The average salary for a game designer in the United States is around $90,270 per year.
Avg Salary
Game designers earn an average yearly salary of $90,270.
Wages typically start from $47,350 and go up to $172,094.
55% above national average Updated in 2018
Game designer earnings by seniority
Top-level game designer earnings begin at:
$82.74 per hour
$172,094 per year
Senior-level game designer earnings begin at:
$60.95 per hour
$126,773 per year
Mid-level game designer earnings begin at:
$43.40 per hour
$90,270 per year
Junior-level game designer earnings begin at:
$30.90 per hour
$64,278 per year
Starting level game designer earnings begin at:
$22.76 per hour
$47,350 per year
Approximate values based on highest and lowest earning segments.
Game designer salary by state
| State Name | Average Salary |
|---|---|
| Colorado | $99,840 |
| Connecticut | $99,730 |
| New Jersey | $99,500 |
| California | $98,010 |
| Alaska | $94,900 |
| Hawaii | $93,430 |
| South Carolina | $93,240 |
| New York | $90,430 |
| Massachusetts | $88,660 |
| Texas | $88,460 |
| Alabama | $87,980 |
| Washington | $87,760 |
| Pennsylvania | $87,040 |
| Illinois | $86,800 |
| North Carolina | $86,770 |
| Nebraska | $85,600 |
| Georgia | $85,280 |
| Missouri | $83,720 |
| West Virginia | $83,160 |
| Ohio | $82,640 |
| Guam | $81,940 |
| Indiana | $81,290 |
| Arizona | $80,790 |
| South Dakota | $80,720 |
| Rhode Island | $79,840 |
| Kentucky | $79,420 |
| Mississippi | $78,970 |
| Oklahoma | $78,630 |
| Idaho | $78,090 |
| Maine | $77,640 |
| Minnesota | $77,560 |
| Oregon | $77,540 |
| New Mexico | $76,890 |
| Delaware | $76,580 |
| Kansas | $76,510 |
| Florida | $76,500 |
| Iowa | $74,810 |
| Arkansas | $74,130 |
| Michigan | $73,650 |
| Utah | $73,370 |
| Wyoming | $73,050 |
| Tennessee | $72,100 |
| Vermont | $71,490 |
| Nevada | $71,210 |
| Wisconsin | $71,050 |
| North Dakota | $68,870 |
| Montana | $66,510 |
| Louisiana | $62,800 |
| Puerto Rico | $62,800 |
| Virgin Islands, U.S. | $43,130 |
| District of Columbia | $118,800 |
| Maryland | $116,360 |
| New Hampshire | $113,770 |
| Virginia | $104,840 |
How do game designer salaries compare to similar careers?
Game designers earn about the same as related careers in the United States. On average, they make less than network architects but more than nanotechnology engineers.
| Career | Median Salary |
|---|---|
| Network architect salary | $109K |
| Information security analyst salary | $98K |
| Mathematician salary | $102K |
| Geospatial information scientist salary | $90K |
| Software quality assurance engineer salary | $90K |
| Game designer salary | $90K |
| Database architect salary | $90K |
| Electrical engineer salary | $97K |
| Software engineer salary | $93K |
| Nanotechnology engineer salary | $97K |
Source: CareerExplorer (Aggregated)