013	7,850
9	Business Analyst	$74,430	170,514
10	Data Analyst	$74,342	167,520
11	Senior Graphic Designer	$73,921	46,310
12	Producer	$72,201	10,610
13	Web Producer	$68,376	17,519
14	Editor, Freelance	$67,946	8,608
15	Photography Internship	$67,376	52,675
16	Writer	$66,142	13,931
17	Production Supervisor	$63,391	83,529
18	Photo Editor	$63,168	10,068
19	Copy Editor	$62,598	4,866
20	Motion Graphics Designer	$62,558	44,960

Average photography major salary by industry

The type of industry that a photography major graduate works in can influence their earning potential.Our analysis shows that technology companies, education companies, and professional companies pay higher-than-average wages for photography major graduates.technology companies pay photography major graduates an average salary of $54,439, education companies pay $48,167, and professional companies come in at $42,566.The average photography major salary in the retail industry is lower than the rest, coming in at $33,297.

Average salary by industry

Rank	Industry	Average photography major salary	Range
1	Technology	$54,439	$27k $71k
2	Education	$48,167	$27k $71k
3	Professional	$42,566	$27k $71k
4	Media	$37,619	$27k $71k
5	Manufacturing	$34,305	$27k $71k
6	Retail	$33,297	$27k $71k

Salary history for photography major graduates

This data shows the national average salary between 2011-2020 among Photography major graduates.

Photography major salary by experience level

Average salary by experience level salaries by experience level

The salary for a photography major graduate can range from $28,376 to $67,768 depending on the amount of work experience that the person has. Data on how experience level affects salary is provided by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) as part of their National Compensation Survey, which is based on factors such as knowledge, complexity, contacts, and environment.

Experience level	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
Entry-level average salary by experience level	$28,400	$13.64
Mid-level average salary by experience level	$37,700	$18.11
Senior-level average salary by experience level	$67,800	$32.58

Salaries for related majors

Rank	Major	Average salary	Range
1	Design And Visual Communication	$61,809	$33k $85k
2	Interior Design	$56,785	$33k $85k
3	Music	$52,899	$33k $85k
4	Art Studies	$52,801	$33k $85k
5	Visual And Performing Arts	$52,654	$33k $85k
6	Music Performance	$52,211	$33k $85k
7	Graphic Design	$50,589	$33k $85k
8	Fine Arts	$50,533	$33k $85k
9	Theatre	$50,427	$33k $85k
10	Entertainment Business	$48,049	$33k $85k
11	Dance	$45,818	$33k $85k