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Highest Paying Creative Jobs
The highest paying creative job in arts, design, media and sports is art director, with a median salary of $114,850 a year, followed by technical writer ($90,390) and producer and director ($90,360). All 21 creative jobs in arts, design, media and sports below are ranked by median pay from the latest BLS wage survey (May 2025).
Highest Paying Creative Jobs, ranked
of 21 jobs match.
| # | Job | Median | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Art director Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media | $114,850 | $55.22 | $213,050 | Bachelor's degree | 53,070 |
| 2 | Technical writer Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media | $90,390 | $43.46 | $145,270 | Bachelor's degree | 45,500 |
| 3 | Producer and director Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media | $90,360 | $43.44 | $198,540 | Bachelor's degree | 143,120 |
| 4 | Commercial and industrial designer Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media | $83,910 | $40.34 | $139,770 | Bachelor's degree | 33,490 |
| 5 | Fashion designer Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media | $80,960 | $38.92 | $146,870 | Bachelor's degree | 21,450 |
| 6 | Editor Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media | $77,920 | $37.46 | $153,700 | Bachelor's degree | 91,690 |
| 7 | Writer and author Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media | $76,910 | $36.98 | $139,870 | Bachelor's degree | 47,940 |
| 8 | Film and video editor Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media | $75,420 | $36.26 | $148,550 | Bachelor's degree | 25,610 |
| 9 | Camera operator, television, video, and film Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media | $74,990 | $36.05 | $135,180 | Bachelor's degree | 21,550 |
| 10 | Public relations specialist Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media | $74,750 | $35.94 | $135,150 | Bachelor's degree | 283,380 |
| 11 | Interior designer Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media | $67,190 | $32.31 | $114,140 | Bachelor's degree | 71,500 |
| 12 | Graphic designer Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media | $62,960 | $30.27 | $104,910 | Bachelor's degree | 197,830 |
| 13 | Journalist Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media | $62,200 | $29.91 | $144,140 | Bachelor's degree | 39,250 |
| 14 | Interpreter and translator Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media | $60,170 | $28.93 | $103,660 | Bachelor's degree | 52,060 |
| 15 | Broadcast technician Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media | $59,570 | $28.64 | $123,670 | Associate's degree | 21,110 |
| 16 | Audio and video technician Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media | $58,100 | $27.93 | $100,650 | Certificate | 70,230 |
| 17 | Broadcast announcer and radio disc jockey Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media | $47,340 | $22.76 | $138,440 | Bachelor's degree | 21,240 |
| 18 | Coach and scout Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media | $47,320 | – | $98,860 | Bachelor's degree | 248,950 |
| 19 | Photographer Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media | $44,660 | $21.47 | $91,810 | High school diploma | 51,760 |
| 20 | Merchandise displayer and window trimmer Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media | $39,390 | $18.94 | $58,370 | High school diploma | 165,220 |
| 21 | Floral designer Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media | $37,360 | $17.96 | $51,000 | High school diploma | 40,590 |
No job matches those filters.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (published 2026), and Employment Projections education and training assignments (2025). Salaries are yearly medians before tax for wage and salary workers, not the self-employed. The median for all US jobs is $50,980. Jobs with fewer than 20,000 workers nationally are not listed.
About the Highest Paying Jobs
Highest Paying Jobs ranks 515 US jobs by what they actually pay, using the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics wage survey (May 2025, published 2026). Filter the list by field, by the education a job needs to start, or by a minimum salary, and sort it by median pay, average pay, what the top 10% earn, hourly wage or the number of people in the job. Ready-made rankings answer the common questions: the highest paying jobs without a degree, with only a high school diploma, with an associate, bachelor’s or master’s degree, entry-level and trade jobs, the best-paid jobs in healthcare, tech, engineering and ten other fields, and the highest paying jobs in each of the 50 states and Washington DC. Every job links to its own salary page with hourly pay, the full pay range and pay by state.
How to use it
- 1 Start with the full ranking, or pick a ready-made list such as jobs without a degree, a field or your state.
- 2 Narrow it down with the field, education and minimum pay filters, or search for a job.
- 3 Sort by median salary, top 10% pay, hourly wage or most workers.
- 4 Open any job to see its pay range, hourly and monthly pay and salary in every state.
Frequently asked questions
What is the highest paying creative job in arts, design, media and sports?
Art director pays the most, with a median salary of $114,850 a year. The top three are art director ($114,850), technical writer ($90,390), producer and director ($90,360).
How many creative jobs in arts, design, media and sports pay over $100,000?
1 of the 21 creative jobs in arts, design, media and sports have a median salary of $100,000 or more a year.
Which well-paid creative job in arts, design, media and sports has the most openings?
Public relations specialist employs the most people among the best-paid creative jobs in arts, design, media and sports, with about 283,380 workers and a median salary of $74,750. More people in a job usually means more openings each year.
Which creative job in arts, design, media and sports pays the most per hour?
Art director has the highest median hourly wage, $55.22 an hour. Some jobs, such as teachers, are paid by the year only and have no hourly figure.
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