As of March 01, 2026, the average annual salary for Lighting Designer in Virginia is $46,483, equivalent to $22 per hour, $894 weekly, or $3,874 monthly. These figures, sourced from Salary.com’s real-time job posting scans, highlight competitive earning potential for Lighting Designer in cities like Santa Clara, San Jose, and Fremont.

Annually Salaries for Lighting Designer in Virginia vary widely, spanning from $40,101 to $57,497. Most professionals fall between the 25th percentile ($43,142) and 75th percentile ($52,248), while top earners (90th percentile) make $57,497 per year. This $9,106 pay gap underscores opportunities for salary growth through certifications, specialized skills like Attention to Detail or Housekeeping, or targeting high-paying regions like District of Columbia or California.

Location and experience significantly influence earnings. For example, Virginia Lighting Designer often earn 0.7% higher than national averages due to demand from Fortune 70 companies. However, Virginia currently ranks 18 nationwide for Lighting Designer job salary. Professionals are advised to focus on high-growth sectors like to offset market challenges.

Based on HR-reported data: a national average with a geographic differential
Lighting Designer Salaries by Percentile
Percentile Salary Location Last Updated
10th Percentile Lighting Designer Salary $40,101 VA March 01, 2026
25th Percentile Lighting Designer Salary $43,142 VA March 01, 2026
50th Percentile Lighting Designer Salary $46,483 VA March 01, 2026
75th Percentile Lighting Designer Salary $52,248 VA March 01, 2026
90th Percentile Lighting Designer Salary $57,497 VA March 01, 2026
25% $43,142 10% $40,101 90% $57,497 75% $52,248 $46,483 50%(Median) Didn’t find job title? Click
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Lighting Designer

Alfredstreet - Alexandria, VA

Lead Lighting Designer

WSP USA - Arlington, VA

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What is a Lighting Designer ?

A theatre lighting designer (or LD) works with the director, choreographer, set designer, costume designer, and sound designer to create the lighting, atmosphere, and time of day for the production in response to the text, while keeping in mind issues of visibility, safety, and cost. The LD also works closely with the stage manager or show control programming, if show control systems are used in that production. Outside stage lighting, the job of a Lighting Designer can be much more diverse and they can be found working on rock and pop tours, corporate launches, art installation and on massi...

Source: Wikipedia (as of 04/17/2019). Read more from Wikipedia

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Location Avg. Salary Date Updated
Location Annandale, VA Avg. Salary $57,157 Date Updated March 01, 2026
Location Virginia State University, VA Avg. Salary $50,085 Date Updated March 01, 2026
Location Abingdon, VA Avg. Salary $45,046 Date Updated March 01, 2026
Location Accomac, VA Avg. Salary $48,552 Date Updated March 01, 2026
Location Achilles, VA Avg. Salary $48,428 Date Updated March 01, 2026
Location Afton, VA Avg. Salary $46,368 Date Updated March 01, 2026
Location Alberta, VA Avg. Salary $49,775 Date Updated March 01, 2026
Location Aldie, VA Avg. Salary $56,899 Date Updated March 01, 2026
Location Alexandria, VA Avg. Salary $57,157 Date Updated March 01, 2026
Location Altavista, VA Avg. Salary $46,662 Date Updated March 01, 2026
Job Openings for Lighting Designer in Virginia

Career Path for this job

  1. This Job:

    Lighting Designer

    1 - 3 years experience
    Associate's Degree

  2. Up a level:

    Creative Production Manager

    5 + years experience
    Bachelor's Degree

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