Highest-paying Cities for Set and Exhibit Designers

The top 100 highest paying cities for set and exhibit designers (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 set and exhibit designers in those cities are also shown in the table. As shown in the table, with a annual salary of $85,990, San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, California is the highest paying city for set and exhibit designers. It is followed by Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, California (average annual salary $82,320). 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 set and exhibit designers in a specific city, use the links in the table.

Table 1. 100 Highest-paying cities/areas for Set and Exhibit Designers

Rank	City/Area	Average Salary i	Entry Level Salary i	# of Empl. i
1	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, California	$85,990	$56,810	50
2	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, California	$82,320	$47,000	2,200
3	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, Washington	$81,040	$41,640	70
4	San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City, California	$80,990	$41,240	170
5	San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, California	$80,570	$43,060	170
6	Dayton, Ohio	$79,730	$54,910	30
7	Bakersfield-Delano, California	$76,760	$40,790	n/a
8	New York-White Plains-Wayne, New York	$75,250	$39,730	1,660
9	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, District of Columbia	$74,320	$39,930	320
10	San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, California	$71,010	$49,700	230
11	Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, California	$69,820	$34,680	30
12	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, West Virginia	$69,560	$19,350	410
13	Bethesda-Rockville-Frederick, Maryland	$69,400	$43,070	50
14	Nassau-Suffolk, New York	$68,270	$27,670	70
15	New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, New York	$68,250	$39,120	1,400
16	Newark-Union, Pennsylvania	$66,230	$38,380	40
17	Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, Connecticut	$65,820	$28,140	40
18	New Orleans-Metairie-Kenner, Louisiana	$64,800	$36,820	120
19	Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, Massachusetts	$64,630	$38,020	70
20	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, Washington	$64,390	$56,510	60
21	Tuscaloosa, Alabama	$62,320	$38,230	40
22	Omaha-Council Bluffs, Nebraska	$62,250	$38,670	40
23	Las Vegas-Paradise, Nevada	$61,710	$48,890	330
24	Stockton, California	$61,360	$28,430	n/a
25	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, Georgia	$59,990	$39,980	330
26	Birmingham-Hoover, Alabama	$59,890	$38,930	30
27	Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Roseville, California	$59,780	$46,240	60
28	Salinas, California	$59,720	$30,970	n/a
29	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, California	$59,050	$26,550	1,630
30	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, Tennessee	$57,960	$20,130	150
31	Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas	$57,690	$20,830	40
32	Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale, Arizona	$56,060	$31,040	100
33	Savannah, Georgia	$55,920	$18,950	30
34	Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, Washington	$55,290	$38,300	130
35	Indianapolis-Carmel, Indiana	$55,280	$37,150	50
36	Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, Massachusetts	$55,130	$38,680	130
37	Richmond, Virginia	$54,950	$31,530	70
38	Minneapolis-St Paul-Bloomington, Wisconsin	$54,890	$25,490	130
39	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, California	$54,570	$32,210	2,340
40	Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach-Deerfield Beach, Florida	$53,720	$38,720	n/a
41	Memphis, Tennessee	$53,710	$25,990	30
42	Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, Texas	$53,460	$40,000	60
43	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas	$53,010	$30,510	210
44	Santa Fe, New Mexico	$52,580	$40,030	50
45	Chicago-Joliet-Naperville (IL Metropolitan Division), Illinois	$52,420	$30,300	480
46	Ann Arbor, Michigan	$52,390	$33,960	70
47	Denver-Aurora-Broomfield, Colorado	$52,020	$38,120	50
48	Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, Wisconsin	$50,890	$30,340	60
49	St Louis, Missouri	$50,770	$46,540	70
50	Salt Lake City, Utah	$50,410	$20,510	120
51	Chicago-Joliet-Naperville (IL-IN-WI Area), Illinois	$49,710	$36,250	360
52	Columbus, Ohio	$49,540	$33,250	100
53	Greensboro-High Point, North Carolina	$48,890	$38,340	40
54	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	$48,480	$28,930	80
55	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, Florida	$48,420	$38,650	30
56	Dallas-Plano-Irving, Texas	$48,320	$37,370	210
57	Oakland-Fremont-Hayward, California	$47,550	$33,100	150
58	Buffalo-Niagara Falls, New York	$46,750	$34,330	40
59	Cincinnati-Middletown, Ohio	$46,540	$24,460	50
60	Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor, Ohio	$46,410	$31,240	30
61	Detroit-Warren-Livonia, Michigan	$45,070	$26,560	40
62	Urban Honolulu, Hawaii	$44,870	$32,610	80
63	Albuquerque, New Mexico	$44,580	$34,860	30
64	Baltimore-Towson, Maryland	$44,090	$34,120	70
65	Lancaster, Pennsylvania	$43,730	$33,820	40
66	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, Pennsylvania	$43,470	$28,950	120
67	Santa Ana-Anaheim-Irvine, California	$42,260	$27,360	180
68	Fort Wayne, Indiana	$41,950	$33,400	40
69	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	$41,930	$19,110	50
70	Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, Texas	$40,760	$31,680	60
71	North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, Florida	$40,690	$22,690	100
72	Tampa-St Petersburg-Clearwater, Florida	$40,370	$31,090	60
73	Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, Florida	$40,020	$36,670	180
74	San Antonio-New Braunfels, Texas	$38,890	$35,010	40
75	Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, Connecticut	$38,250	$24,070	n/a
76	Louisville-Jefferson County, Kentucky	$37,650	$24,390	30
77	Charlotte-Gastonia-Rock Hill, South Carolina	$37,510	$32,480	30
78	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma	$36,760	$25,560	160
79	Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, California	$35,630	$28,230	50
80	Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, California	$35,590	$27,020	30
81	Miami-Miami Beach-Kendall, Florida	$35,360	$25,690	30
82	Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, Virginia	$35,260	$21,560	50
83	Honolulu, Hawaii	$33,540	$25,880	n/a
84	Tucson, Arizona	$32,410	$17,290	n/a
85	Baton Rouge, Louisiana	$31,470	$23,500	60
86	Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, Arkansas	$28,430	$25,510	30
87	Warren-Troy-Farmington Hills, Michigan	$28,360	$17,200	n/a
88	Toledo, Ohio	$23,130	$20,800	60
89	Provo-Orem, Utah	$20,020	$16,650	30
90	Tulsa, Oklahoma	$17,780	$15,950	40
91	Kansas City, Missouri	$17,410	$17,400	60

See also: 💰 Highest paying industries for set and exhibit designers.