Photographers

More data on this career

Pay by education level. Among full-time, year-round photographers ages 25 to 64, median yearly pay is $47,500 with some college or an associate's degree, $55,800 with a bachelor's degree and $55,800 with a master's degree or higher (Census Bureau American Community Survey, 2024 dollars). Pay differs for many reasons besides education, such as experience, employer and location.

Industries that employ this career. The largest shares of photographers work in Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (70%), Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation (8%), Information (7%) and Retail Trade (5%) (Census Bureau American Community Survey, 2024).

Where the jobs are, and what they pay by industry. Nationwide, the industries that employ the most photographers are Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (61% of the jobs counted, median pay $39,360), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (4% of the jobs counted, median pay $51,510), Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers (3% of the jobs counted, median pay $74,190), Amusement Parks and Arcades (3% of the jobs counted, median pay $38,410) (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). Among large industries, the highest median pay is in Motion Picture and Video Industries ($120,470), Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers ($74,190), Radio and Television Broadcasting Stations ($62,520). Pay differs by industry for many reasons, including the mix of jobs and where employers are located.

What workers studied. Among photographers with a bachelor's degree or higher, the most common fields of the bachelor's degree are Film Video and Photographic Arts (12%), Fine Arts (6%), Communications (5%) and Commercial Art and Graphic Design (5%) (Census Bureau American Community Survey, 2024).

Injury and illness rates. For the broader group "Media and communication equipment workers", which includes this career (BLS did not publish enough cases for this exact occupation), employers reported 37.9 nonfatal injury and illness cases with days away from work per 10,000 full-time workers, compared with 94.6 for all U.S. workers; the median case kept the worker away 3 days (all workers: 8) (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2023-2024). Rates reflect the work setting as well as the occupation.

Union membership. In the broad group "Arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media", which includes this career, 6.6% of wage and salary workers belong to a union (all U.S. workers: 10.0%); median weekly pay is $2,032 for union members and $1,387 for workers not in a union (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey, 2025). This is a group figure, not specific to photographers.

Employer benefits. In the broad group "Professional and related", which includes this career, 86% of civilian workers had access to an employer retirement plan, 85% had access to employer medical care benefits, and 92% had paid sick leave, 73% paid vacation and 78% paid holidays (all civilian workers: 75%, 74%, 83%, 77% and 79%) (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Compensation Survey, March 2026). This is a group figure, not specific to photographers, and having access to a benefit does not mean every worker uses it. The Bureau of Labor Statistics has not endorsed this presentation. Employers spent about $74.42 per hour worked on total compensation for the occupational group "Professional and related" in June 2026 ($50.37 in wages and salaries and $24.06 in benefits, 32.3% of the total; all civilian workers: $49.46, with 31.6% in benefits) (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employer Costs for Employee Compensation).

Work environment. In O*NET's survey of workers in this occupation, the conditions most often placed at the two highest levels for photographers are: telephone conversations (100%), e-mail (100%), contact with others (95%), face-to-face discussions with individuals and within teams (95%), determine tasks, priorities and goals (91%), deal with external customers or the public in general (91%). Each percentage is the share of respondents choosing the top two levels for that condition (for example 'most of the time' or 'continually'), so it describes how common the condition is in the job, not how a particular workplace is (O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Dept. of Labor, ETA, CC BY 4.0).

Typical preparation. In O*NET's survey of workers in this occupation, for related work experience, the most common answer (45% of 22 respondents) was "over 1 year, up to and including 2 years"; for on-site or in-plant training, the most common answer (45% of 22 respondents) was "over 1 month, up to and including 3 months"; for on-the-job training, the most common answer (27% of 22 respondents) was "over 3 months, up to and including 6 months". These are what workers report is needed to do the job; employers' requirements and individual paths vary (O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Dept. of Labor, ETA, CC BY 4.0).

Related careers. O*NET lists these occupations as similar to photographers in the work done and the skills used: Photographic Process Workers and Processing Machine Operators, Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators, Graphic Designers, Special Effects Artists and Animators, Art Directors, Prepress Technicians and Workers, Film and Video Editors, Craft Artists (O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Dept. of Labor, ETA, CC BY 4.0).

Pay by state. See what photographers earn in each state, with the pay range and number of jobs: Photographers salary by state (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025).

Compare photographers with other careers (pay, growth, openings and education side by side).

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2024 PUMS (MajorPays' own estimates from the survey; Census is credited as the source of the original data and has not endorsed them); BLS Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses; BLS Current Population Survey; BLS National Compensation Survey (employee benefits); HRSA National Center for Health Workforce Analysis; U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Foreign Labor Certification (LCA disclosure data, FY2025). MajorPays has selected and reorganized these figures; these agencies have not approved or endorsed them. See it interactively →