Which 3D artists are earning the most money?
3D artist interns can earn as much as $150,000 per year, according to data compiled by the 3D Art Association.
An intern with experience in design and art direction earns an average of $70,000 annually, according the association.
That’s a lot of money, but it doesn’t tell the whole story.
More than half of the interns who work at 3D art studios earn less than $40,000, and only 8% earn more than $60,000.
The average internship at a 3D-art studio pays about $40 per hour.
It’s a far cry from the $100,000-per-year salary a top designer can make at Apple, or the $50,000 earned at Google, where a designer with more than a decade of experience is earning $70.3 million a year.
3D studios are growing faster than the rest of the art world.
In 2010, the industry had a total of 13,906 studios in 46 countries, according 2DMAX, a global 3D technology trade group.
By 2020, the number had risen to 43,944.