Art Directors pay range in Boulder
New workers and the lowest-paid 10% earn about $79,730 a year or less, while the top 10% make $163,920 or more. The middle half of art directors in Boulder earn between $89,990 and $136,250.
- $80K10th
- $90K25th
- $107KMedian
- $136K75th
- $164K90th
median average · bar = middle 50% of workers
| Pay level | Per year | Per month | Per hour* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average | $116,170 | $9,681 | $55.85 |
| Median | $107,130 | $8,928 | $51.50 |
| Entry level (25th percentile) | $89,990 | $7,499 | $43.26 |
| Experienced (75th percentile) | $136,250 | $11,354 | $65.50 |
*Hourly figures assume 2,080 paid hours a year.
Art Directors salary after taxes in Boulder
On the average salary of $116,170, a single filer in Boulder takes home about $86,153 a year, or $7,179 a month and $3,314 every two weeks. Taxes take 26% of gross pay.
Single filer, standard deduction: federal income tax (2026 brackets), Social Security, Medicare and state income tax (2026 rules). Colorado's FAMLI premium and the flat monthly occupational privilege taxes of Denver, Aurora and a few other cities are not included.
Is Boulder a good place for art directors? Pay vs. cost of living
Prices in the Boulder area are 5% above the U.S. average (BEA price parity 105.2), so the average $116,170 buys what about $110,426 would buy in a typical U.S. metro. This job pays 1.5 times the median wage of all jobs in Boulder ($69,580). A typical home costs $727,954, or 6.3 years of this average salary before tax.
Art Directors salary in other Colorado cities
Boulder ranks 1st of 4 Colorado metro areas for this job, the best-paid in the state.
- Boulder$116,170
- Fort Collins$113,630
- Denver$112,360
- Colorado Springs$98,780
Highest-paying cities for art directors
San Jose, CA pays this job the most of the metro areas we cover ($182,620).
- San Jose, CA$182,620
- San Francisco, CA$169,940
- New York, NY$161,120
- Portland, OR$158,630
- Los Angeles, CA$156,680
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Art Directors salary in Boulder: questions
How much do art directors make an hour in Boulder?
$55.85 an hour on average, and $51.51 at the median (BLS, May 2025).
What is the entry-level art directors salary in Boulder?
The lowest-paid 10% earn about $79,730 a year and the 25th percentile is $89,990, a fair guide to starting pay.
What is the art directors take-home pay in Boulder?
About $86,153 a year ($7,179 a month) for a single filer on the average salary of $116,170. Colorado's FAMLI premium and the flat monthly occupational privilege taxes of Denver, Aurora and a few other cities are not included.
Do art directors earn more in Boulder than elsewhere?
The average here is 14% less than the U.S. metro average for this job ($134,942).
Sources and how to read this page
- Wages: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 estimates for metropolitan areas. SOC code 27-1011; area Boulder, CO (14500). Relative standard error of the mean wage: 3.5%.
- Cost of living: Bureau of Economic Analysis regional price parities (RPP), 2024; 100 = U.S. average.
- Home value: Zillow Home Value Index. Typical-wage figure: OEWS all occupations, same metro.
- Take-home pay: Single filer, standard deduction: federal income tax (2026 brackets), Social Security, Medicare and state income tax (2026 rules). Colorado's FAMLI premium and the flat monthly occupational privilege taxes of Denver, Aurora and a few other cities are not included.
- Job concentration: location quotient 1.19, this job is about as common as in the U.S. overall.
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