September 16, 2025
Editorial Guidelines
Experts in this article:
Adam is a professional portrait photographer based in Charleston, SC. With 20 years of experience, he worked for Hard Rock...
Victoria is a writer and editor for SideHustles.com. She has extensive experience editing research for publication in academic...
Average Pay
$15–$100 / hrEarnings Factor
Type of PhotographyJob Competition
HighBefore you pursue a career in photography, one of your first steps should be to figure out whether it’s financially viable and what your earning prospects are. Can you make a living by becoming a photographer, and is it actually a well-paying job?
We’ll give you a simple breakdown of income data from reliable government sources so you can easily work out how much money you can expect to earn as a photographer and how to secure the highest rates possible.
The average income you can expect to earn as a photographer depends on whether you’re self-employed (i.e., you’re a freelancer or you own your own photography business) or whether you work for a company.
According to Indeed, the average rate for a freelance photographer is $50.52/hour, with typical earnings in the range of $25.56–$99.84 per hour. 1 This is more than double the salary they report across all photographers ($21.39/hour). 2
This pattern holds for freelance work in most fields—it often comes with higher hourly rates and greater earning potential.
However, your income also heavily depends on many factors, including:
This means that many photographers have rates that diverge substantially from the one given above. Fortunately, first-person accounts can give some insight into typical self-employed photographer income ranges.
Below are a few snapshots of salaries reported by freelance photographers on Reddit working in different spaces.
In general, wedding and boudoir photographers earn some of the highest rates. This type of photography is always in demand.
As you’d expect, location plays a large role in this.
Family and portrait photography isn’t quite as lucrative as wedding photography, but it’s respectable.
Real estate photography is in a similar boat:
Starting a photography business instead of operating solo (and working for corporate clients instead of individuals) carries higher earning potential:
Unfortunately for nature lovers, wildlife photographers tend to report relatively low incomes. This is usually a type of photography that people get into because it’s their passion, not because it’s particularly lucrative.
Some people spend time carving out very specific niches that don’t neatly fall into any of the usual genres of photography. If you do this, your income entirely depends on how much demand there is for your niche:
Unsurprisingly, the time you’ve been a photographer is a very important factor. One first-year photographer reports an income of around $60,000 per year:
As a freelancer, you need to put a lot of extra work into the business side of photography, including marketing yourself, building relationships with clients, and managing your own scheduling and billing processes. It can take a while to start earning your desired income.
You can also check out a series of posts called “Photographers, How Much Do You Make?” on the photography blog A Photo Editor. Here you can find parts 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 of the series, which show the salaries of real photographers across the world and in different industries.
According to survey data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), people employed as photographers made an average of $26.76 per hour in 2024, with a typical salary range of $16.73–$29.99 per hour. 3
The table below shows the distribution of hourly rates among photographers surveyed by the BLS. It includes estimates for a typical photographer’s income per day, week, month, and year.
| Salary Percentile | Hourly | Monthly | Yearly |
|---|---|---|---|
| Top 10% | $45.56 | $7,897 | $94,760 |
| Top 25% | $29.99 | $5,198 | $62,370 |
| Median | $20.44 | $3,543 | $42,520 |
| Bottom 25% | $16.73 | $2,899 | $34,790 |
| Bottom 10% | $14.23 | $2,468 | $29,610 |
| Overall average (mean) | $26.76 | $4,638 | $55,650 |
Source: Hourly and yearly salaries were obtained from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Monthly salaries are estimates based on yearly salary data.
It’s worth noting that these figures reflect the average photographer’s earnings across all industries and experience levels, and they assume full-time working conditions. You can expect to earn less if you’re just starting out as a photographer or you’re working less than 40 hours per week.
Wondering how much professional photographers get paid in your state? The table below lists the highest-paying states and districts when it comes to photographers’ yearly and hourly wages.
| Ranking | State | Average Hourly Wage | Average Annual Wage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | $47.93 | $99,690 |
| 2 | California | $36.65 | $76,230 |
| 3 | New York | $33.59 | $69,860 |
| 4 | Oregon | $33.22 | $69,100 |
| 5 | Massachusetts | $32.78 | $68,190 |
Note that these figures don’t include self-employed photographers, such as freelancers.
You should also bear in mind that just because these states have the highest average salaries, that doesn’t necessarily mean that they’re the best places to work as a photographer. There are other important factors, including the number of photography jobs available in these areas and how fierce the competition is for these vacancies.
To ensure you land on the higher end of the income range for photographers, you need to understand the variables that influence how much you can earn.
The field you work in has a big influence on how much you’ll be paid as a professional photographer. This is due to the demand for certain types of work and the level of skill required.
For example, Adam Chandler, a portrait photographer based in Charleston, SC, told us that he earns much more doing portrait photography than he ever earned doing editorial photography. In particular, he says that wedding photography “can be a very lucrative genre,” whereas it’s harder to earn money in the realms of fine arts or landscape photography.
If you’re employed by a company, your salary will also depend on what industry you’re in. The table below lists the industries that pay professional photographers the highest salaries on average.
| Industry | Mean Hourly Wage | Mean Annual Wage |
|---|---|---|
| Motion Picture and Video Industries | $51.56 | $107,250 |
| Performing Arts Companies | $50.83 | $105,730 |
| Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping, and Payroll Services | $49.90 | $103,800 |
| Scientific Research and Development Services | $46.04 | $95,770 |
| Travel Arrangement and Reservation Services | $45.85 | $95,360 |
You’ll earn higher wages as a photographer if you’ve been in the business for years than if you’re just starting out. This is partly because you’ll attract more customers and be more employable, but it’s also because you’ll be able to charge higher prices for your work.
Experience and skill level are closely related. The more time you spend as a photographer, the more advanced your skills will be and the higher you can set your hourly photography rates.
Of course, you’ll have a much higher earning potential if you work more hours. If you’re only working part-time, you’ll probably earn significantly less than the figures listed above.
Working full time can be difficult if you’re a freelance photographer and you charge by the hour, whereas you’ll get a steady and reliable income if you work full time for a photography agency or business.
We’ve already seen that the average photographer’s salary varies by state, but how much you can make with your photography also depends on whether you live in a city.
As you might expect, areas with higher populations have more job opportunities for photographers. This is because many of the most high-demand photography jobs, like portrait, event, and wedding photography, are people-centric. However, the best place to earn money as a photographer also depends on the type of photography you’re doing.
You’ll have better photo opportunities as a landscape, travel, or street photographer if you live in a tourist destination. Nature and wildlife photographers, on the other hand, will probably do their best work in more remote locations.
If you’re a paparazzo or celebrity photographer, you’ll have the highest earning potential in star-studded cities like Los Angeles or New York.
The unfortunate reality is that average salaries across all disciplines vary according to certain demographic factors, and photography is no exception.
A 2020 study published by the US Census Bureau reported that male photographers had a 27% higher median wage than female photographers. 4 This wage gap is considerably greater than the overall gender wage gap of 18.9% that the BLS reported across all fields for the second quarter of 2025. 5
What’s more, gender isn’t the only factor at play. BLS data also indicate that Black and Hispanic full-time workers earn less on average than their White and Asian counterparts. 5 It’s certainly possible to overcome these demographic factors, but it’s still good to be aware of them—especially so that you can make sure you aren’t being lowballed by clients or potential employers.
On average, photography is a relatively low-paying occupation. The estimated average annual salary among photographers ($55,650) is considerably lower than the average annual salary across all fields in the US ($67,920 per year). 5
With that said, you can still make a living with photography. To maximize your chances of success, you’ll need to do some careful planning and research into the best ways to earn money with photography.
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