Sound Recording Engineers

Median Salary: $46,400

Many sound recording engineers across the country share a number of important professional attributes. For example, stress tolerance, cooperation, and initiative can be crucial for success in the industry, especially when combined with career training. Around 15,560 individuals were working as sound recording engineers nationwide in 2009. With that much workplace competition, it's vital to build on these traits and receive excellent training, particularly if you're looking to advance in the field.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the median annual income for sound recording engineers in the U.S. was $46,400 in 2009, which works out to a median hourly wage of $22.30. Of course, income can vary with training and by locale. Below, you'll find more data about sound recording engineers, including wages and job density for areas all over the country.

Sound recording engineers should be skilled in:

Inductive Reasoning
Fluency of Ideas
Depth Perception
Written Comprehension
Time Sharing

Different individuals go into different careers; sound recording engineers are typically:

Realistic
Artistic
Conventional

Working as a sound recording engineer requires knowledge in subjects like:

Computers and Electronics
Customer and Personal Service
Communications and Media
Fine Arts
Production and Processing

Related Occupations

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Below, you'll see links to more information on the top cities for this occupation (based on the number of individuals working as sound recording engineers). Note: "Job density" refers to the proportion of sound recording engineers in each city as compared to the national average.

Arizona
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Tucson	70	$33,100	$15.90	$42,900	$20.60	69.7%

California
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Los Angeles (Area)	2,660	$56,100	$27.00	$77,600	$37.30	232.8%
Oakland	NA	$45,900	$22.10	$52,000	$25.00	NA
Sacramento	80	NA	NA	NA	NA	-17.6%
San Diego	130	$53,300	$25.60	$61,700	$29.70	-14.3%
San Francisco (Area)	NA	$48,500	$23.30	$65,900	$31.70	NA
San Francisco (City)	470	$51,200	$24.60	$79,900	$38.40	299.2%
San Jose	50	$54,900	$26.40	$68,500	$32.90	-49.6%

Colorado
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Denver	160	$26,600	$12.80	$34,400	$16.60	13.4%

Connecticut
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Bridgeport	50	$39,000	$18.80	$42,900	$20.60	0%
Hartford	180	$41,600	$20.00	$96,100	$46.20	163.9%

District of Columbia
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Washington (Area)	360	$51,400	$24.70	$68,000	$32.70	48.7%

Florida
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Jacksonville	60	$32,300	$15.50	$41,100	$19.80	-18.5%
Miami (Area)	340	$39,900	$19.20	$52,800	$25.40	22.7%
Orlando	210	$30,900	$14.90	$45,600	$21.90	77.3%
Tampa	80	$37,400	$18.00	$59,800	$28.70	-37.8%

Georgia
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Atlanta	240	$74,000	$35.60	$95,200	$45.80	-11.8%

Illinois
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Chicago (Area)	590	$45,300	$21.80	$57,900	$27.80	35.3%

Indiana
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Indianapolis	NA	$45,700	$22.00	$67,100	$32.20	NA

Maryland
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Baltimore	150	$38,400	$18.50	$52,900	$25.50	0%

Massachusetts
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Boston (Area)	450	$48,500	$23.30	$61,600	$29.60	123.5%

Michigan
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Detroit (Area)	140	$58,700	$28.20	$78,100	$37.60	13.4%

Minnesota
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Minneapolis	110	$45,900	$22.10	$52,900	$25.40	-47.9%

Missouri
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Kansas City	50	$23,800	$11.50	$37,200	$17.90	-57.1%
St. Louis	80	$47,600	$22.90	$63,700	$30.60	-45.4%

Nebraska
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Omaha	30	$38,900	$18.70	$52,800	$25.40	-43.7%

Nevada
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Las Vegas	280	$59,700	$28.70	$65,500	$31.50	179%

New Mexico
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Albuquerque	30	NA	NA	NA	NA	-31.1%

New York
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Albany	30	$42,600	$20.50	$51,500	$24.70	-38.7%
Buffalo	100	$35,300	$17.00	$59,500	$28.60	50.4%
New York (Area)	NA	$54,700	$26.30	$79,300	$38.10	NA
Rochester	80	$49,600	$23.80	$56,900	$27.40	34.5%

North Carolina
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Charlotte	80	$42,800	$20.60	$57,300	$27.50	-17.6%
Raleigh	NA	$32,000	$15.40	$37,300	$17.90	NA

Ohio
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Cincinnati	40	$28,500	$13.70	$39,600	$19.00	-64.7%
Cleveland	60	$36,600	$17.60	$43,700	$21.00	-52.1%
Columbus	50	$41,300	$19.80	$52,400	$25.20	-54.6%

Oklahoma
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Oklahoma City	30	$28,200	$13.60	$32,800	$15.80	-52.9%

Oregon
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Portland	60	$41,700	$20.00	$51,300	$24.70	-49.6%

Pennsylvania
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Lancaster	70	$43,100	$20.70	$50,600	$24.40	173.1%
Philadelphia (Area)	200	$36,600	$17.60	$49,300	$23.70	-31.9%
Pittsburgh	90	$34,700	$16.70	$43,900	$21.10	-30.3%
Scranton	80	$33,300	$16.00	$36,700	$17.70	149.6%

Rhode Island
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Providence	40	$33,100	$15.90	$40,700	$19.60	-36.1%

South Carolina
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Greenville	30	$42,300	$20.30	$69,300	$33.30	-11.8%

Tennessee
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Knoxville	50	$32,300	$15.50	$38,400	$18.50	34.5%
Memphis	30	$34,900	$16.80	$58,900	$28.30	-55.5%
Nashville	310	$36,600	$17.60	$50,700	$24.40	264.7%

Texas
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Austin	70	$36,500	$17.50	$48,100	$23.10	-23.5%
Dallas (Area)	200	$36,700	$17.60	$58,100	$27.90	-42.9%
Houston	60	$28,100	$13.50	$57,400	$27.60	-80.7%

Utah
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Salt Lake City	NA	$48,700	$23.40	$55,500	$26.70	NA

Washington
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Seattle (Area)	260	$52,800	$25.40	$65,800	$31.60	55.5%

Wisconsin
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Madison	80	$23,400	$11.30	$32,400	$15.60	105%
Milwaukee	70	$52,600	$25.30	$61,400	$29.50	-23.5%