Musicians and Singers Salary - BLS OEWS Wage Benchmarks
SOC 27-2042 · National · May 2025 OEWS Data
Median Annual Salary
$99,424
$47.80/hr
Verified BLS OEWS data · Updated May 18, 2026
Source: BLS OEWS · Published May 15, 2026
Next refresh: May 2027
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The national median salary for Musicians and Singers is $99,424 per year ($47.80/hr) according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2025. The middle 50% of earners make between $57,346 and $156,686 annually. Top earners at the 90th percentile reach $275,725 per year. There are approximately 36,180 musicians and singers employed in the United States.
About This Role
BLS Standard Occupational Classification 2018
Play one or more musical instruments or sing. May perform on stage, for broadcasting, or for sound or video recording.
Career Outlook
BLS Employment Projections · 2024-2034
10-year growth
+1.1%
About as fast as average
Annual openings
19K
per year, on avg
Workforce today
170K
as of 2024
Why those openings exist
1% from new growth99% from people leaving the role
Most openings come from replacement, not growth. Retention matters more than recruiting here.
Typical entry requirements
Education
No formal educational credential
Experience
None
On-the-job training
Long-term on-the-job training
Industry Wage Breakdown
Top 5 industries by employment · median annual wage, sector-specific
Industry
Workforce
Median Pay
Performing Arts Companies
NAICS 711100
19K
N/A
Religious Organizations
NAICS 813100
8K
N/A
Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools
NAICS 611300
2K
N/A
Independent Artists, Writers, and Performers
NAICS 711500
2K
N/A
Elementary and Secondary Schools
NAICS 611100
1K
N/A
Wage Percentiles
Hourly & annualized (2,080 hours)
Percentile
Hourly Rate
Annual Salary
P10
$20.35
$42,328
P25
$27.57
$57,346
P50MEDIAN
$47.80
$99,424
P75
$75.33
$156,686
P90
$132.56
$275,725
Market Context Signal
JOLTS · professional sector
Cooling
Openings Rate
4.2%
Quits Rate
2.0%
Professional & Business Services openings tumbled 318K in March -- the largest single-sector drop in this release. Openings rate fell from 5.5% to 4.2%. Layoffs jumped to 527K (+99K). White-collar demand has cooled abruptly.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the average musicians and singers salary?
The national median salary for Musicians and Singers is $99,424 per year ($47.80/hr) according to BLS OEWS May 2025 data. The middle 50% earn between $57,346 and $156,686 annually.
How much do top-earning musicians and singers make?
The 90th percentile salary for Musicians and Singers is $275,725 per year ($132.56/hr). The 75th percentile is $156,686 per year.
What is the entry-level salary for musicians and singers?
Entry-level Musicians and Singers (10th percentile) earn approximately $42,328 per year ($20.35/hr). The 25th percentile is $57,346 per year.
Wage figures on this page come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2025 release. OEWS surveys roughly 1.1 million establishments annually. It is the most comprehensive employer-reported wage dataset in the United States.
P10 through P90 percentiles represent the wage distribution across all surveyed employers (not self-reported by workers). Geographic adjustments use BLS-derived cost multipliers calibrated from regional wage variation.
Wages are estimates. Individual compensation depends on experience, education, employer size, industry, and negotiation. Use this as benchmark context, not absolute ground truth.
CompSignal is a free labor market intelligence tool built for HR, compensation, and talent acquisition teams. We make BLS data, the same primary source Mercer and Radford cross-reference in their paid surveys, searchable and actionable without an enterprise subscription.
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