Dancers (2026 stats)
Executive Summary
The national workforce is about 9,060 dancers. Employment in the series shown fell about 41% from the first to the last year; projections imply about 3.2% annual growth.
Dancers: what the data shows
Common questions about dancers careers, answered from BLS OEWS and O*NET in this repository.
What is a dancers?
Dancers is tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics under SOC 27-2031.
U.S. employment in our OEWS extract is about 9,060 workers.
What does a dancers do?
O*NET work activities rated highest for this occupation include Performing General Physical Activities, Getting Information, Performing for or Working Directly with the Public, Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships, Thinking Creatively, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates, and related tasks. See Work Activities for the full list.
What skills do you need?
O*NET ratings for this occupation emphasize skills such as Active Listening, Coordination, Critical Thinking, Monitoring, Time Management, Speaking, and knowledge areas including Fine Arts, English Language, Customer and Personal Service, Mathematics. See Education & Skills for detail.
Is dancers in demand?
Historical employment trend in our series implies about 3.2% annual growth (compound rate in the extract).
Five-year projected employment change: 17.0%.
Ten-year projected employment change: 36.9%.
Current U.S. headcount: 9,060.
We report federal series only—compare wages, growth, and openings against your target market.
What degrees lead to this career?
Common majors for Dancers in O*NET:
See Related degrees.
Employment
Employment and salary information for the Dancers workforce.
Employment Over Time
9,060 U.S. workforce (OEWS)
California employment for Dancers grew from 5,760 in 2009 to 9,520 in 2025 (65.3%).
Historical employment for Dancers from the California OEWS series, 2009–2025. The U.S. workforce figure is national and is not the endpoint of this line.
Yearly Wage Ranking
No published wage figure for Dancers in our current extract.
Wage ranking compared to other occupations.
Wage Distribution
This chart shows the distribution of average salaries by income buckets for Dancers.
Salary distribution for Dancers.
Employment Growth Projections
3.2% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR)
11,138 Projected Employment (5 years)
Projected growth: 17.0%
13,032 Projected Employment (10 years)
Projected growth: 36.9%
This occupation is projected to grow at 3.2% annually, indicating strong future demand.
Historical employment trends and future projections for Dancers.
Industry
Information on the industries that employ Dancers and on wages for those in the field.
Occupations by Industries
This graphic shows the share of Dancers employed by various industries.
Industry distribution for Dancers.
Wage Trends by Industry
Wage trend data by industry is not available for this occupation.
Historical wage growth trends by industry for Dancers.
Geographic Distribution
Employment and wage information by geographic location for Dancers.
State employment and wages are from the U.S. BLS OEWS May 2024 state extract. Metropolitan areas use the national MSA file when available.
Top States by Employment
Top States by Employment:
- CA: 2,880 employees, N/A avg wage
- NY: 1,400 employees, N/A avg wage
- HI: 590 employees, N/A avg wage
- FL: 510 employees, N/A avg wage
- MO: 450 employees, N/A avg wage
- UT: 210 employees, N/A avg wage
- NV: 200 employees, N/A avg wage
- WI: 190 employees, N/A avg wage
- MI: 170 employees, N/A avg wage
- IN: 170 employees, N/A avg wage
Top 10 states by employment for Dancers.
Top Metropolitan Areas
Top Metropolitan Areas:
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ: 1,190 employees, N/A avg wage
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA: 1,140 employees, N/A avg wage
- San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA: 640 employees, N/A avg wage
- Urban Honolulu, HI: 420 employees, N/A avg wage
- Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA: 240 employees, N/A avg wage
- Kansas City, MO-KS: 200 employees, N/A avg wage
- Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV: 170 employees, N/A avg wage
- Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL: 150 employees, N/A avg wage
- Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI: 140 employees, N/A avg wage
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN: 140 employees, N/A avg wage
Top 10 metropolitan statistical areas by employment for Dancers.
Diversity
Demographic information on Dancers in the US.
Gender and Age
The U.S. workforce for Dancers is about 9,060 people in our OEWS extract.
Gender and age distribution for Dancers.
Races
Racial and ethnic shares when present in the career dataset. If the chart area shows a notice instead, occupational race/ethnicity fields are not yet populated for this extract.
Race and ethnicity distribution for Dancers.
Education & Skills
Data on higher education choices and required skills for Dancers.
Majors
The most common majors achieved by Dancers in 2023 were Business, Social Sciences, General Studies.
Common majors for Dancers.
Education Levels
The main educational levels achieved by Dancers workers.
Education level distribution for Dancers.
Skills
Dancers need many skills, but most especially Active Listening, Coordination, Critical Thinking, Monitoring, Time Management.
Required skills for Dancers.
Knowledge & Abilities
Knowledge areas and abilities required for Dancers.
Knowledge Areas
The most important knowledge areas for Dancers include Fine Arts, English Language, Customer and Personal Service, Mathematics, Transportation.
Knowledge areas required for Dancers.
Abilities
Key abilities needed for Dancers include Gross Body Coordination, Extent Flexibility, Dynamic Strength, Stamina, Trunk Strength.
Required abilities for Dancers.
Work Activities
Common work activities performed by Dancers.
Daily Activities
Dancers spend their time on activities such as Performing General Physical Activities, Getting Information, Performing for or Working Directly with the Public, Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships, Thinking Creatively.
Most important work activities for Dancers.
About
Dancers
No published wage figure for Dancers in our current extract.
SOC Code
27-2031 - Dancers
Insights and Analysis
Labor market presence: The current workforce is approximately 9,060 workers, indicating sustained demand.
Forward outlook: Projected annual growth is 3.2%, which should inform long-term career planning.
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology
Data for this profile is sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS), and O*NET Online.
All wage figures represent annual averages and may vary by location, industry, and experience level.