Arts, Design & Media

Actors

SOC 27-2011

Perform roles in film, TV, theater, and commercials, between many auditions.

The job

Median pay

$60k

$42k to $204k typical range

Outlook, 2025 to 2035

Stable

0.0% projected

Openings a year

BLS projection

Typical education

No formal credential

Our model

AI displacement risk

High

How much of this job AI may do instead of the person

Works with AI

12/100

AI alongside the person rather than instead of them

AI exposure

74th pct

More exposed than 74% of occupations · modeled estimate · 45th pct in Microsoft's data

Future-proof

40/100

Take the next step

Weigh it against Musicians & SingersPay, outlook, entry and AI exposure side by side See where it pays mostMaryland leads at $77k; every state is below Find careers like itOpen the map at Actors and explore its neighbours See open jobsActors roles hiring now Learn the skillsCourses for Actors, who lean most on reading comprehension Real pay & reviewsWhat Actors say they actually earn

Key skills

Reading Comprehension
Speaking
Active Listening
Critical Thinking
Monitoring
Writing

Pay and jobs by state

BLS OEWS May 2025, 51 states. Sorted by jobs; per 1,000 is jobs per thousand workers in the state; vs national compares that rate with the country's. A tilde marks a figure estimated from the parent occupation group where BLS publishes none.

State	Jobs	Per 1,000	vs national	Median pay
California	26,170	1.4	4.1×	$77k~
New York	6,630	0.7	1.9×	$59k
Florida	6,400	0.6	1.8×	$40k
Texas	2,160	0.2	0.4×	$54k
Georgia	1,520	0.3	0.9×	$41k
Virginia	1,422	0.3	1.0×	$60k~
Washington	1,250	0.4	1.0×	$62k~
Illinois	1,060	0.2	0.5×	$31k
Washington DC	913	1.3	3.7×	$98k~
Pennsylvania	890	0.1	0.4×	$46k

All 51 states

State	Jobs	Per 1,000	vs national	Median pay
Nevada	790	0.5	1.4×	$27k
North Carolina	730	0.1	0.4×	$39k
Massachusetts	660	0.2	0.5×	$74k~
Utah	630	0.4	1.0×	$53k~
Maryland	520	0.2	0.5×	$77k
Minnesota	520	0.2	0.5×	$39k
Indiana	510	0.2	0.5×	$49k~
Louisiana	502	0.3	0.7×	$48k~
Iowa	499	0.3	0.9×	$49k~
New Jersey	470	0.1	0.3×	$51k
Oregon	470	0.2	0.7×	$62k
Missouri	450	0.2	0.4×	$40k
Kansas	434	0.3	0.8×	$47k~
Oklahoma	426	0.2	0.7×	$49k~
Arizona	380	0.1	0.3×	$44k
Tennessee	370	0.1	0.3×	$45k
Nebraska	290	0.3	0.8×	$49k~
Wisconsin	260	0.1	0.3×	$55k~
Hawaii	253	0.4	1.1×	$56k~
Idaho	251	0.3	0.8×	$47k~
Maine	209	0.3	0.9×	$51k~
New Mexico	206	0.2	0.7×	$51k~
Rhode Island	206	0.4	1.2×	$63k~
Colorado	200	0.1	0.2×	$63k~
New Hampshire	187	0.3	0.8×	$57k~
Connecticut	180	0.1	0.3×	$58k
Ohio	170	0.0	0.1×	$28k
Alabama	150	0.1	0.2×	$51k
Michigan	150	0.0	0.1×	$54k~
South Carolina	140	0.1	0.2×	$49k~
West Virginia	137	0.2	0.6×	$44k~
North Dakota	133	0.3	0.9×	$47k~
South Dakota	131	0.3	0.8×	$44k~
Vermont	128	0.4	1.2×	$60k~
Delaware	108	0.2	0.6×	$58k~
Kentucky	90	0.0	0.1×	$39k
Alaska	86	0.3	0.8×	$52k~
Mississippi	80	0.1	0.2×	$49k
Arkansas	70	0.1	0.1×	$41k
Montana	70	0.1	0.4×	$49k~
Wyoming	65	0.2	0.7×	$48k~

Top metro areas

Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA24,800 jobs · $115k median
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ5,430 jobs · $60k median
Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL4,240 jobs · $40k median
Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV680 jobs
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA680 jobs
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN610 jobs · $42k median
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA570 jobs · $136k median
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH510 jobs

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Pay and outlook from BLS (OEWS 2025, Employment Projections 2025-2035). Skills and work activities from O*NET 30.3. AI exposure and future-proof scores are modeled estimates. How these numbers are made.