Books the artists who play a venue, festival or concert series, negotiating fees and building a calendar that sells tickets. BLS does not publish separate figures for meeting, convention, and event planners; it counts them within meeting, convention, and event planner (SOC 13-1121), whose median pay is $61,160 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Typical entry-level education: Bachelor's degree.
- SOC 13-1121
- Business and Financial Operations
- Last updated October 9, 2026
At a glance
Talent Buyer in four numbers
- Median pay
- $61,160a year, or $29.41/hrBLS OEWS, May 2025Lowest 10% $37KTop 10% $102K
US median, all jobs: $50,980
- Projected growth
- +5.8%Faster than averageBLS EP, 2025–2035This career+5.8%All jobs+3.5%
Projected employment change, 2025–2035 Item Value This career +5.8% All jobs +3.5% - Openings a year
- 16,800172,100 jobs todayBLS EP, 2025–2035
- Jobs in 2025172.1K
- Projected 2035182.1K
Employment, 2025–2035 Item Value Jobs in 2025 172.1K Projected 2035 182.1K - Typical education
- Bachelor'sneeded to enterBLS EP, 2025–2035; mix: O*NET
- High school7.9%
- Certificate6.6%
- Some college37.2%
- Associate's7.5%
- Bachelor's40.8%
Highest education held by meeting, convention, and event planners Segment Value High school 7.9% Certificate 6.6% Some college 37.2% Associate's 7.5% Bachelor's 40.8%
Also advertised as: Concert Buyer, Venue Programmer, Festival Talent Buyer, Promoter Talent Buyer.
Pay
How much do Meeting, Convention, and Event Planners make?
Every talent buyer in the US, by percentile of annual wage
Median
$61,160
Middle half earn $46,970 to $78,790
- 10th
- $36,830
- 25th
- $46,970
- 75th
- $78,790
- 90th
- $101,700
All US occupations: $50,980
| Percentile | Value |
|---|---|
| 10th | $36,830 |
| 25th | $46,970 |
| Median | $61,160 |
| 75th | $78,790 |
| 90th | $101,700 |
| All US occupations | $50,980 |
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025
- Median annual wage
- $61,160
- Median hourly wage
- $29.41/hr
- Mean annual wage
- $66,520
- People employed
- 142,860
Versus all US occupations
At $61,160, Meeting, Convention, and Event Planners earn 20% above the $50,980 median across all US occupations, a difference of $10,180 a year.
Versus business and financial operations occupations
Inside the Business and Financial Operations group, where the middle occupation pays $80,730, this is 24% below the group median.
Pay range
The top 10% earn $101,700 or more while the bottom 10% earn $36,830, a gap of 2.8×. That is a typical spread for a US occupation.
Rank in the bank
This median pays more than 34% of the 1,741 occupations in the NueCareer career bank.
Cost of living
District of Columbia posts the highest raw median ($76,970), but once local prices are taken into account Vermont leads at $75,859 in national-average dollars.
Pay by state
Which states pay Meeting, Convention, and Event Planners 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1District of Columbia | $76,970 | $70,036 | 2,360 |
| 2Massachusetts | $75,740 | $71,617 | 4,640 |
| 3New York | $74,730 | $69,245 | 10,330 |
| 4Hawaii | $74,460 | $67,721 | 550 |
| 5Vermont | $74,310 | $75,859 | 430 |
| 6New Jersey | $72,780 | $66,890 | 2,160 |
| 7California | $71,120 | $64,234 | 20,650 |
| 8Connecticut | $70,010 | $67,571 | 1,450 |
| 9Washington | $65,530 | $61,236 | 3,600 |
| 10Maryland | $63,280 | $60,290 | 2,570 |
Job outlook
Is Talent Buyer a growing career?
Employment change over 2025–2035, against every US occupation
Faster than average. +5.8% projected growth vs 3.5% for all occupations.
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Meeting, Convention, and Event Planners | +5.8% |
| All US occupations | +3.5% |
Source: BLS EP, 2025–2035
Faster than average
BLS projects employment of Meeting, Convention, and Event Planners to change 5.8% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% projected for all occupations. That is 10,000 more jobs.
Annual openings
About 16,800 openings are projected each year, 9.8% of the 172,100 jobs that existed in 2025. Most come from workers leaving the occupation, not from growth alone.
Getting in
How to become a Talent Buyer
There is no required credential, though many buyers studied music business or management. Berklee describes typical entry through box office, hospitality or street team jobs, then a move to assistant buyer or promoter coordinator before buying shows independently.
Useful skills include contracts, ticketing, marketing and a deep knowledge of genres and touring artists. Employers include large live entertainment companies, independent venues, casinos, performing arts centers and festivals. The International Entertainment Buyers Association is the main networking group for buyers and agents.
- 1
Typical entry-level education
Bachelor's degree
- 2
Work experience in a related occupation
None
- 3
Typical on-the-job training
None
- 4
Preparation needed (O*NET job zone)
Medium preparation
BLS Employment Projections, 2025–2035; job zone from O*NET 31.0 Database.
What education people in the job have
O*NET incumbent survey: the highest level of education reported by people already working as meeting, convention, and event planners.
- Bachelor's Degree40.8%
- Some College Courses37.2%
- High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED)7.9%
- Associate's Degree or other 2-year degree7.5%
- Post-Secondary Certificate6.6%
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Bachelor's Degree | 40.8% |
| Some College Courses | 37.2% |
| High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED) | 7.9% |
| Associate's Degree or other 2-year degree | 7.5% |
| Post-Secondary Certificate | 6.6% |
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database
The work
What does a Talent Buyer do?
Talent buyers decide who plays a stage. They review pitches from booking agents, track which artists are growing in their market, and assemble a calendar or festival lineup that fits the audience. They negotiate deal structures, such as a flat guarantee or a percentage of ticket sales after expenses.
Buyers manage profit and loss projections for each show and keep production costs under control. They also think about food, beverage, VIP and parking revenue, because a booking can succeed for the venue even when ticket margins are thin. On show nights they often attend settlement with the artist's tour manager.
Day-to-day tasks
- Review booking agent pitches and avails for upcoming dates
- Build a venue calendar or festival lineup
- Negotiate artist fees and deal structures
- Prepare profit and loss projections for each show
- Coordinate with marketing and ticketing teams on announcements
- Manage local production costs
- Attend show settlements with tour managers
Typical tasks, researched by NueCareer from the sources below.
Working conditions and hours
Buyers do strategy, budgeting and email negotiations in an office during the day, then attend load-ins, shows and late settlements. Festival buyers work on long planning cycles. Some travel goes to industry conferences and showcases.
Where the work happens
Indoors, climate-controlled
NeverEvery dayOutdoors in all weather
NeverEvery day
Physical demands
Sitting
NeverAlmost all the timeStanding
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 dayFace-to-face discussions every day.
Dealing with the public
Not importantExtremely importantDealing with customers or the public is very important.
Pressure and stakes
Strict deadlines
NeverEvery dayMeeting strict deadlines at least weekly.
Conflict situations
NeverEvery dayHandling conflict situations at least monthly.
Cost of a mistake
Not seriousExtremely seriousMistakes are not usually 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
- Reading Comprehension4.0
- Active Listening4.0
- Speaking4.0
- Critical Thinking3.9
- Writing3.5
- Monitoring3.5
- Active Learning3.4
- Mathematics2.5
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Reading Comprehension | 4.0 |
| Active Listening | 4.0 |
| Speaking | 4.0 |
| Critical Thinking | 3.9 |
| Writing | 3.5 |
| Monitoring | 3.5 |
| Active Learning | 3.4 |
| Mathematics | 2.5 |
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database
Transferable skills
O*NET importance, 1 to 5
- Social Perceptiveness3.9
- Coordination3.9
- Service Orientation3.9
- Time Management3.8
- Complex Problem Solving3.6
- Judgment and Decision Making3.6
- Persuasion3.5
- Negotiation3.4
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Social Perceptiveness | 3.9 |
| Coordination | 3.9 |
| Service Orientation | 3.9 |
| Time Management | 3.8 |
| Complex Problem Solving | 3.6 |
| Judgment and Decision Making | 3.6 |
| Persuasion | 3.5 |
| Negotiation | 3.4 |
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database
Tools and software
- Data base user interface and query software · in demand
- Desktop publishing software · in demand
- Electronic mail software · in demand
- Geographic information system · in demand
- Graphics or photo imaging software · in demand
- Office suite software · in demand
- Presentation software · in demand
- Project management software · in demand
- Sales and marketing software · in demand
- Spreadsheet software · in demand
- Web page creation and editing software · in demand
- Web platform development software · in demand
“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 Talent Buyer?
NueCareer estimate (Holland code ECA) built on O*NET's Meeting, Convention, and Event Planner profile, scored 1 to 7
| Axis | Talent Buyer |
|---|---|
| Realistic | 1 |
| Investigative | 2 |
| Artistic | 3 |
| Social | 5 |
| 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.
- Enterprising7.0
- Conventional5.4
- Social4.6
- Artistic3.5
- Investigative1.6
- Realistic1.0
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 Talent Buyer
O*NET related occupations
- Business and Financial Operations
- Business and Financial Operations
- Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media
- Office and Administrative Support
Executive Secretary and Executive Administrative Assistant
$76,590median a year
Most earn $51K to $110K
0.0%High school - Personal Care and Service
First-Line Supervisor of Entertainment and Recreation Workers, Except Gambling Services
$48,560median a year
Most earn $35K to $79K
+5.3%High school - Business and Financial Operations
More business and financial operations careers
Median annual pay, with meeting, convention, and event planners highlighted
- Financial Advisor$105,070
- Accountant$83,680
- Insurance Underwriter$81,370
- Coroner$80,730
- Claims Adjuster, Examiner, and Investigator$78,000
- Loan Officer$76,690
- Human Resources Specialist$75,940
- Appraiser and Assessor of Real Estate$67,960
- Talent Buyer$61,160
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Financial Advisor | $105,070 |
| Accountant | $83,680 |
| Insurance Underwriter | $81,370 |
| Coroner | $80,730 |
| Claims Adjuster, Examiner, and Investigator | $78,000 |
| Loan Officer | $76,690 |
| Human Resources Specialist | $75,940 |
| Appraiser and Assessor of Real Estate | $67,960 |
| Talent Buyer | $61,160 |
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025
Lists Talent Buyer appears on
Questions
Talent Buyer: frequently asked questions
How much do Meeting, Convention, and Event Planners make?
BLS does not publish a separate wage for meeting, convention, and event planners. It counts them within meeting, convention, and event planner, whose median pay is $61,160 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). The middle half of that occupation earn between $46,970 and $78,790, and the top 10% earn $101,700 or more.
Do you need a degree to become a Talent Buyer?
Yes. BLS reports a bachelor's degree as the typical entry-level education for Meeting, Convention, and Event Planners, and O*NET rates the preparation needed as medium preparation. In O*NET's survey of people already doing the job, 40.8% hold bachelor's degree.
Is Talent Buyer a growing career?
Yes. Employment is projected to grow 5.8% over 2025–2035, faster than the 3.5% average for all occupations (BLS EP, 2025–2035). BLS still projects about 16,800 openings a year, mostly from workers retiring or moving to other work.
What does a Talent Buyer do?
Talent buyers decide who plays a stage. A typical task: review booking agent pitches and avails for upcoming dates. Employers most often ask for Data base user interface and query software, Desktop publishing software, Electronic mail software.
Which states pay Meeting, Convention, and Event Planners the most?
The highest state medians for Meeting, Convention, and Event Planners are District of Columbia ($76,970), Massachusetts ($75,740), New York ($74,730) (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Adjusted for local prices using BEA Regional Price Parities, Vermont moves to the top at $75,859.
What personality type suits a Talent Buyer?
O*NET scores Meeting, Convention, and Event Planners 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. Personality is a fit signal, not a gate. The free NueCareer quiz scores your own profile against all 1,731 careers in the bank.