Video Game Developer Salary: Your 2025 Guide
Explore a video game developer salary and learn what you can expect to earn according to your location, the industry you work in, your qualifications, and your level of experience.
![[Featured Image] A team of video game developers discuss a new project that's displayed on a computer screen.](https://d3njjcbhbojbot.cloudfront.net/api/utilities/v1/imageproxy/https://images.ctfassets.net/wp1lcwdav1p1/6paRfbYPuzL1tchFARUFS7/e15849ba649670ddff86cf8777716add/GettyImages-2150096454.jpg?w=1500&h=680&q=60&fit=fill&f=faces&fm=jpg&fl=progressive&auto=format%2Ccompress&dpr=1&w=1000)
Video game developers develop the software that runs behind the game’s visuals, including the code to make the game run successfully. Gaming is big business, and the industry continues to grow. In fact, experts predict a growth in revenue of $216.3 billion between 2024 and 2029 in the gaming segment of the media market [1].
Working in this in-demand field brings higher-than-average salaries and an excellent job outlook [2]. However, the salary you take home is influenced by a number of factors. Discover a video game developer salary with variations according to your company, where you live, and your skills, experience, and qualifications.
What is a video game developer?
As a video game developer, you write and input the code and programming that make video games come together and become playable. You work on back-end development to create game components and ensure usability. While you may work on some design and visual elements, you usually work closely with a game designer who creates the visuals you code for input into virtual worlds.
What is the average annual video game developer salary?
According to several job listing websites, the average annual salary for a video game developer ranges from $75,693 to $131,450. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) lists the median annual salary for software developers at $130,160, while other sources list specific video game developer salaries slightly lower. The salary data ranges taken from five top job listing sites are as follows [2,3,4,5]:
| BLS | Glassdoor | Zippia | Payscale |
|---|---|---|---|
| $131,450 | $81,223 | $91,009 | $75,693 |
*All salary data as of April 2025
However, your exact salary depends on several factors, such as the company and industry you work for, where you live, your qualifications, and your level of experience.
Factors that affect salary
The average annual video game developer salary might change depending on certain variables. Your experience and education play an important role in how much you receive, and having more experience and a higher level of education leads to higher salaries. Where you work is also a consideration, and some industries pay higher salaries than others, as do some cities and states.
Education
Your level of education plays a part in your game developer salary. According to Zippia, 75 percent of video game developers hold a bachelor's degree, 11 percent opt for a master’s degree, and 10 percent opt for an associate degree. Some game developers opt for specialist courses, such as certifications relevant to programming in the gaming industry.
Zippia also reports that education strongly affects video game developer pay, with employees with doctorate degrees in the field receiving significantly more money than those with a bachelor’s degree alone [4].
Bachelor’s degree: $89,013
Master’s degree: $97,928
Doctorate degree: $107,042
Experience
Working in a job over time and participating in professional development is an excellent way to improve your salary. Generally, the more experience you have, the higher your salary. According to Glassdoor, the base salary for a video game developer is incremental as follows [3]:
| 0–1 year | 1–3 years | 4–6 years | 7–9 years | 10–14 years | 15+ years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $65,191 | $72,116 | $78,404 | $82,676 | $91,798 | $100,408 |
Job title
Your experience as a video game developer can produce opportunities to work in similar roles or to advance into leadership roles. Different job titles can also impact your salary, even if the job description is actually very similar, as these examples with salaries from Glassdoor show:
Game engineer: $88,595 [6]
Software engineer: $111,756 [7]
Software developer: $95,194 [8]
Lead game developer: $95,353 [9]
Senior game developer: $111,828 [10]
Industry
As a video game developer, you can search for employment in the private and public sectors and in government agencies. Within these, you can choose from industries such as education, technology, media, health, hospitality, and manufacturing. The industry you choose may have a bearing on the salary you receive. According to the BLS, the top-paying industries for software developers in general are as follows [2]:
Software publishers: $149,990
Manufacturing: $134,910
Finance and insurance: $132,880
Management and consultancy: $133,650
Computer system design: $129,890
Company
You’ll find some well-known companies hiring video game developers, such as SEGA, Sony, and Electronic Arts, as well as smaller companies and public sector departments. According to Zippia, some of the top-paying companies hiring game developers and their salaries include [4]:
Microsoft: $135,535
Amazon: $134,524
Robot Entertainment: $114,785
Sony Interactive Entertainment: $105,419
Intel: $103,821
Location
Geographic profiles show that even in the same job, you may receive a different salary, depending on where in the country you live and work. As a software developer, which includes game developers, the top-paying metropolitan areas are as follows [4]:
| City | Salary |
|---|---|
| Boston, MA | $98,701 |
| Cary, NC | $82,950 |
| Hillsboro, OR | $101,242 |
| Kirkland, WA | $106,462 |
| Las Vegas, NV | $108,803 |
| New York, NY | $90,437 |
| Newark, NJ | $90,437 |
| Salt Lake City, UT | $83,402 |
| San Francisco, CA | $124,996 |
| Washington, DC | $98,320 |
Video game developer job outlook
Video game development is a growing industry; game developers are in demand, and competition is high. According to the BLS, the job outlook is excellent, predicting a 17 percent increase between now and 2033. This amounts to around 140,100 software development job openings per year, including game developer roles [2].
If you’re looking for a video developer position and want to ensure you secure a role with a good salary, make sure you put together a solid portfolio of your work.
Explore the software developer and game developer resources on Coursera.
Check out the following software developer and game design resources to keep learning more.
Watch on YouTube: Career Spotlight: Game Developer or 7 Pro Game Design Tools You'll Learn
Listen to a success story: Pursuing his childhood dream of becoming a video game developer
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Article sources
Statista. “Video Game Market Revenue Worldwide from 2019 to 2029, https://www.statista.com/forecasts/1344668/revenue-video-game-worldwide.” Accessed April 24, 2025.
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