15 High-Paying Creative Jobs To Pursue

Having a high-paying creative job may sound like an impossible dream. However, you can choose from many types of creative professions depending on what you like to do and how you want to advance in your career. Learning about the various options can help you decide if a particular field would be right for you. In this article, we explore 15 artistic jobs that can help you progress in your career and earn more money in the future.

Related: 10 Outstanding Careers for Creative People

15 high-paying creative jobs

Based on your interest, skills, and talents, consider these 15 high-paying creative jobs that reward your creativity:

1. Chief marketing officer

National average salary: $89,548 per year

Primary duties: Chief marketing officers (CMOs) oversee the entire marketing department of a company. They lead the overall marketing plan and are accountable for all campaign-level decisions. In addition, they collaborate with brand managers, sales team, and public relations department to develop strategies for the company's social media presence, advertising, and brand reputation. As it's one of the most senior roles in a company's marketing department, individuals need a bachelor's or master's degree in marketing, excellent communication skills, and leadership abilities.

2. Architect

National average salary: $88,403 per year

Primary duties: Architects develop concepts and designs for all kinds of structures, from homes and offices to schools and hospitals. They combine the principles of art, business, and engineering to develop blueprints. They're highly talented individuals who need to stay updated with social trends and complete several years of post-secondary study. After completing a bachelor's or master's degree in architecture, these professionals may work for a design firm. With more experience and expertise added to their portfolio, many professionals become self-employed and hire a team of junior architects.

Related: How to Become an Architect Designer in 4 Steps

3. Creative director

National average salary: $81,960 per year

Primary duties: Creative directors plan strategic and creative concepts for a project or a brand. They supervise and lead a team of professionals who execute, plan, and deliver ideas for branding and advertising. It's a senior leadership role and requires working knowledge and experience with advanced design and branding concepts. Creative directors need excellent communication skills to manage the team and realize c reative concepts. A formal degree in creative advertising or a similar field can help prepare you for this role.

Related: How To Become a Creative Director in 6 steps

4. Multimedia graphic designer

National average salary: $78,046 per year

Primary duties: Multimedia graphic designers create attention-grabbing visuals to capture an audience's attention. They use special effects and graphic tools to create content for televisions, films and multimedia presentations like interactive slideshows. They may work as freelancers or in a team to pursue a career in a specific niche, such as web design, video games, or advertising. Multimedia designers need a bachelor's degree in multimedia design, or graphic design, and benefit from a creative flair. They typically have excellent organizational, time management, and project management skills.

Related: What Does a Multimedia Designer Do? (With Duties and Skills)

5. Art director

National average salary: $77,891 per year

Primary duties: Art directors handle the visual style and images in print and digital productions. They articulate visual concepts to their team, determine which artistic elements to use, and decide how to best present an idea visually. They work in synchrony with the creative director and ensure that the creative director's brief is best represented. Art directors need a bachelor's degree in art or design and extensive work experience as a graphic designer, illustrator or photographer. They also need to exhibit excellent project management and communication skills to realize complex concepts for their clients.

6. Managing Editor

National average salary: $72,522 per year

Primary duties: Managing editors oversee the day-to-day operations of a publication or website. Their job responsibilities include generating stories, planning content calendars, assigning content to writers, and editing the work of others in their team. As experienced writers, they also write copy for various print and digital media as needed. Individuals for this role exhibit an in-depth understanding of writing conventions, grammar, and strong attention to detail to identify errors. They also have strong communication and interpersonal skills to lead the team.

Related: How To Become an Editor

7. Advertising account executive

National average salary: $70,990 per year

Primary duties: Advertising account managers are the connection between the client and the entire agency team. They pitch the agency's ideas and ensure that concepts meet the client's budget and deadline. As account managers need to work with clients and the internal team, they need excellent communication and interpersonal skills. A degree in advertising or marketing typically leads to top performance in the role.

8. Music teacher

National average salary: $69,532 per year

Primary duties: Music teachers help their students learn instrumental techniques and music theory. They often prepare students for examinations, auditions and live performances. These individuals can work as freelancers or full-time employees in public schools, specialized academies, community centres, or music stores. Successful music teachers have musical competence and excellent interpersonal and communication skills.

9. Director of public relations

National average salary: $67,129 per year

Primary duties: Directors of public relations, or PR directors, lead and organize a team to oversee a PR firm or department. They create and maintain the public image of their clients or employers by establishing media relationships, crafting public statements, and handling emergencies. PR directors exhibit excellent communication and spokesmanship skills and need to multitask on various projects. Creative candidates with five or more years of marketing and communications experience can consider this career path.

10. Web developers

National average salary: $66,681 per year

Primary duties: Web developers ensure that content and design elements come together on the web for maximum performance and presentation. In addition, they provide users with a smooth navigation experience while ensuring that their clients achieve their web traffic, conversion, and sales targets. For this, web developers need to have a few inherent qualities, such as good communication skills and knowledge of several coding languages, to excel in this role.

11. Fashion designer

National average salary: $65,907 per year

Primary duties: Fashion designers create clothing, shoes, purses, and other accessories. They study fashion trends, sketch designs, and oversee the design process from initial concept to final production. An eye for colour and detail and a strong sense of aesthetic are essential for these individuals to stay up to date with market trends. Besides a formal degree in fashion designing, these individuals are adept with technical skills like sewing and pattern-cutting to guide the tailors and seamsters who develop their designs.

12. Brand manager

National average salary: $65,028 per year

Primary duties: Brand managers handle the overall planning, developing and directing the marketing efforts of a company to increase its value and performance. They focus on a brand's profit-and-loss performance and work with other cross-functional teams for brand reputation and competition. Most brand managers have a degree in business or marketing and an expert understanding of their target audience. They exhibit strong analytical and organization skills to maintain project timelines, make concrete branding decisions, and develop viable solutions for the company's branding needs.

13. User experience designer

National average salary: $64,926 per year

Primary duties: User experience designers handle different aspects of a product's development from start to finish. The role requires research into the product and market, design skills, and an in-depth understanding of the product's usability and functionality. UX designers also take part in branding and marketing decisions, as their work dictates the entire end-to-end journey of a user's interaction with a product. The role requires extensive technical knowledge, use computer logic and coding skills.

14. Executive chef

National average salary: $63,467 per year

Primary duties: Executive chefs train and supervise kitchen staff. They curate exclusive cuisines, prepare menus for big restaurants and celebrity chefs. In addition, they oversee the overall quality of food, take an inventory of food supplies, and handle the reputation and reviews of delicacies where they work. As this is a senior role, employees seek candidates who have several years of experience in handling kitchen staff. Besides having exceptional culinary skills, individuals need communication and interpersonal skills to handle the team.

Related: Cooking Skills To Include on Your Resume

15. Marketing analyst

National average salary: $62,740 per year

Primary duties: Marketing analytics managers analyze and report data for a company's business objectives. Their responsibilities include drawing insights using analytics tools and defining business goals depending on the performance and metrics gathered from the data sources. Marketing analytics managers excel in customer relationship management and market research, as their job involves understanding and dealing with their target audience. They're an integral part of a company's marketing team and take part in critical decision-making using their strong analytical and interpersonal skills.

Salary figures reflect data listed on Indeed Salaries at the time of writing. Salaries‌ ‌may‌ ‌‌vary‌‌ ‌depending‌ ‌on‌ ‌the‌ ‌hiring‌ ‌organization‌ ‌and‌ ‌a‌ ‌candidate's‌ ‌experience,‌ ‌academic‌ background‌, ‌and‌ ‌location.