A talented and very attractive young man, who is already successful in another creative field, asked me recently how to get into Voice Over. I scratched my head and thought “Why would he want to give up what he does now – WHAT HE WAS BORN TO DO – to go into Voice Acting?” Someone must have told him that he has a nice voice (not nearly the only qualification – if at all) or he figured that it’s an easy job that pays a lot. (No and No)
The truth is for most newbies and mid-level Voice Actors, the prospects of making a living in this business are pretty dismal. It’s not my opinion, It’s fact; right from the mouths of voice actors, according to a new survey out now. The survey by a non-profit called Voice Actors NYC, surveyed 1,244 voice actors nationwide. Here is what I got from the results:
Nearly Half are Newbies
48% are new to the business in the last five years. That means nearly half are newbies (I consider 0-5 year’s experience an entry level talent, but you may think differently.) That’s nearly half of all voice actors in the business today. If that many are new talent, i wonder how many have left the business in the last five years? Take a look at all the voice over gear for sale online. Enough said.
Newbies generally don’t present much competition for more experienced Voice Actors in the skills department. But they tend to price themselves way below more experienced talent. This confuses and erodes the price structure.
Most Talent are Non-City Dwellers
52% live outside a major metropolitan area, where its much, much cheaper to live. Yes, most talent don’t need boot-on-the-ground in a major city to excel in this business. Housing, groceries, insurance, Healthcare, and other daily costs of living are multiples times higher in New York and Los Angeles, compared to other places. Compare New York and New Orleans and housing alone is 167% HIGHER! “I’ll just live in the suburbs” you say. That will definitely save you money, but how much could you expect to make? More on that coming up.
Most are Non Union
65% are not affiliated with Sag Aftra and nearly 20% are Ficore. (Financial Core) That means they used to be union but now can do both union and non-union work. This matters because as non union talent have gotten better, advertisers are more comfortable using these skilled workers who charge less than Union Voice Actors. That’s good news and bad news for non union and Ficore actors because more work will be coming their way, but its bad news all around because prices will keep eroding. You’ll be paid less and less for doing the same great work. 60% of Voice Actors are doing exclusively (90-100%) non union work. And finally, and sadly…
Voice Acting Doesn’t Pay…For Most
48.3% made between $0 and $8,000 dollars last year. WTF! knowing that, who in their right mind would want to get into this business?! of course you shouldn’t just be motivated by money, but it IS a BUSINESS and 8K is NOT a living by any stretch of the imagination. 26% of voice actors made between $8,000 and 40,000. That’s still not a living if you want to live in a nice zip code and send your kids to good schools. Only 10.3% make between $40,000 and $75,000. What might start to be called a living, as long as its not anywhere near New York or Los Angeles. Yes, it was the pandemic (which is not over) but consider that in 2020 74% said their income stayed the same or got better. Yikes!
You can read the rest yourselves but it’s safe to say that one of the toughest, most isolating jobs you can choose to do, where you get little to no feedback on how well or how bad you’re doing, has little chance of making you a living. Unless you’re in the top 25%. And most of them are veterans, who sell you their services. So, who wants to get into Voice Over?