Illustrating
Everything OPM FedScope (June 2026) reports about the Illustrating occupation series (code 1020): headcount, average salary, length of service, and pay comparison.
The verdict
Illustrating is a smaller, specialized federal occupation: 67 employees (0.0% of the federal civilian workforce) in the Information and Arts Group family. At an average salary of $86,903 it pays below the federal average of $117,339, and headcount declined 2.9% from the prior period.
- Employees
- 67
- Share of workforce
- 0.0%
- Avg salary
- $86,903
- Avg tenure
- 17.8 yrs
FedScope read on Illustrating (thin series)
As of the June 2026 reporting window, 67 people work in the Illustrating occupation (OPM code 1020) across federal agencies, 0.0% of the 1,953,300-strong federal civilian workforce. Headcount moved down by -2.9% from the prior period, though at this small a headcount, year-to-year swings can reflect a handful of hires or departures rather than a broad hiring trend.
The average salary for Illustrating is $86,903 per year. Salaries moved down by 0.0% from the prior period, a small shift, within the range of normal year-to-year rounding rather than a broad pay-table change. Average length of service in this role is 17.8 years, a long average tenure, typical of career federal roles where employees stay through much of a full career before retirement.
The Information and Arts Group family (code 10) groups Illustrating together with 18 other related occupations across the federal government. Candidates browsing USAJOBS for Illustrating postings should also review these sibling occupations in the Information and Arts Group family.
Within the Information and Arts Group family, Illustrating ranks #13 of 19 by headcount, accounting for 0.5% of the family's combined 14,755 employees.
Salary Context
How Illustrating pay compares to the federal average of $117,339
Occupation Average
$86,903
Federal Average
$117,339
vs. Federal Avg
-25.9%
Where Illustrating ranks on federal pay
Its average salary of $86,903 is higher than 42% of federal occupation series (229 of 541). The highlighted bar marks where Illustrating sits in the federal pay distribution.
Average-salary distribution across all 541 federal occupation series; Illustrating ranks higher than 42%.
Related Occupations in Information and Arts Group
10 other occupations in the same family
| Occupation | Employees | Avg Salary | Avg LOS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Public Affairs | 5,552 | $129,060 | 14.3 yrs |
| General Arts and Information | 2,759 | $126,733 | 14.5 yrs |
| Visual Information | 1,245 | $110,638 | 15.6 yrs |
| Language Specialist | 864 | $117,705 | 11.8 yrs |
| Technical Writing and Editing | 816 | $128,063 | 14.1 yrs |
| Writing and Editing | 760 | $138,055 | 15.2 yrs |
| Museum Specialist and Technician | 657 | $91,362 | 13.8 yrs |
| Audiovisual Production | 619 | $128,404 | 16 yrs |
| Museum Curator | 490 | $125,118 | 17.5 yrs |
| Interior Design | 355 | $105,579 | 11 yrs |
Nationwide peers near this thin headcount
Two peer sets for Illustrating outside the Information and Arts Group family, on headcount and average salary axes that vary across all OPM occupation series.
Similar thin headcount
Nearest employee counts in other occupation families (67 here).
Similar average salary
Nearest average salaries in other occupation families ($86,903 here).
Key takeaways
- Illustrating pays below the federal average by 25.9% ($86,903 vs $117,339 federal-wide), at the 42nd percentile for pay among 541 tracked occupation series.
- A smaller, specialized federal occupation by headcount: 67 employees, 0.0% of the federal civilian workforce, and headcount declined 2.9% from the prior period.
- According to OPM FedScope June 2026, Illustrating ranks #507 of 663 federal occupation series by headcount (the same employee_count ordering as our occupations directory).
- Within the Information and Arts Group family, Illustrating ranks #13 of 19 by headcount, accounting for 0.5% of the family's combined 14,755 employees.
OPM FedScope and Federal Workforce Data figures are federal civilian headcounts, average salaries, and length-of-service statistics - not job-quality scores, hiring advice, or a live vacancy listing. A larger or higher-paid agency is not a better employer.