Highest-paying Cities for Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators

The top 100 highest paying cities for fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators (ranked by average annual salary) are listed in Table 1. The entry level salary (as measured by the salary of the lowest 10% paid earners) and the number of employment of fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators in those cities are also shown in the table. As shown in the table, with a annual salary of $131,640, Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, Connecticut is the highest paying city for fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators. It is followed by New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, New York (average annual salary $110,910). The salary and employment information is computed from data published by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) in April 2023 [1]. For more salary information of fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators in a specific city, use the links in the table.

Table 1. 100 Highest-paying cities/areas for Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators

Rank	City/Area	Average Salary i	Entry Level Salary i	# of Empl. i
1	Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, Connecticut	$131,640	$63,770	40
2	New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, New York	$110,910	$57,480	1,710
3	Charleston-North Charleston-Summerville, South Carolina	$99,130	$98,030	50
4	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, Washington	$85,440	$62,400	520
5	Warren-Troy-Farmington Hills, Michigan	$82,000	$62,950	70
6	Greenville-Mauldin-Easley, South Carolina	$79,570	$29,850	60
7	New York-White Plains-Wayne, New York	$74,920	$28,180	740
8	Chicago-Joliet-Naperville (IL-IN-WI Area), Illinois	$73,540	$50,140	220
9	Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, Massachusetts	$71,980	$35,190	150
10	Minneapolis-St Paul-Bloomington, Wisconsin	$71,600	$47,630	70
11	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, California	$71,560	$47,090	1,850
12	San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, California	$71,120	$39,070	120
13	Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, Florida	$69,580	$46,940	60
14	Memphis, Tennessee	$69,450	$18,030	30
15	Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Roseville, California	$68,460	$53,870	80
16	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, California	$67,510	$34,250	1,400
17	Asheville, North Carolina	$65,960	$33,800	50
18	San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, California	$65,730	$35,100	290
19	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, District of Columbia	$64,280	$37,080	60
20	Oakland-Fremont-Hayward, California	$63,130	$23,380	100
21	Albany-Schenectady-Troy, New York	$63,130	$42,700	60
22	Baltimore-Towson, Maryland	$62,560	$23,810	60
23	Santa Fe, New Mexico	$61,110	$37,660	50
24	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, Georgia	$59,660	$46,490	310
25	Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, Virginia	$59,600	$44,210	n/a
26	Edison-New Brunswick, New Jersey	$59,270	$32,820	60
27	Greensboro-High Point, North Carolina	$59,270	$44,090	30
28	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, Washington	$59,050	$50,280	100
29	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, California	$58,840	$28,300	1,520
30	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	$58,730	$24,860	70
31	Richmond, Virginia	$58,700	$30,490	30
32	Nassau-Suffolk, New York	$57,250	$33,250	70
33	Chicago-Joliet-Naperville (IL Metropolitan Division), Illinois	$56,640	$30,940	230
34	Kansas City, Missouri	$56,230	$18,420	50
35	North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, Florida	$55,920	$18,740	60
36	San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City, California	$55,700	$24,100	100
37	Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, Washington	$54,450	$26,560	240
38	Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, Texas	$54,320	$33,150	270
39	Buffalo-Niagara Falls, New York	$53,530	$36,350	n/a
40	Columbus, Ohio	$52,710	$24,490	90
41	Urban Honolulu, Hawaii	$52,660	$21,510	n/a
42	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma	$52,320	$19,910	40
43	Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale, Arizona	$52,220	$30,020	50
44	Tucson, Arizona	$51,750	$28,420	n/a
45	Jacksonville, Florida	$51,750	$26,650	40
46	Honolulu, Hawaii	$51,270	$19,940	30
47	Indianapolis-Carmel, Indiana	$51,110	$38,660	50
48	Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, California	$50,140	$50,140	160
49	Dayton, Ohio	$49,980	$25,980	n/a
50	Medford, Oregon	$49,770	$24,650	30
51	Madison, Wisconsin	$49,760	$30,160	70
52	Newark-Union, Pennsylvania	$49,600	$28,640	40
53	Salt Lake City, Utah	$49,480	$37,980	50
54	Omaha-Council Bluffs, Nebraska	$49,110	$38,470	40
55	Northcentral Colorado nonmetropolitan area, Colorado	$49,060	$29,400	40
56	Las Vegas-Paradise, Nevada	$49,010	$37,390	n/a
57	Worcester, Massachusetts	$48,580	$33,300	n/a
58	Durham-Chapel Hill, North Carolina	$48,470	$41,260	40
59	Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, California	$48,260	$28,730	n/a
60	Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor, Ohio	$48,040	$25,590	70
61	Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, Wisconsin	$47,770	$30,210	100
62	Fort Collins-Loveland, Colorado	$47,560	$25,140	40
63	Raleigh-Cary, North Carolina	$47,510	$17,580	40
64	Chattanooga, Tennessee	$46,420	$26,180	30
65	Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, Florida	$46,190	$34,760	270
66	Cincinnati-Middletown, Ohio	$45,500	$23,990	130
67	Champaign-Urbana, Illinois	$44,850	$33,710	30
68	Savannah, Georgia	$44,130	$30,650	30
69	Santa Ana-Anaheim-Irvine, California	$44,030	$21,360	130
70	Dallas-Plano-Irving, Texas	$43,550	$26,340	70
71	Ogden-Clearfield, Utah	$42,620	$35,360	40
72	Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, Connecticut	$41,250	$41,250	n/a
73	Eastern Utah nonmetropolitan area, Utah	$40,400	$34,080	n/a
74	Central East New York nonmetropolitan area, New York	$40,090	$24,930	30
75	Western Montana nonmetropolitan area, Montana	$39,520	$39,520	40
76	Charlotte-Gastonia-Rock Hill, South Carolina	$38,880	$20,490	n/a
77	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, Florida	$38,760	$27,490	720
78	Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, Massachusetts	$38,440	$23,780	230
79	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, West Virginia	$38,300	$25,810	80
80	Provo-Orem, Utah	$38,160	$35,350	70
81	Rochester, New York	$37,630	$23,840	30
82	Tampa-St Petersburg-Clearwater, Florida	$37,530	$26,750	40
83	Detroit-Warren-Livonia, Michigan	$37,380	$30,780	170
84	Poughkeepsie-Newburgh-Middletown, New York	$37,290	$27,320	n/a
85	Central Texas nonmetropolitan area, Texas	$37,160	$35,980	40
86	Ann Arbor, Michigan	$36,820	$31,970	40
87	Colorado Springs, Colorado	$36,820	$21,730	n/a
88	Gainesville, Florida	$36,340	$32,380	30
89	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas	$35,770	$21,990	380
90	Bethesda-Rockville-Frederick, Maryland	$35,720	$27,940	n/a
91	New Haven, Connecticut	$35,720	$31,720	n/a
92	Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, Texas	$35,700	$21,670	250
93	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	$35,490	$18,060	60
94	Lincoln, Nebraska	$35,460	$27,740	40
95	Detroit-Livonia-Dearborn, Michigan	$35,210	$26,460	50
96	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, Tennessee	$35,040	$29,690	30
97	Denver-Aurora-Broomfield, Colorado	$34,540	$25,030	n/a
98	West Palm Beach-Boca Raton-Boynton Beach, Florida	$34,390	$19,610	80
99	Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas	$34,050	$16,660	60
100	Lancaster, Pennsylvania	$33,900	$21,680	30

See also: 💰 Highest paying industries for fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators.