Actors

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Total Workforce

30.6k

Average Age

38.3

Average Salary

$44,984

Average Male Salary

$48,651

Average Female Salary

$41,065

About

Employment

Diversity

Education

Skills

About

Actors are most often employed by the Motion pictures & video industries industry. The average yearly wage for Actors was $44,984 in 2016. The top 3 most similar occupations to Actors by wage are Tire builders, Computer, automated teller, & office machine repairers, and Electrical & electronics repairers, transportation equipment, & industrial & utility.

Actors are part of the Arts, design, entertainment, sports, & media occupations, along with Artists & related workers, Commercial and industrial designers, Fashion designers, Floral designers, Graphic designers, and 25 more.

The top 3 locations that employ the most Actors are LA City (Central/Pacific Palisades) PUMA, CA, LA City (Northeast/North Hollywood & Valley Village) PUMA, CA, and LA City (East Central/Hollywood) PUMA, CA. The top 3 locations with a relatively high concentration of Actors are LA City (Central/Pacific Palisades) PUMA, CA, LA City (Northeast/North Hollywood & Valley Village) PUMA, CA, and LA City (East Central/Hollywood) PUMA, CA.

Photo by christopher walling

Management, business, science, & arts occupations Education, legal, community service, arts, & media occupations Arts, design, entertainment, sports, & media occupations

Information on the businesses and industries that employ Actors and on wages and locations for those in the field. Motion pictures & video industries is the industry that employs the most Actors, both by share and by number, though the highest paid industry for Actors, by average wage, is Broadcasting (except internet). Actors are paid most in Santa Monica City PUMA, CA but are relatively concentrated in LA City (Central/Pacific Palisades) PUMA, CA.

Wages

Yearly Wage

$44,984

AVERAGE SALARY

± $10,723

In 2018, Actors earned an average of $44,984, $8,904 less than than the average national salary of $53,888.

Electrical & electronics repairers, transportation equipment, & industrial & utility make somewhat more than Actors while Tire builders make somewhat less. This chart shows the various occupations closest to Actors as measured by average annual salary in the US.

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Wage Distribution

0.609

WAGE GINI

In 2018, Actors had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.609, which is higher than than the national average of 0.479. In other words, wages are distributed less evenly for Actors (shown in red) than for the overall labor force (shown in gray).

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Wage by Location

HIGHEST PAYING PUMAS

This map shows the Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States shaded by average annual wage for Actors.

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Spatial Concentration

PUMAs with a Relatively High Concentration of Actors

This map displays which Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States have a relatively high population of Actors.

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Industries

Most Common

The most common industries employing Actors, by number of employees, are Motion pictures & video industries, Independent artists, writers, and performers, and Performing arts companies.

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Highest Paying

The highest paying industries for Actors, by average wage, are Broadcasting (except internet), Motion pictures & video industries, Independent artists, writers, and performers, Performing arts, spectator sports & related industries, Management, scientific & technical consulting services, and Amusement & Recreation.

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Industries by Share

30.6k

2018 Workforce

± 4,291

-2.02%

1 YEAR GROWTH

± 20.2%

The number of people employed as Actors has been declining at a rate of -2.02%, from 31,183 people in 2017 to 30,552 people in 2018.

This graphic shows the share of Actors employed by various industries. Motion pictures & video industries employs the largest share of Actors at 27.9%, followed by Independent artists, writers, and performers with 25.9% and Performing arts companies with 15.8%.

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Diversity

Demographic information on Actors in the US. The average age of male Actors in the workforce is 40.2 and of female Actors is 36.2, and the most common race/ethnicity for Actors is White (Non-Hispanic).

Gender Composition

15.8k

MALE WORKFORCE

± 3,084

14.8k

FEMALE WORKFORCE

± 2,984

51.7% of Actors are Male, making them the more common gender in the occupation. This chart shows the gender breakdown of Actors.

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Race & Ethnicity

Most Common Race or Ethnicity of Actors

White (Non-Hispanic)
Black (Non-Hispanic)
Asian (Non-Hispanic)

69% of Actors are White (Non-Hispanic), making that the most common race or ethnicity in the occupation. Representing 9.91% of Actors, Black (Non-Hispanic) is the second most common race or ethnicity in this occupation. This chart shows the racial and ethnic breakdown of Actors.

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Age by Gender

40.2

AVERAGE MALE AGE

± 2.89

36.2

AVERAGE FEMALE AGE

± 2.56

The median age of Actors is 38.3, and Male employees are generally 3.94 years older than than their Female counterparts.

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Education

Data on higher education choices for Actors from The Department of Education and Census Bureau. The most common major for Actors is Visual & Performing Arts but a relatively high number of Actors hold a major in Visual & Performing Arts.

Majors

ACS PUMS data only shows the major for bachelor's degrees. However, we can filter the data based on highest degree obtained.

MOST COMMON MAJORS

MOST SPECIALIZED MAJORS

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Skills

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for Actors from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Actors need many skills, but most especially Speaking, Reading Comprehension, and Social Perceptiveness. The revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Actors need more than the average amount of Social Perceptiveness, Speaking, and Reading Comprehension.