Actors
Median Not published
Occupation · SOC 27-2012
Producers and Directors: pay and where the jobs are
What producers and directors earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.
National pay, May 2025
$90,360 median annual wage
- Mean (average) annual wage
- $113,300
- Median hourly wage
- $43.44
- Mean hourly wage
- $54.47
- Employment
- 143,120
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 27-2012.
Check your pay
See where your pay falls among producers and directors nationally and in your state. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
Enter your pay to see where it falls.
Use these numbers
How much do producers and directors make?
The median annual wage for producers and directors was $90,360 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $45,780 and the highest-paid 10% more than $198,540. As an hourly rate, the median is $43.44. About 143,120 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in California ($129,790), New Jersey ($119,840) and New York ($107,550). California also comes out on top after taxes and local prices.
Pay ladder
What each step of the pay range for producers and directors looks like per month. Take-home here includes federal tax, Social Security and Medicare for a single filer; add your state in the paycheck calculator.
| Step | Annual | Hourly | Monthly gross | Monthly after federal tax & FICA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $45,780 | $22.01 | $3,815 | $3,247 |
| 25th percentile | $62,670 | $30.13 | $5,223 | $4,378 |
| Median | $90,360 | $43.44 | $7,530 | $6,033 |
| 75th percentile | $134,800 | $64.81 | $11,233 | $8,617 |
| 90th percentile | $198,540 | $95.45 | $16,545 | $12,247 |
Producers and Directors: pay by state
51 states and territories have a published median, sorted from highest to lowest. The last two columns are our estimates: the median after 2026 federal and state taxes, and that take-home restated in national-average prices.
1
$81,706 take-home in national prices
2
$79,959 take-home in national prices
3
$72,964 take-home in national prices
Where a median producers and director paycheck goes furthest after 2026 taxes and BEA price levels.
| State | Employment | Median | 10th pct. | 90th pct. | Median after tax* | In national prices† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | 34,110 | $129,790 | $63,570 | $306,850 | $90,465 | $81,706 |
| New Jersey | 2,970 | $119,840 | $62,310 | $206,770 | $87,000 | $79,959 |
| New York | 27,990 | $107,550 | $61,960 | $222,580 | $78,743 | $72,964 |
| District of Columbia | 2,640 | $104,270 | $69,260 | $170,490 | $76,289 | $69,417 |
| Connecticut | 2,200 | $88,260 | $49,960 | $177,870 | $66,375 | $64,063 |
| Oregon | 1,640 | $87,460 | $49,350 | $143,490 | $63,783 | $61,709 |
| Rhode Island | 560 | $84,250 | $43,090 | $136,360 | $64,631 | $63,190 |
| Washington | 2,270 | $81,550 | $47,810 | $167,760 | $65,069 | $60,805 |
| Illinois | 3,170 | $81,080 | $41,250 | $169,040 | $62,001 | $62,027 |
| Massachusetts | 3,440 | $80,970 | $45,820 | $150,140 | $61,591 | $58,239 |
| Georgia | 5,010 | $79,950 | $50,540 | $168,740 | $61,834 | $64,214 |
| Florida | 7,160 | $79,920 | $46,460 | $164,090 | $65,054 | $62,906 |
| Maryland | 1,610 | $79,350 | $43,740 | $148,700 | $61,250 | $58,356 |
| Nevada | 1,630 | $78,480 | $38,420 | $164,900 | $64,041 | $64,054 |
| Colorado | 1,960 | $78,060 | $45,730 | $134,670 | $60,676 | $58,879 |
| Minnesota | 1,390 | $76,360 | $39,800 | $130,750 | $58,544 | $59,363 |
| Utah | 1,670 | $76,350 | $36,500 | $168,140 | $59,355 | $60,037 |
| Pennsylvania | 4,200 | $75,460 | $40,700 | $130,560 | $59,547 | $61,028 |
| Tennessee | 2,920 | $73,020 | $36,120 | $132,610 | $60,200 | $65,527 |
| Delaware | 150 | $72,650 | $50,420 | $238,670 | $56,195 | $56,303 |
| Texas | 6,610 | $71,710 | $40,610 | $146,340 | $59,278 | $61,075 |
| Maine | 400 | $71,320 | $44,000 | $138,230 | $55,511 | $57,198 |
| Ohio | 1,610 | $69,350 | $44,950 | $122,450 | $56,154 | $60,528 |
| Arizona | 1,720 | $67,320 | $36,260 | $208,990 | $54,900 | $54,531 |
| Missouri | 1,630 | $66,460 | $37,610 | $124,130 | $53,394 | $58,793 |
| Wisconsin | 1,600 | $66,390 | $38,680 | $130,050 | $53,092 | $56,424 |
| Hawaii | 510 | $66,190 | $44,230 | $131,490 | $51,806 | $47,117 |
| Virginia | 2,820 | $65,900 | $40,780 | $119,090 | $52,156 | $51,586 |
| Michigan | 2,310 | $65,720 | $38,500 | $122,220 | $52,444 | $54,506 |
| North Carolina | 3,500 | $63,700 | $34,120 | $133,170 | $51,330 | $54,418 |
| Alabama | 1,040 | $63,340 | $39,340 | $107,890 | $50,418 | $56,762 |
| Louisiana | 880 | $62,920 | $35,750 | $150,220 | $51,235 | $58,085 |
| Oklahoma | 770 | $61,600 | $38,220 | $102,800 | $49,449 | $56,293 |
| New Hampshire | 300 | $61,560 | $26,560 | $96,560 | $51,643 | $49,579 |
| Idaho | 380 | $61,150 | $38,400 | $128,260 | $49,181 | $51,502 |
| Kansas | 420 | $60,600 | $36,260 | $113,050 | $48,290 | $53,615 |
| Wyoming | 130 | $60,420 | $36,850 | $85,090 | $50,727 | $54,728 |
| South Dakota | 170 | $60,260 | $38,140 | $109,180 | $50,599 | $57,118 |
| Indiana | 1,480 | $59,870 | $37,040 | $96,100 | $48,549 | $52,019 |
| Iowa | 720 | $58,550 | $36,900 | $101,230 | $47,652 | $54,297 |
| North Dakota | 170 | $57,870 | $37,970 | $97,300 | $48,679 | $54,720 |
| South Carolina | 1,190 | $56,030 | $38,760 | $136,360 | $45,801 | $48,855 |
| Vermont | 290 | $55,660 | $45,180 | $106,760 | $45,472 | $46,420 |
| Kentucky | 950 | $54,550 | $35,860 | $95,970 | $44,219 | $49,046 |
| Alaska | 160 | $54,060 | $41,600 | $82,890 | $45,347 | $44,302 |
| Montana | 390 | $52,580 | $32,570 | $98,820 | $42,713 | $45,130 |
| Nebraska | 470 | $52,580 | $33,750 | $101,070 | $42,915 | $47,629 |
| Puerto Rico | 260 | $48,820 | $29,660 | $81,230 | — | — |
| Mississippi | 390 | $48,100 | $27,230 | $84,010 | $39,636 | $45,584 |
| West Virginia | 230 | $46,660 | $35,700 | $124,880 | $38,368 | $42,871 |
| Arkansas | 700 | $38,820 | $24,090 | $76,110 | $32,423 | $37,295 |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 27-2012. *Our estimate for a single filer paid biweekly with no pre-tax deductions or local tax, 2026 federal and state rules. †Take-home ÷ BEA Regional Price Parity × 100 (2024 price levels).
Sources
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25nat.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25st.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.