Salary for Musician or Singer Jobs

Updated: 4 Feb 2012
United States » Job » Musician or Singer Overview » Musician or Singer Salary
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National Salary Data

National Salary Data

 (?
XAll compensation data shown are gross, national 10th to 90th percentile ranges. Pay can vary greatly by location. To view local data, take the PayScale survey.
)
$0$500K$1M$1.5M
Salary$12,045 - $112,277  
   
Bonus$1.17 - $32,500  
Profit Sharing$-0.50 - $40,134  
Commission$1.38 - $1,006,789  
Total Pay (?
XTotal Pay combines base annual salary or hourly wage, bonuses, profit sharing, tips, commissions, overtime pay and other forms of cash earnings, as applicable for this job. It does not include equity (stock) compensation, cash value of retirement benefits, or the value of other non-cash benefits (e.g. healthcare).
)
$15,787 - $178,715  
PayScale
Country: United States | Currency: USD | Updated: 4 Feb 2012 | Individuals Reporting: 300
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Companies and Industries for Musician or Singer Jobs

Popular Employers

Salary Range

Naples Philharmonic Center For The ArtsNot enough data
Popular Industries

Salary Range

Entertainment -- Music$12,489 - $123,927
Church / Worship$9,458 - $158,380
Entertainment -- Performing Arts$13,180 - $113,916
Entertainment$13,221 - $128,803
Military / Armed Forces$16,455 - $133,016

key statistics
Key Statistics for Musician or Singer Jobs

Gender
Female
22%
female alumni
 
Male
78%
male alumni
Salary:$15,025 - $90,000 $18,100 - $53,062
Years of Experience
Less than 1 year
3%
1-4 years
19%
5-9 years
21%
10-19 years
28%
20 years or more
28%
Top Degrees

Salary Range

Bachelor's Degree$10,000 - $191,729
Bachelor of Arts (BA), Music$20,339 - $42,729
Associate's Degree$12,084 - $36,600
Master of Music (MM)Not enough data
Bachelor of Music (BMus / BM)Not enough data
Most Common Health Benefits
medical benefits Medical: 24% dental benefits Dental: 20%
vision benefits Vision: 16% employee benefits None: 74%

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career path
Career Path for Musician or Singer Jobs

Common Past Jobs
Common Future Jobs

Musician or Singer

Salary Range

$15,787 - $178,715
payscale
There is not enough data available to display this chart.
 
Common Future Jobs

Musician or Singer

Salary Range

$15,787 - $178,715
payscale
Music Ministry Director
$12,911 - $60,364
High School Teacher
$28,973 - $68,242
Music Director
$13,021 - $69,368
 

career path
Salary Map for Musician or Singer Jobs

Highest Salaries By City for Musician or Singer Jobs

Top Cities by Popularity for Musician or Singer Jobs

Highest Salaries By City Top Cities by Popularity

sample job description
Musician or Singer Job Description

People with the job title Musician or Singer typically fall into one of the following PayScale standard occupations.

Sing songs on stage, radio, television, or motion pictures.

See Sample Job Descriptions for All Jobs

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FAQs on Salaries for Musician or Singer Jobs

Musician Salary Overview

"Music is a discipline, and a mistress of order and good manners, she makes the people milder and gentler, more moral and more reasonable." - Martin Luther

While it's perhaps not the goal of every musician to make people more moral and reasonable, it can't be denied that music and musicians play a huge part in human society and have for thousands of years. "Musician" is one of the oldest professions known to humankind. Long before there were accountants, biologists, lawyers or bartenders, musicians were already carving out their niche in society. As with a majority of artists, musicians are not typically the most well-paid group of people. Those who become famous and earn a best-selling recording artist's salary are few and far between, but it's entirely possible for many people to make a good living as a musician. Salary will of course vary depending on a musician's skill level, the industry in which he or she works and more. PayScale's musician salary data can help you find which factors are most influential for the average musician salary.

Researching Musician Salary Data

As you can see from the Musician Salary by City graph, location plays a huge role in determining musician salaries. For cities with high musician salary, Los Vegas and Los Angeles are currently far in the lead. Expand your research to Musician Salary by State and you'll find that overall, California offers the highest average musician salary. Of course, California is also a state that is known for having a fairly high cost of living, especially in the larger cities like Los Angeles. How far will a musician salary go given the cost of living in Los Angeles? You can use the PayScale Cost of Living Calculator to find both Cost of Living and Musician Salary Data for Los Angeles and other U.S. cities.

When it comes to professional musicians, a very small fraction of the group makes a vast majority of the money. Measuring Musician Salary by Industry shows that working in entertainment can bring in a lucrative salary, but it also shows that popular recording artists aren't the only ones who earn high salaries. Symphony and orchestra positions can also provide high-paying careers for professional musicians. Unlike most other professions, it's not necessarily required to have years and years of experience to earn a good musician salary. Research Average Musician Salary by Years Experience, and you'll find that musician salaries can actually be higher for those who've been in the music business for only a short period of time.

Musician Salary Story

Just like eight little notes can produce seemingly infinite variations, many factors influence the average musician's salary - the data alone doesn't always give the whole picture. For a more personal account, read "Professional Musician Careers: Average Musician Salary" in the Salary Stories blog. It's the true story of Stefano Capobianco, a professional musician and recording artist based in Los Angeles. He's got insider information on working in the music industry and the steps involved in a musician's career, as well as what contributes to the average musician salary.

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More Charts for Musician or Singer Jobs

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