Curators Salary
Curators in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI make a median of $72,760 a year, or about $34.98 an hour. The range runs from $44K at the entry level to $100K for experienced workers. Adjusted for local prices (RPP 104.82), that's roughly $69,414 in purchasing power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $1,709/month, about 36% of take-home, which is tight.
Where the paycheck goes
What $73K actually covers in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, month by month
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington’s Regional Price Parity (104.82). Rent from HUD Fair Market Rents. Taxes estimated for single filer, standard deduction. * Healthcare is the employee-paid share only (premiums + out-of-pocket). Actual costs vary by coverage type: employer-sponsored, ACA marketplace, or uninsured.
About curators
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What this looks like in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington sits well above the national pay line for curators, local pay runs about 15% higher than the U.S. median of $63K. The catch: housing math doesn't keep up. A 2-bedroom at the HUD median rents for $1,709/month, which is 36.6% of the median worker's take-home, past the 30% guideline most planners use. Cost of living (RPP 104.82) is near the national average, so spending patterns here track the typical American budget fairly closely. The pay premium is real, but so are the offsets.
Compared to nearby metros
Median pay for curators in metros near Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Madison | $68K | $70K |
| Milwaukee-Waukesha | $66K | $68K |
| Des Moines-West Des Moines | $49K | $53K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI
Entry-level curators (10th percentile) start around $44K. Mid-career wages sit at $73K. Top earners bring in $100K or more, a $56K spread from bottom to top.
Curators pay across states
Median income ranked highest to lowest, compared to the national figure
View Curators salary in all states
| State | Median salary | vs. national | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | $93K | +47% | 140 |
| New Hampshire | $82K | +30% | 60 |
| New York | $79K | +25% | 1,330 |
| California | $79K | +24% | 1,140 |
| Rhode Island | $78K | +23% | 70 |
| New Jersey | $78K | +23% | 120 |
| Massachusetts | $78K | +23% | 370 |
| Connecticut | $77K | +21% | 190 |
| South Dakota | $75K | +18% | 50 |
| Washington | $74K | +17% | 260 |
| Colorado | $74K | +16% | 300 |
| Nevada | $70K | +10% | 100 |
| Wisconsin | $64K | +1% | 300 |
| Alaska | $64K | +1% | 90 |
| Maryland | $64K | +1% | 170 |
| New Mexico | $64K | +0% | 140 |
| Ohio | $64K | +0% | 370 |
| Arizona | $64K | +0% | 150 |
| Michigan | $63K | -0% | 360 |
| Illinois | $63K | -1% | 410 |
| Oregon | $63K | -1% | 260 |
| Idaho | $62K | -2% | 50 |
| Pennsylvania | $62K | -2% | 520 |
| Wyoming | $62K | -2% | 90 |
| Alabama | $61K | -4% | 150 |
| Oklahoma | $61K | -5% | 150 |
| Louisiana | $60K | -5% | 160 |
| Texas | $60K | -5% | 690 |
| Missouri | $60K | -5% | 260 |
| Utah | $60K | -6% | 50 |
| Florida | $60K | -6% | 420 |
| Nebraska | $59K | -8% | 120 |
| Virginia | $58K | -8% | 450 |
| Georgia | $58K | -9% | 230 |
| Tennessee | $58K | -9% | 190 |
| Delaware | $57K | -10% | 60 |
| Kansas | $57K | -11% | 120 |
| Vermont | $57K | -11% | 60 |
| Maine | $56K | -11% | 110 |
| Kentucky | $55K | -13% | 130 |
| Montana | $54K | -14% | 100 |
| Minnesota | $54K | -15% | 220 |
| Indiana | $54K | -15% | 220 |
| Arkansas | $54K | -15% | 80 |
| Iowa | $54K | -15% | 230 |
| Hawaii | $51K | -20% | 140 |
| North Carolina | $49K | -22% | 600 |
| South Carolina | $47K | -26% | 120 |
| Mississippi | $41K | -36% | 30 |
Showing 1–10 of 49 states with published data
BLS does not publish data for every state when sample sizes are too small
Track curators salary changes
BLS updates this data quarterly. We'll email you when Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington numbers change.
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Quick answers
The stuff people actually ask about this job
Can a curator afford a 2BR apartment alone in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $73K, rent takes 36.6% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,709/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $1,400/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.
What’s the entry-level salary for curators in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new curators typically earn — is $44K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $3,011/month. At HUD’s $1,709/month FMR, rent would take 57% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.
Is curator a high-paying job in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington?
Local pay is 15% above the national median — $73K here vs. $63K nationally.
How does Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington compare to the national average for curators?
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington pays $73K median vs. the U.S. average of $63K — that’s +15%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 104.82), the purchasing-power equivalent is $69K — still ahead of the national median.
How much do curators make in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI?
The median is $72,760 a year, that works out to about $35 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $44,410, and experienced curators can clear $99,960. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $73K enough to live in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $4,671/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,709/month, which eats 36.6% of your paycheck. That's above the 30% rule of thumb, housing will be a stretch at the median salary, though you can manage with roommates or a smaller place.
How far does a curators salary go in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington?
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington has a Regional Price Parity of 104.82 (100 is the national average). Prices are above average here, so your dollar buys less than the same salary would in a cheaper metro. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median curators salary is worth about $69,414 in national-average purchasing power.
Where do curators get paid the most?
The table above ranks every state by median pay for this role. Keep in mind that the highest-paying states tend to have the highest costs of living, so the top salary doesn't always mean the most money in your pocket.