Costume Designers

Earnings vary greatly in this business, and are determined based on factors such as how many outfits the designer completes, how long they are employed during the year, and the level of their experience. The U.S. Department of Labor groups costume designers with fashion designers, who earned an average of $79,290 annually in May 2023. Earnings ranged from $37,090 to $160,850 or more. Fashion designers who worked in the motion picture and video industries earned mean annual salaries of $98,740. However, many costume designers are freelancers who move from project to project and are not always fully employed year round.

Costume designers who work on Broadway or for other large stage productions are usually members of United Scenic Artists, a union that sets minimum fees, requires producers to pay into pension and welfare funds, protects the designer's rights, establishes rules for billing, and offers group health and life insurance.

For feature films and television, costume designers earn daily rates for an eight-hour day or a weekly rate for an unlimited number of hours. Designers sometimes earn royalties on their designs.

Regional theaters usually set individual standard fees, which vary widely, beginning around $200 per week for an assistant. Most of them do not require membership in the union.

The Web site Fashion Schools (http://www.fashion-schools.org) reports that costume designers can earn salaries ranging from $500 to $150,000, depending on level of experience and the type of production. Entry-level costume designers may earn $500 per production; those with experience can average up to $20,000 or more per production; and top names can bring in as much as $150,000 or more per production.

Most costume designers work freelance and are paid per costume or show. Costume designers can charge $90 to $500 per costume, but some costumes, such as those for figure skaters, can cost thousands of dollars. Freelance costume designers often receive a flat rate for designing costumes for a show. For small and regional theaters, this rate may be in the $400 to $500 range; the flat rate for medium and large productions generally starts at around $1,000. Many costume designers must take second part-time or full-time jobs to supplement their income from costume design.

Freelancers are responsible for their own health insurance, life insurance, and pension plans. They do not receive holiday, sick, or vacation pay.