SOC 39-5091 · Personal Care and Service Occupations · May 2025

How much do Makeup Artists, Theatrical and Performance make in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV?

In the May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics estimates, released May 15, 2026, the median annual wage for Makeup Artists, Theatrical and Performance in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV is $95,730. The 10th percentile is $52,000 and the 90th percentile is $138,770. Employment is 70.

Median annual wage

$95,730

10th percentile
$52,000
25th percentile
$84,820
Median
$95,730
75th percentile
$97,220
90th percentile
$138,770
Mean
$94,150

Annual wage from the May 2025 OEWS estimates.

A scientist working at a laboratory bench
A scientist in a laboratory. Photograph by Mark Shwartz, Stanford ENERGY. Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.5

Percentile spread

For Makeup Artists, Theatrical and Performance, the published 10th percentile is $52,000 and the 90th percentile is $138,770. The difference is $86,770, which is 90.6% of the median. Ten percent of measured wages fall below the 10th percentile and ten percent fall above the 90th. How to read a percentile.

The middle half of the distribution, from the 25th percentile at $84,820 to the 75th at $97,220, covers $12,400.

The mean annual wage is $94,150, which sits below the median of $95,730. Median and mean measure different points in the same distribution.

National and state comparison

The Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV median is 1.5% lower than the national median of $97,150 for Makeup Artists, Theatrical and Performance. In 2024 national prices the local median is $87,919, which is 9.5% lower than that same national median. The national figure is already in national prices because the United States parity is 100.

It is about the same as the District of Columbia median of $95,730.

Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV covers more than one state. The state comparison uses District of Columbia, the primary state on the BLS area record.

Price-adjusted pay

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV is 108.884, with the United States at 100. The Bureau of Economic Analysis released those parities on February 19, 2026. Dividing the May 2025 median of $95,730 by that parity and multiplying by 100 puts Makeup Artists, Theatrical and Performance at $87,919 in national prices. The wage year and the price year are different. Compare this wage after prices.

Nearby metros

No other metropolitan area within 200 miles has a published annual median for Makeup Artists, Theatrical and Performance in the May 2025 tables. A wage from farther away is not filled in. When a wage is not published.

Employment share

Makeup Artists, Theatrical and Performance accounts for 0.00% of wage-and-salary employment in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV (70 of 3,136,190). Nationally the occupation is 0.00% of employment (2,340 of 155,495,730). The local share is 1.48 times the national share. That ratio is the location quotient computed from these May 2025 employment counts. It is not copied from the location-quotient column in the BLS bulk file.

Highest-paying jobs in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV · Makeup Artists, Theatrical and Performance by metro · How to read these percentiles · Median and mean · When a wage is not published · How the figures are made · Compare this wage after prices

Questions this page answers

How much do Makeup Artists, Theatrical and Performance make in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV?

In the May 2025 OEWS estimates, released May 15, 2026, the median annual wage for Makeup Artists, Theatrical and Performance in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV is $95,730. The 10th percentile is $52,000 and the 90th percentile is $138,770. Employment is 70.

How does that compare with the national median for Makeup Artists, Theatrical and Performance?

The local median is 1.5% lower than the national median of $97,150.

What is Makeup Artists, Theatrical and Performance pay in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV after local prices?

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV is 108.884, with the United States at 100. In those national prices, the May 2025 median of $95,730 is $87,919. The wage is May 2025 and the parity is 2024.