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Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics

Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2022

27-1014 Special Effects Artists and Animators

Create special effects or animations using film, video, computers, or other electronic tools and media for use in products, such as computer games, movies, music videos, and commercials.


National estimates for Special Effects Artists and Animators
Industry profile for Special Effects Artists and Animators
Geographic profile for Special Effects Artists and Animators

National estimates for Special Effects Artists and Animators:

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Special Effects Artists and Animators:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3)
Mean hourly
wage
Mean annual
wage (2)
Wage RSE (3)
35,990 9.5 % $ 53.43 $ 111,130 2.2 %

Percentile wage estimates for Special Effects Artists and Animators:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $ 25.32 $ 32.64 $ 47.57 $ 63.11 $ 83.72
Annual Wage (2) $ 52,660 $ 67,900 $ 98,950 $ 131,280 $ 174,140


Industry profile for Special Effects Artists and Animators:

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Special Effects Artists and Animators are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in Special Effects Artists and Animators, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in Special Effects Artists and Animators:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Motion Picture and Video Industries 16,700 4.00 $ 62.69 $ 130,390
Software Publishers 4,990 0.81 $ 52.57 $ 109,340
Computer Systems Design and Related Services 4,910 0.20 $ 40.90 $ 85,070
Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services 810 0.17 $ 42.98 $ 89,400
Independent Artists, Writers, and Performers 800 1.29 $ 42.56 $ 88,530

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Special Effects Artists and Animators:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Motion Picture and Video Industries 16,700 4.00 $ 62.69 $ 130,390
Independent Artists, Writers, and Performers 800 1.29 $ 42.56 $ 88,530
Software Publishers 4,990 0.81 $ 52.57 $ 109,340
Specialized Design Services 690 0.46 $ 50.87 $ 105,800
Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers 520 0.22 $ 56.56 $ 117,640

Top paying industries for Special Effects Artists and Animators:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers (8) (8) $ 90.64 $ 188,530
Motor Vehicle Manufacturing (8) (8) $ 79.45 $ 165,250
Motion Picture and Video Industries 16,700 4.00 $ 62.69 $ 130,390
Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services 320 0.07 $ 61.32 $ 127,540
Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers 520 0.22 $ 56.56 $ 117,640


Geographic profile for Special Effects Artists and Animators:

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Special Effects Artists and Animators are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in Special Effects Artists and Animators, see the Create Customized Tables function.



Map of employment of special effects artists and animators by state, May 2022


States with the highest employment level in Special Effects Artists and Animators:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 19,120 1.08 4.46 $ 64.82 $ 134,820
Washington 3,540 1.04 4.27 $ 44.69 $ 92,960
New York 1,600 0.18 0.72 $ 48.19 $ 100,240
Florida 1,500 0.16 0.67 $ 31.86 $ 66,270
Georgia 1,070 0.23 0.95 $ 36.11 $ 75,120


Map of location quotient of special effects artists and animators by state, May 2022


States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Special Effects Artists and Animators:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 19,120 1.08 4.46 $ 64.82 $ 134,820
Washington 3,540 1.04 4.27 $ 44.69 $ 92,960
Oregon 460 0.24 0.99 $ 43.42 $ 90,320
Georgia 1,070 0.23 0.95 $ 36.11 $ 75,120
Massachusetts 810 0.23 0.93 $ 40.78 $ 84,820


Map of annual mean wages of special effects artists and animators by state, May 2022


Top paying states for Special Effects Artists and Animators:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 19,120 1.08 4.46 $ 64.82 $ 134,820
New Jersey 380 0.09 0.38 $ 50.13 $ 104,280
New York 1,600 0.18 0.72 $ 48.19 $ 100,240
Connecticut 130 0.08 0.33 $ 47.91 $ 99,660
Maryland 440 0.17 0.68 $ 45.57 $ 94,790



Map of employment of special effects artists and animators by area, May 2022


Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Special Effects Artists and Animators:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA 14,410 2.36 9.71 $ 65.97 $ 137,210
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA 3,140 1.54 6.32 $ 45.51 $ 94,650
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 2,480 1.04 4.26 $ 65.71 $ 136,680
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA 1,740 0.19 0.78 $ 48.95 $ 101,810
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA 910 0.33 1.37 $ 37.18 $ 77,330
Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL 830 0.64 2.61 $ 31.58 $ 65,690
Austin-Round Rock, TX 790 0.67 2.75 $ 36.65 $ 76,220
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH 720 0.27 1.10 $ 41.44 $ 86,190
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA 670 0.60 2.47 $ 67.03 $ 139,420
San Diego-Carlsbad, CA 460 0.31 1.27 $ 55.52 $ 115,480


Map of location quotient of special effects artists and animators by area, May 2022


Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Special Effects Artists and Animators:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA 14,410 2.36 9.71 $ 65.97 $ 137,210
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA 3,140 1.54 6.32 $ 45.51 $ 94,650
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 2,480 1.04 4.26 $ 65.71 $ 136,680
Charlottesville, VA 90 0.78 3.22 $ 32.74 $ 68,090
Austin-Round Rock, TX 790 0.67 2.75 $ 36.65 $ 76,220
Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL 830 0.64 2.61 $ 31.58 $ 65,690
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA 670 0.60 2.47 $ 67.03 $ 139,420
Columbus, OH 410 0.39 1.59 (8) (8)
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA 910 0.33 1.37 $ 37.18 $ 77,330
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA 70 0.32 1.30 $ 51.11 $ 106,320


Map of annual mean wages of special effects artists and animators by area, May 2022


Top paying metropolitan areas for Special Effects Artists and Animators:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA 670 0.60 2.47 $ 67.03 $ 139,420
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA 14,410 2.36 9.71 $ 65.97 $ 137,210
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 2,480 1.04 4.26 $ 65.71 $ 136,680
San Diego-Carlsbad, CA 460 0.31 1.27 $ 55.52 $ 115,480
San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles-Arroyo Grande, CA 30 0.26 1.07 $ 54.80 $ 113,980
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA 70 0.32 1.30 $ 51.11 $ 106,320
Sacramento--Roseville--Arden-Arcade, CA 90 0.09 0.36 $ 50.91 $ 105,890
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA 1,740 0.19 0.78 $ 48.95 $ 101,810
San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX (8) (8) (8) $ 47.89 $ 99,610
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV 310 0.10 0.42 $ 46.12 $ 95,930


About May 2022 National, State, Metropolitan, and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors, all metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas, and all states and the District of Columbia. The top employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable XLS files.

The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall. The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate—50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median. More about percentile wages.


(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.

(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours; for those occupations where there is not an hourly wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.

(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.

(8) Estimate not released.

(9) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration. A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average.


Other OEWS estimates and related information:

May 2022 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2022 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2022 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2022 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2022 Occupation Profiles

Technical Notes

 

Last Modified Date: April 25, 2023