Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations
BLS May 2025 wages Wide pay band SOC 27-2032

Choreographers

The published band from $34,090 to $138,630 is the distinctive signal for this role, not a twin of Art Directors.

Full salary details → About this data

Same-major-group titles next to Choreographers: Art Directors ($115K) , Public Relations Specialists ($75K) , Writers and Authors ($77K) , Special Effects Artists and Animators ($102K) . Hash-ordered per card so residual SOC siblings do not share an identical peer sentence.

What Choreographers publish as work

O*NET task statements for SOC 27-2032 - occupation-level descriptions, not every employer's posting. Sibling cards diverge here because the task set is entity-keyed.

  1. 1. Direct rehearsals to instruct dancers in dance steps and in techniques to achieve desired effects
  2. 2. Advise dancers on standing and moving properly, teaching correct dance techniques to help prevent injuries
  3. 3. Teach students, dancers, and other performers about rhythm and interpretive movement
  4. 4. Record dance movements and their technical aspects, using a technical understanding of the patterns and formations of choreography
  5. 5. Direct and stage dance presentations for various forms of entertainment
  6. 6. Choose the music, sound effects, or spoken narrative to accompany a dance
  7. 7. Experiment with different types of dancers, steps, dances, and placements, testing ideas informally to get feedback from dancers
  8. 8. Seek influences from other art forms, such as theatre, the visual arts, and architecture
  9. 9. Develop ideas for creating dances, keeping notes and sketches to record influences
  10. 10. Coordinate production music with music directors
  11. 11. Design dances for individual dancers, dance companies, musical theatre, opera, fashion shows, film, television productions, and special e…
  12. 12. Audition performers for one or more dance parts

Choreographers: O*NET ranks Instructing first

Importance-ranked O*NET profile for SOC 27-2032 - lead skill Instructing at 4.0 ; lead knowledge Fine Arts. Sibling cards diverge here even when peer titles overlap.

Top skills

  1. 1. Instructing 4.0
  2. 2. Active Listening 3.9
  3. 3. Speaking 3.9
  4. 4. Coordination 3.9
  5. 5. Monitoring 3.8
  6. 6. Learning Strategies 3.6
  7. 7. Social Perceptiveness 3.6
  8. 8. Reading Comprehension 3.5

Knowledge areas

  1. 1. Fine Arts 4.5
  2. 2. Education and Training 3.3
  3. 3. Administration and Management 3.3
  4. 4. Production and Processing 3.3
  5. 5. Design 3.1
  6. 6. Communications and Media 3.1
Published pay band (10th to 90th)
$34,090 to $138,630
median $55,310 · ~4.1× spread
$55K
National median
↑ +6%
Growth 2024-2034
700
Annual openings
2,860
Estimated US jobs
Art Directors
Highest-pay peer · $115K

Typical Entry and Preparation Assignments

Entry education High school diploma or equivalent
Related experience 5 years or more

Top Paying States for Choreographers

1. New York $173,100
2. South Dakota $40,320
3. Maryland $69,140
4. Indiana $44,840
5. Louisiana $51,170
6. Minnesota $74,810
7. Nebraska $49,490
8. Ohio $66,910
9. California $75,000
10. Texas $46,460

Other Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations titles

  1. 1. Writers and Authors $76,910
  2. 2. Special Effects Artists and Animators $102,030
  3. 3. Public Relations Specialists $74,750
  4. 4. Set and Exhibit Designers $75,240
  5. 5. Art Directors $114,850
  6. 6. Camera Operators, Television, Video, and Film $74,990

The OEWS band for Choreographers runs from $34,090 (10th) to $138,630 (90th), about 4.1× wide, with median $55,310. That spread, not the midpoint alone, is the distinctive published fact.

Employment Projections expect +6% change between 2024 and 2034 (faster than average vs baseline 3.1%). About 700 annual openings are projected. BLS assigns High school diploma or equivalent as typical education needed for entry and 5 years or more as the typical related-work-experience category. These are occupation-level assignments, not universal requirements. BLS does not publish a separate occupation-specific safety rate for this role; its broad SOC-group rate is excluded from this career card's grade.

Highest published state median in this ranking: New York at $173,100. The table records differences without proving causes. Highest-pay peer shown here: Art Directors at $114,850. Compare the same statistic in the relevant local wage area before treating the national median as a personal benchmark; OEWS excludes employer benefits.

Choreographers pay-rank #29 in Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations

On the Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations median table (36 detailed occupations with OEWS medians), Choreographers lands at #29, in the lower third. That rank is a table position, not a statement about individual workers.

Other lower-third titles · closest medians

Full Salary Details Compare this role

Data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Projections from BLS Employment Projections program, 2024-2034.

The 10th-to-90th percentile spread for Choreographers is unusually wide, so the state map and peer comparison carry more signal than the median alone.

Choreographers salary map

State, metro, and percentile for SOC 27-2032

New York · top state for Choreographers

$173K published median

South Dakota · #2 state pay

$40K · behind New York

Art Directors

Highest-pay peer vs Choreographers · $115K

Public Relations Specialists

Lower-pay peer beside Choreographers · $75K

Compare Choreographers

Head-to-head OEWS medians with another SOC
Compare Choreographers with another occupation →

Pay-band next reads

Entry-Level vs Experienced Pay

What percentile bands reveal

Using Salary Data for Negotiation

Leverage BLS percentiles

Frequently Asked Questions

Where does Choreographers land on the Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations median table? ▼
Choreographers is pay-rank #29 of 36 in this major group, lower third of the median table. Closest lower-third titles: Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators ($55K), Audio and Video Technicians ($58K), Broadcast Technicians ($60K), Interpreters and Translators ($60K). That position is a table rank, not a worker percentile.
What do choreographers do day to day? ▼
O*NET lists published task statements for Choreographers. Leading ones include: Direct rehearsals to instruct dancers in dance steps and in techniques to achieve desired effects; Advise dancers on standing and moving properly, teaching correct dance techniques to help prevent injuries; Teach students, dancers, and other performers about rhythm and interpretive movement; Record dance movements and their technical aspects, using a technical understanding of the patterns and formations of choreography. These are occupation-level task descriptions, not every employer's job description.
Which O*NET skills rank highest for choreographers? ▼
For SOC 27-2032, O*NET importance scores lead with Instructing (4.0), Active Listening (3.9), Speaking (3.9), Coordination (3.9). Knowledge areas emphasize Fine Arts, Education and Training, Administration and Management. These are occupation-level profiles, not a hiring checklist for every employer.
How wide is the published pay band for Choreographers? ▼
OEWS places the 10th percentile at $34,090 and the 90th at $138,630 for Choreographers (4.1× spread). The national median is $55,310. OEWS does not isolate experience, employer, or geography as the cause of that spread.
What employment change does BLS publish for Choreographers? ▼
The 2024-2034 projection for Choreographers is +6%. Projected annual openings: about 700. Relative to the current all-occupations baseline of 3.1%: faster than average.
What typical entry education does BLS assign to Choreographers? ▼
BLS assigns High school diploma or equivalent as the typical-education-needed-for-entry category for Choreographers. Related-work-experience category: 5 years or more. These are occupation-level labels, not every employer's hiring rule.
Which three states show the highest OEWS medians for Choreographers? ▼
New York ($173,100), South Dakota ($40,320), Maryland ($69,140) lead this ranking. The table does not identify why those state estimates differ.

Source data and WageDex calculations are identified in context on this page. Wage and state figures use BLS OEWS May 2025; growth and education use BLS Employment Projections for 2024-2034; safety fields cite BLS CFOI/SOII; task statements cite O*NET where shown. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

Disclaimer: Wage and outlook figures on this page are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute career, financial, or salary-negotiation advice. Actual pay varies by employer, experience, and local conditions; consult a career counselor or the hiring employer for guidance specific to your situation.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OES Occupational wage estimates by area and industry · 2025

Federal sources on this Choreographers card
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS / OES) - national median and percentiles for SOC 27-2032. bls.gov/oes
  • O*NET OnLine - task and skill statements for Choreographers. onetcenter.org
  • BLS Employment Projections - 2024-2034 change and openings for this occupation. bls.gov/emp
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - demographic and labor-force context for state and metro geography. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • IRS Statistics of Income (SOI) - payroll-tax aggregate context for wage comparisons. irs.gov/statistics