Click or scroll to view previous job

Build a Career You'll Love

Special Effects Artist Salary in California

How much does a Special Effects Artist make in California? The salary range for a Special Effects Artist job is from $34,521 to $45,917 per year in California. Click on the filter to check out Special Effects Artist job salaries by hourly, weekly, biweekly, semimonthly, monthly, and yearly.

Average base salary
updated at May 28, 2024
$41,231
Per Year
The average salary for a Special Effects Artist is $41,231
per Year in California.
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
$34,521
$41,231
Medium
$45,917

Highest Paying Cities for Special Effects Artist in California

Here are the top eight that pay the highest Special Effects Artist salary in CA. Due to the cost of living in different locations, the Special Effects Artist salary will also be different. San Jose with the highest wage for the Special Effects Artist in California has a high living wage too. Explore more salary information by clicking the city name.

States with Higher Salaries for Special Effects Artist

Special Effects Artist works in California will receive the highest salary in the United States, followed by California, New Jersey. These states have more job opportunities than other places. At the same time, the competition will be fiercer too. People need to improve their competitiveness to get a job in these cities.
Top 5 States with Higher Salaries For
Special Effects Artist in the United States:
Special Effects Artist in District of Columbia: $41,605
Special Effects Artist in California: $41,231
Special Effects Artist in New Jersey: $40,969
Special Effects Artist in Alaska: $40,708
Special Effects Artist in Massachusetts: $40,670

How Much Do Similar Professions Get Paid in California?

The Special Effects Artist jobs have a lot of different directions. And, the job title can also be quite different from in diverse companies. Some job titles may not include the Special Effects Artist, while they have the Special Effects Artist responsibilities. So, here are some similar jobs and their salaries. Click the link which you are interested in to explore more data.
Special Effects Makeup Artist
Average salary
United States
$71,336
per Year
View salaries
Job openings
Effects Artist
Average salary
United States
$110,726
per Year
View salaries
Job openings
Special Effects Technician
Average salary
United States
$59,754
per Year
View salaries
Job openings
Special Effects Designer
Average salary
United States
$75,983
per Year
View salaries
Job openings
Visual Effects Artist
Average salary
United States
$67,281
per Year
View salaries
Job openings
3D Production Artist - Retail Visualization Special
Average salary
United States
$64,060
per Year
View salaries
Job openings

How Much Should You Be Earning?

Get an estimated calculation of how much you should be earning and insight into your career options.
See more details

What Does a Special Effects Artist Do?

; the latter is used to characterize post-production and optical work, while "special effects" refers more often to on-set and mechanical effects.

December 21, 2021

Practical special effects are optical enhancements — extreme weather simulations, explosions, miniature model displays and creature makeup, for example — that are physically created on set and filmed in-camera during production.

December 19, 2021

Special effects artists are employed by special effects companies, scene shops, and theater companies.

December 17, 2021

(whose climax, a sword battle with seven animated skeletons, is considered a landmark in special effects).

December 17, 2021

Some special-effects experts, such as Stewart, get their feet wet in the industry as production assistants.

December 17, 2021

Empower Your Talent Strategy with Salary.com's Skills Library.

View Job Skills and Competency Data for more than 15,000 Job Titles, 18 Industries, and 26 Job Families.

Skills Library

Most Common Benefits for Special Effects Artist

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

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about salaries for a Special Effects Artist
Get a personal salary report to know Which factors can influence Special Effects Artist salary.
Is this information useful?
Thank you!
; the latter is used to characterize post-production and optical work, while "special effects" refers more often to on-set and mechanical effects.
Is this information useful?
Thank you!
San Jose pays the highest Special Effects Artist wage. Get personal salary report to explore more salary information in different cities.
Is this information useful?
Thank you!
The Special Effects Artist salary range is $34,521 to $45,917 in CA.
Is this information useful?
Thank you!

Career Insights

What is Pay-for-Performance Compensation?
pay and salary
What is Pay-for-Performance Compensation?
What Is a Salary Grading Scale?
pay and salary
What Is a Salary Grading Scale?
The Gender Pay Gap in America in 2022
pay and salary
Understanding the Gender Pay Gap in America
adjust employee salary
Adjust Employee Salary Individualize employee pay based on unique job requirements and personal qualifications.
price my industry jobs
Price My Industry Jobs Get the latest market price for benchmark jobs and jobs in your industry.
Click or scroll to view next job