Musician earnings by seniority

90th percentile

Top-level musician earnings begin at:

$47.35 per hour

$98,488 per year

75th percentile

Senior-level musician earnings begin at:

$31.11 per hour

$64,709 per year

50th percentile

Mid-level musician earnings begin at:

$22.80 per hour

$47,424 per year

25th percentile

Junior-level musician earnings begin at:

$21.16 per hour

$44,013 per year

10th percentile

Starting level musician earnings begin at:

$17.85 per hour

$37,128 per year

Approximate values based on highest and lowest earning segments.

Musician salary by state

State Name Average Salary
Ohio $98,550
Connecticut $98,488
Hawaii $98,072
Nevada $86,174
California $84,469
Arkansas $84,136
Virginia $83,741
Colorado $82,472
New Jersey $82,472
Washington $81,037
New York $78,083
Texas $73,029
Georgia $72,758
Wyoming $62,587
Illinois $62,338
Rhode Island $62,338
Pennsylvania $60,362
Oregon $60,112
District of Columbia $51,126
Wisconsin $50,648
Florida $50,253
Arizona $49,608
Indiana $49,546
Michigan $48,942
Massachusetts $47,424
Maine $47,050
Missouri $46,883
North Carolina $45,136
Iowa $42,751
Kentucky $39,270
South Carolina $38,875
Kansas $38,813
Tennessee $38,376
Nebraska $38,126
New Mexico $36,982
Utah $36,338
Oklahoma $35,734
Montana $33,280
Louisiana $31,387
Puerto Rico $24,211
Alabama $24,003
Maryland $20,280
Minnesota $104,978

How do musician salaries compare to similar careers?

Musicians earn 10% less than similar careers in Massachusetts. On average, they make less than talent agents but more than piano tuners.

Career Median Salary
Talent agent salary $55K
Audio engineer salary $81K
Composer salary $77K
Conductor salary $77K
Music teacher salary $64K
Singer salary $47K
Musician salary $47K
Music artist salary $47K
Music therapist salary $48K
Piano tuner salary $48K

Source: CareerExplorer (Aggregated)