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Key Animator Salary in the United States

How much does a Key Animator make in the United States? The salary range for a Key Animator job is from $69,339 to $87,885 per year in the United States. Click on the filter to check out Key Animator job salaries by hourly, weekly, biweekly, semimonthly, monthly, and yearly.

Average base salary
updated at March 01, 2025
$78,567
Per Year
The average salary for a Key Animator is $78,567
per Year in the United States.
Individually reported data submitted by users of our website

HOW SHOULD YOU USE THIS DATA?

Employees: Use this as a guide for salary expectations, but be aware that responsibilities can change across companies for the same job title, so there may be differences between this data, other free site and our subscription products bought by employers.

Employers: This data could be used as reference point in your market pricing, but not the only source, due to differences across jobs locations, and sizes of companies.Consider additional sources like our Employer reported data.

Base Salary
$69,339
$78,567
Medium
$87,885

Highest Paying Cities for Key Animator in the United States

Key Animator salaries in the United States will pay differently by cities. Below following are the eight cities with the highest income for Key Animator jobs in the United States. The city with the highest salary is San Jose. Click on the Key Animator salary in cities you are interested in to view detailed job salary information.

States with Higher Salaries for Key Animator

The five states where Key Animator jobs get higher salaries in the United States are: District of Columbia, California, New Jersey, Alaska, and Massachusetts. Compared with the average salary of a Key Animator in the United States, the state of District of Columbia with the highest job income for this job. The second and third states are California and New Jersey respectively. The high or low salary paid to Key Animator by the US has a greater relationship with the demand for jobs and the cost of living.

How Much Do Similar Professions Get Paid in the United States?

There are some different titles for Key Animator jobs, and the job title of Key Animator will vary in different companies. The job title has a lot to do with the department and responsibilities, and the same job title will vary in different departments. The following list is the salary of jobs similar to Key Animator, start to view Key Animator-related jobs you are interested in.
Animator
Average salary
United States
$64,971
per Year
Character Animator
Average salary
United States
$64,202
per Year
Lead Animator
Average salary
United States
$132,372
per Year
Medical Animator
Average salary
United States
$149,146
per Year
Senior Animator
Average salary
United States
$99,064
per Year
Graphics Animator
Average salary
United States
$62,732
per Year

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What Does a Key Animator Do?

Artists", who make drawings between the "key poses" drawn by the animator, and also re-draw any sketches that are too roughly made to be used as such.

December 22, 2021

Press the A and F keys to switch between your selected animation states and the entire Animator Controller.

December 19, 2021

Key animators work primarily for animation studios and motion picture and video production companies, as well as gaming companies.

December 17, 2021

In addition to helping develop main characters, key animators guide junior crew members through pre-production.

December 16, 2021

After working as an animator for at least three years, some animators may advance to key animator—a senior level position.

December 13, 2021

Most Common Benefits for Key Animator

Social Security
Healthcare
401(k)
Pension
Disability
Time Off (days)

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about salaries for a Key Animator
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artists", who make drawings between the "key poses" drawn by the animator, and also re-draw any sketches that are too roughly made to be used as such.
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Check the below career pages for detailed pay ranges for similar professions to Key Animator:
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Explore our personal salary report to know the Key Animator market value in the United States. And find out if any places are having a higher Key Animator salary.
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The highest Key Animator salary is $87,885, while the lowest is $69,339 in the United States.
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