A Breakdown of Voice Over Income

What is the State of Voice Over Income in 2026?

As the VO Strategist, I define Voiceover Income as the intersection of Cash Flow and Marketing Strategies. Analyzing the data from The National Association of Voice Actors 2022 to 2026 surveys reveals a widening "Viability Gap" between those trapped in the Crawl phase (making less than $10k per year) and those scaling to the Run phase (making more than $100k per year). Understanding these shifts is the difference between thinking like a starving artist vs. thinking like a CEO.

How Was Voice Over Income in 2025?

2025 was a wonky year.

Almost every voice actor I know in the Walk/Jog phase of their voice over journey experienced a serious dip in their income over last summer (including myself) and 2026 isn't starting out much better. I theorized it was due to both AI and tariffs and I stand by that.

Now that NAVA has released the results of the 2026 Voice Over Survey and we have five years worth of data, I thought it would be fun to drill down a bit with some comparisons. Considering that a massive amount of data was collected and I ain't no statistician, I decided to look at only the income section of each survey. Shall we take a peek...?

What are the Actual Trends in Voice Over Gross Income from 2020 to 2026?

Let's examine the pie charts below using VO Strategist-speak: "Crawl" = up to $10,000 in voice over income

"Walk" = $10,000-$50,000 in voice over income

"Jog" = $50,000-$100,000 in voice over income

"Run" = over $100,000 in voice over income

Phase	Income Threshold	2020	2021	2022	2024	2025
CRAWL	Up to $10,000	56%	48%	55%	48%	46%
WALK	$10,001–$50k	23%	27%	22%	22%	24%
JOG	$50,001–$100k	9%	12%	11%	15%	14%
RUN	Over $100,000	12%	15%	13%	15%	16%

How to Interpret the Data

It's important to consider how many people take a survey. An accurate survey is taken by roughly 1% of a demographic. An average of 1,443 voice actors have taken the NAVA survey each year since 2020. If you look at the Gitnux survey, I think it backs up that the NAVA survey has a robust number of respondents that reflect the overall US voice actor population

I bet there is a large overlap of voice actors who take the survey every year and most of them of had some kind of upward trajectory. That may explain why the Walk, Jog, and Run numbers have increased and the Crawl number has decreased so that section may not reflect the overall populace of voice actors.

That aside, if 46% of the industry is still in the Crawl phase, but the Run phase is growing, what does that tell us? It may tell us the Middle Class of VO is being redefined. In 2026, you can't just be a voice. You have to be a solution.

Those in the Walk & Jog phase are likely the ones diversifying into Digital Voice Solutions. Not fighting AI, but licensing their own models to create passive income streams that supplement their human performances. They aren't working harder; they're working smarter.

The Walk & Jog voice actors may also be investing more in Pay-To-Play sites like Voice123 and Voices Dot Com. I've noticed that many production houses have migrated to online casting sites over the past ten years since it's easier to book a voice actor there and they can happily ignore all of our direct marketing emails.

The Bottom Line

So, what is the state of voice over income in 2026? It’s stratified. Nowadays, you can’t just be another voice and expect to eat. You have to be the solution.

The days of falling into a middle-class VO income within a few months of starting your journey are gone. The data may be revealing a divide: those who view themselves as a "service" depending on outdated marketing strategies are struggling in the Crawl and Walk phases, while those who view themselves as a solution and partner are thriving in the Jog and Run phases.

The growth in the $100k+ category despite the "Summer Dip of '25" proves that there is still plenty of money in this industry, it’s just moving into different pockets. I think it’s moving toward those who:

• Embrace the Hybrid Model: Using digital voice clones as junior varsity versions of themselves to handle lower-budget work that aren't going to humans anymore.

• Skate to where the Puck is Going: Acknowledging the steady shift toward online casting instead of fighting the tide of how production houses want to work.

• Prioritize Business Systems: Treating their marketing and cash flow with the same respect they give their acting craft.

If you find yourself stuck in the "Crawl" or "Walk" phases, don't panic, pivot. Use this data not as a scorecard of where you've been, but as a roadmap for where you need to go.

A HUGE thank you to David Cui Cui and the rest of the NAVA gang for creating the Survey!

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As the VO Strategist, Tom Dheere has provided voice over business & marketing coaching since 2011.

He's also a voice actor with over 30 years of experience who has narrated just about every type of voice over you can think of.

When not voicing or talking about voicing, Tom produces the sci-fi comic book Agent 1.22.