Special Effects Artists and Animators salary in Technology and software, California
Software publishers, computer systems design, data processing, web search portals, and other IT services.
Special Effects Artists and Animators (Tech) in California: actual employer-disclosed pay
Public records from 135 certified H-1B Labor Condition Applications filed with the U.S. Department of Labor. Median offered wage: $126,443. Every figure below is an actual offered salary an employer attested to under federal law.
By DOL wage level
DOL classifies every offer into one of four wage levels based on the role's experience and skill requirements.
| Level | Filings | Median offer |
|---|---|---|
| Level I — entry | 25 | $94,266 |
| Level II — qualified | 46 | $120,000 |
| Level III — experienced | 24 | $139,293 |
| Level IV — fully competent | 20 | $189,018 |
Top employers filing for this role
Companies with the most certified filings for Special Effects Artists and Animators (Tech) in California. Median offer is across all of that employer's filings.
| Employer | Most-filed title | Filings | Median |
|---|---|---|---|
| BLIZZARD ENTERTAINMENT, INC. | ENVIRONMENT ARTIST, OUTSOURCE | 17 | $123,721 |
| ACTIVISION PUBLISHING INC | ARTIST I | 16 | $102,263 |
| Electronic Arts Inc. | Technical Artist 2 | 10 | $117,867 |
| Microsoft Corporation | Product Design | 10 | $152,479 |
| BYTEDANCE INC. | Product Designer | 8 | $216,250 |
| SNAP INC. | Sr. AR Designer, VFX (5) | 8 | $134,742 |
| Riot Games, Inc. | Visual Design Artist | 7 | $118,000 |
| DreamWorks Animation LLC | Visual Development Artist | 6 | $112,237 |
| Naughty Dog a limited liability company | Senior Character Artist | 5 | $120,000 |
| TikTok Inc. | Interactive Engineer | 3 | $150,000 |
Recent sample filings
A snapshot of recent certified offers. Each line is a real, public, verifiable record.
- Visual Development Artist at Aligned Pictures LLC$91,520BurbankDecided Dec 30, 2025I-200-25356-502902
- Product Designer at BYTEDANCE INC.$202,500San JoseDecided Dec 29, 2025I-200-25354-499832
- ENVIRONMENT ARTIST, OUTSOURCE at BLIZZARD ENTERTAINMENT, INC.$101,566IRVINEDecided Dec 24, 2025I-200-25352-492497
- Interactive Engineer at TikTok Inc.$243,678San JoseDecided Dec 22, 2025I-200-25350-484769
- SENIOR UX DESIGNER at BLIZZARD ENTERTAINMENT, INC.$152,131IRVINEDecided Dec 19, 2025I-200-25346-478447
- TECHNICAL ARTIST, WORLD DYNAMIC at BLIZZARD ENTERTAINMENT, INC.$117,541IRVINEDecided Dec 16, 2025I-200-25343-469042
- Environment Concept Artist at Vertisystem, Inc.$114,400Santa MonicaDecided Dec 4, 2025I-202-25330-441557
- Technical Artist at Naughty Dog a limited liability company$110,000Santa MonicaDecided Nov 24, 2025I-200-25321-413727
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Foreign Labor Certification. Disclosed wages reflect what employers attested to pay; actual paid wages may differ. Only certified filings are shown — denied and withdrawn cases are excluded.