Pitches a label's or publisher's catalog for use in films, TV, ads and games, and negotiates the licenses that place songs on screen. BLS does not publish separate figures for sales representatives of services, except advertising, insurance, financial services, and travel; it counts them within sales representative of services, except advertising, insurance, financial services, and travel (SOC 41-3091), whose median pay is $69,990 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Typical entry-level education: High school diploma or equivalent.
- SOC 41-3091
- Sales and Related
- Last updated October 9, 2026
At a glance
Sync Licensing Manager in four numbers
- Median pay
- $69,990a year, or $33.65/hrBLS OEWS, May 2025Lowest 10% $38KTop 10% $149K
US median, all jobs: $50,980
- Projected growth
- +2.7%About as fast as averageBLS EP, 2025–2035This career+2.7%All jobs+3.5%
Projected employment change, 2025–2035 Item Value This career +2.7% All jobs +3.5% - Openings a year
- 115,7001,272,700 jobs todayBLS EP, 2025–2035
- Jobs in 20251.3M
- Projected 20351.3M
Employment, 2025–2035 Item Value Jobs in 2025 1.3M Projected 2035 1.3M - Typical education
- High schoolneeded to enterBLS EP, 2025–2035; mix: O*NET
Also advertised as: Synchronization Manager, Music Licensing Manager, Sync Representative, Licensing Representative, Creative Sync Manager.
Pay
How much do Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel make?
Every sync licensing manager in the US, by percentile of annual wage
Median
$69,990
Middle half earn $47,670 to $100,480
- 10th
- $37,980
- 25th
- $47,670
- 75th
- $100,480
- 90th
- $148,840
All US occupations: $50,980
| Percentile | Value |
|---|---|
| 10th | $37,980 |
| 25th | $47,670 |
| Median | $69,990 |
| 75th | $100,480 |
| 90th | $148,840 |
| All US occupations | $50,980 |
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025
- Median annual wage
- $69,990
- Median hourly wage
- $33.65/hr
- Mean annual wage
- $82,430
- People employed
- 1,256,010
Versus all US occupations
At $69,990, Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel earn 37% above the $50,980 median across all US occupations, a difference of $19,010 a year.
Versus sales and related occupations
Inside the Sales and Related group, where the middle occupation pays $73,220, this is 4% below the group median.
Pay range
The top 10% earn $148,840 or more while the bottom 10% earn $37,980, a gap of 3.9×. That is an unusually wide spread, which usually tracks specialisation, employer type and years of experience.
Rank in the bank
This median pays more than 45% of the 1,741 occupations in the NueCareer career bank.
Highest-paying state
New York pays the most at $92,190, and still leads at $85,424 once local prices are taken into account.
Pay by state
Which states pay Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel the most?
State medians come from the same OEWS release as the national figures. The cost-of-living column divides each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity, restating pay in national-average dollars so a high-cost state and a low-cost one can be compared directly.
| State | Median | COL-adjusted | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1New York | $92,190 | $85,424 | 80,510 |
| 2Massachusetts | $83,760 | $79,200 | 32,300 |
| 3Rhode Island | $81,450 | $79,634 | N/A |
| 4California | $80,850 | $73,022 | 156,110 |
| 5Washington | $79,920 | $74,683 | 18,950 |
| 6Colorado | $79,810 | $77,446 | 37,810 |
| 7New Jersey | $79,200 | $72,791 | 44,980 |
| 8Vermont | $77,530 | $79,146 | 1,130 |
| 9Connecticut | $76,940 | $74,259 | 11,420 |
| 10District of Columbia | $76,770 | $69,854 | 3,120 |
Job outlook
Is Sync Licensing Manager a growing career?
Employment change over 2025–2035, against every US occupation
About as fast as average. +2.7% projected growth vs 3.5% for all occupations.
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel | +2.7% |
| All US occupations | +3.5% |
Source: BLS EP, 2025–2035
About as fast as average
BLS projects employment of Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel to change 2.7% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% projected for all occupations. That is 33,900 more jobs.
Annual openings
About 115,700 openings are projected each year, 9.1% of the 1,272,700 jobs that existed in 2025. Most come from workers leaving the occupation, not from growth alone.
Getting in
How to become a Sync Licensing Manager
Most sync professionals hold a bachelor's degree in music business, communications or a related field. Berklee notes that many music publishers start as licensing representatives, because understanding music licensing is the most important skill in publishing.
Entry roles include sync coordinator, licensing assistant or catalog administrator at a publisher or label. Knowledge of copyright, deal terms and a wide range of music genres is essential, along with a contact list of supervisors. Industry courses, including Berklee's music licensing coursework, cover clearance and contract basics.
- 1
Typical entry-level education
High school diploma or equivalent
- 2
Work experience in a related occupation
None
- 3
Typical on-the-job training
Moderate-term on-the-job training
- 4
Preparation needed (O*NET job zone)
Little or no preparation
BLS Employment Projections, 2025–2035; job zone from O*NET 31.0 Database.
The work
What does a Sync Licensing Manager do?
Sync licensing managers sit on the other side of the table from music supervisors. Working for music publishers, record labels or sync agencies, they know their catalog deeply and pitch songs that fit briefs from TV shows, trailers, commercials and video games.
When a supervisor wants a track, the sync manager quotes a fee, negotiates terms such as media, territory and duration, gets approval from writers or artists, and issues the license. They track placements so income is collected, keep catalog metadata clean so songs can be found quickly, and build relationships with supervisors and advertising agencies.
Day-to-day tasks
- Pitch songs from the catalog in response to music supervisor briefs
- Quote license fees and negotiate media, term and territory
- Obtain approvals from songwriters, artists and co-owners
- Draft and issue synchronization and master use licenses
- Track placements and confirm that fees are collected
- Maintain searchable catalog metadata and playlists
- Build relationships with supervisors, agencies and trailer houses
Typical tasks, researched by NueCareer from the sources below.
Working conditions and hours
Sync managers work in offices or remotely, mainly in Los Angeles, New York, Nashville and London. The job involves fast email turnarounds when a production needs a song quickly, plus meetings, screenings and industry events.
Where the work happens
Indoors, climate-controlled
NeverEvery dayOutdoors in all weather
NeverEvery day
Physical demands
Sitting
NeverAlmost all the timeSeated for more than half the working day.
Standing
NeverAlmost all the timeBending or twisting
NeverAlmost all the time
Working with people
Contact with other people
NoneConstantConstant contact with other people.
Face-to-face discussions
NeverEvery dayDealing with the public
Not importantExtremely importantDealing with customers or the public is very important.
Pressure and stakes
Strict deadlines
NeverEvery dayConflict situations
NeverEvery dayCost of a mistake
Not seriousExtremely serious
Autonomy
Freedom to decide
NoneA lotA lot of freedom to make decisions without checking first.
Conditions: O*NET Work Context survey. Each item has its own scale, so each dot is read against the two answers that end its own line.
Core skills
O*NET importance, 1 to 5
- Active Listening3.9
- Speaking3.9
- Reading Comprehension3.6
- Writing3.4
- Critical Thinking3.4
- Active Learning3.4
- Monitoring3.1
- Mathematics2.6
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Active Listening | 3.9 |
| Speaking | 3.9 |
| Reading Comprehension | 3.6 |
| Writing | 3.4 |
| Critical Thinking | 3.4 |
| Active Learning | 3.4 |
| Monitoring | 3.1 |
| Mathematics | 2.6 |
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database
Transferable skills
O*NET importance, 1 to 5
- Social Perceptiveness3.4
- Persuasion3.4
- Negotiation3.4
- Service Orientation3.4
- Time Management3.4
- Complex Problem Solving3.0
- Judgment and Decision Making3.0
- Coordination2.9
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Social Perceptiveness | 3.4 |
| Persuasion | 3.4 |
| Negotiation | 3.4 |
| Service Orientation | 3.4 |
| Time Management | 3.4 |
| Complex Problem Solving | 3.0 |
| Judgment and Decision Making | 3.0 |
| Coordination | 2.9 |
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database
Tools and software
- Analytical or scientific software · in demand
- Customer relationship management CRM software · in demand
- Electronic mail software · in demand
- Office suite software · in demand
- Operating system software · in demand
- Presentation software · in demand
- Project management software · in demand
- Sales and marketing software · in demand
- Spreadsheet software · in demand
- Word processing software · in demand
- Enterprise application integration software
- Enterprise resource planning ERP software
“In demand” marks an O*NET Employer-Based Hot Technology, software named in real job postings for this occupation.
Personality fit
What personality type suits a Sync Licensing Manager?
NueCareer estimate (Holland code EAC) built on O*NET's Sales Representative of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel profile, scored 1 to 7
| Axis | Sync Licensing Manager |
|---|---|
| Realistic | 1 |
| Investigative | 2 |
| Artistic | 3 |
| Social | 4 |
| Enterprising | 7 |
| Conventional | 5 |
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database
What the work is built around
Day to day this is work built around leading, persuading, selling and making decisions, combined with organising, following procedures and working precisely with data.
- Enterprising6.7
- Conventional5.2
- Social3.8
- Artistic2.9
- Investigative1.9
- Realistic1.1
Closest MBTI types
NueCareer fit scores: cosine similarity between each MBTI type's interest vector and this occupation's O*NET interest profile. Not a BLS or O*NET figure; the method is documented on our methodology page.
Explore further
Careers related to Sync Licensing Manager
O*NET related occupations
- Sales and Related
Sales Representative of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel
$69,990median a year
Most earn $38K to $149K
+2.7%High school - Office and Administrative Support
- Sales and Related
- Management
- Sales and Related
- Sales and Related
Sales Representative, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Technical and Scientific Product
$104,920median a year
Most earn $53K to $200K
+1.2%Bachelor's
More sales and related careers
Median annual pay, with sales representatives of services, except advertising, insurance, financial services, and travel highlighted
- Sales Engineer$124,900
- Sales Representative, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Technical and Scientific Product$104,920
- Real Estate Broker$73,220
- Sales Representative, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products$72,080
- Sync Licensing Manager$69,990
- Insurance Sales Agent$62,280
- Real Estate Agent$52,830
- Travel Agent$50,160
- Cashier$32,880
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Sales Engineer | $124,900 |
| Sales Representative, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Technical and Scientific Product | $104,920 |
| Real Estate Broker | $73,220 |
| Sales Representative, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products | $72,080 |
| Sync Licensing Manager | $69,990 |
| Insurance Sales Agent | $62,280 |
| Real Estate Agent | $52,830 |
| Travel Agent | $50,160 |
| Cashier | $32,880 |
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025
Lists Sync Licensing Manager appears on
Questions
Sync Licensing Manager: frequently asked questions
How much do Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel make?
BLS does not publish a separate wage for sales representatives of services, except advertising, insurance, financial services, and travel. It counts them within sales representative of services, except advertising, insurance, financial services, and travel, whose median pay is $69,990 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). The middle half of that occupation earn between $47,670 and $100,480, and the top 10% earn $148,840 or more.
Do you need a degree to become a Sync Licensing Manager?
No. A bachelor's degree is not the norm: BLS reports a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry-level education for Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel. BLS also lists moderate-term on-the-job training as typical on-the-job training.
Is Sync Licensing Manager a growing career?
It is stable rather than fast-growing: employment is projected to change 2.7% over 2025–2035, about the same as the 3.5% projected across all occupations (BLS EP, 2025–2035). BLS still projects about 115,700 openings a year, mostly from workers retiring or moving to other work.
What does a Sync Licensing Manager do?
Sync licensing managers sit on the other side of the table from music supervisors. A typical task: pitch songs from the catalog in response to music supervisor briefs. Employers most often ask for Analytical or scientific software, Customer relationship management CRM software, Electronic mail software.
Which states pay Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel the most?
The highest state medians for Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel are New York ($92,190), Massachusetts ($83,760), Rhode Island ($81,450) (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
What personality type suits a Sync Licensing Manager?
O*NET scores Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel highest on the Enterprising, Conventional and Social interest areas, so the work mixes leading, persuading, selling and making decisions with organising, following procedures and working precisely with data. On NueCareer's MBTI-to-interest mapping the closest types are ESFJ, ENFJ, ESTJ. Personality is a fit signal, not a gate. The free NueCareer quiz scores your own profile against all 1,731 careers in the bank.