If you're looking at game design schools in Seattle, the first surprise is that most of the ranked schools sit outside the city. Five ranked programs fall inside the metro, none of them public game degrees, and the strongest score is an animation program at a public college in Kirkland. Pay is the other half of the story: software developer pay here runs well past the national figure, so the degree you pick should match the job you want.
Kevin ToFounder & EditorB.S. in Computer Science, Temple UniversityUpdated
9Game Programs Within 25 Milesgame design, programming, simulation and animation, all levelsIPEDS locations
9Game Programs Within 50 Milesat 5 collegesIPEDS locations
2Ranked Game Design Bachelor's Programs Nearbyranked, within 50 miles; plus 3 animationOur ranking
Lake Washington Institute of Technology leads the metro at 75.2.5 ranked programs sit inside the Seattle, Tacoma and Bellevue metro. Price is its strength: aided first-year students pay $8,545, $17,605 under the ranking's median, though 49% completion trails the 59% median.The Ranking ›
Software developers earn $167,280 here.The U.S. median for the same job is $135,980. About 92,770 people work as software developers in the metro, a heavier concentration than the country as a whole (location quotient 4.10). Web and digital interface designers, where BLS counts game designers, earn $133,760 in Seattle, 29% more than the $104,000 national median.Pay ›
645 software and game publishers in the metro.Concentration 6.90, where 1.00 matches the U.S. Those publishers employ 93,968 people. The metro also has 1,147 custom programming studios and 198 film, video and animation production companies.Employers ›
In-state tuition starts at $3,291.3 public colleges nearby offer a game-related program. The highest in-state tuition nearby is $4,263, so where you enroll changes the bill a lot.Costs ›
A one-bedroom rents for $1,814 a month.The U.S. median one-bedroom is $1,301. Rent is the big cost in the Seattle, Tacoma and Bellevue metro: the median is $2,050 a month, $563 over the U.S. median. The lowest on-campus room and board nearby is $13,026 a year at Highline College.Living Costs ›
Ranked in Seattle
The Best Game Design Schools in Seattle, WA for 2027
The standout is Lake Washington Institute of Technology, a public school in Kirkland ranked 18 of 82 for animation with a score of 75.2. It's 10 miles from downtown and publishes in-state tuition of $3,291. DigiPen Institute of Technology, a Redmond campus, is ranked 70 of 82 for animation and 74 of 89 for games, and it publishes $38,600 whether you live in Washington or not.
Cornish College of the Arts is the one campus actually in the city, 1 mile from the center. Its game design program ranks 89 of 89 and its animation program 80 of 82, with only 2 and 3 graduates a year. Treat those numbers as a small art-school program rather than a verdict on the school, and weigh the $40,038 published tuition against what you'd get.
Game design, game programming, simulation and animation programs are all scored the same way, on completion, net price and program size. On each card, completion is the school's 8-year award rate and net price its average for aided first-year students, both from IPEDS; grads a year is the program's own average, 2022 to 2024. Miles are straight-line from central Seattle.
Kirkland, WA · Public · Animation program · 10 miles
75.2
#18 of 82 in animation
10 miles from Seattle
Lowest net price in Seattle
Net price earns full cost points
Animation
Public
Ten miles from Seattle, in suburban Kirkland, LWTech's Game Design and Development BAS meets in the evenings in a hybrid format. Students can aim at video game development, interactive media, marketing or education, and the page describes making indie games or joining professional studios.
In-state tuition is $3,291, with net price for aided first-years at $8,545 school-wide. Applicants should plan for a selective, competitive application, with a priority deadline and rolling admission after that. About 21 graduates a year come from the program, and 49% of entering students across the college complete within eight years. Admission is for fall start only, and the program is a Bachelor of Applied Science. The college has 3,564 students, and earnings for graduates of all majors were $50,669 ten years out.
Redmond, WA · Private for-profit · Animation program · 11 miles
47.3
#70 of 82 in animation
11 miles from Seattle
Highest completion in Seattle
Animation
Private
DigiPen's B.F.A. in Digital Art and Animation is on a city campus in Redmond, 11 miles from Seattle, and the program page names Bungie and Microsoft among the local companies students connect with. The degree starts with observational drawing, perspective, tone, color, composition and animation, then applies them to 3D modeling, digital sculpting, visual effects, lighting, texturing, simulations, technical art and 3D animation. Students pick specialization tracks in animation, rigging, character creation or environment design.
Over four years, students repeatedly join multidisciplinary teams with programmers, designers and audio specialists to build a playable video game or a 3D animated film. DigiPen is an Unreal Engine Academic Partner and an official Houdini Certified School.
Tuition is $38,600 for every student, and aided first-years pay a net price of $40,015. About 65 students graduate from the program each year. DigiPen enrolls 1,084 students, 56% finish within eight years school-wide, and earnings ten years out are $79,878 across all majors.
Redmond, WA · Private for-profit · Simulation program · 11 miles
47.3
#74 of 89 nationally
11 miles from Seattle
Largest program in Seattle
Technical track: simulation
Private
DigiPen's campus is in Redmond, 11 miles from Seattle, in a city setting on the Eastside. It is the largest program near Seattle, with about 92 graduates a year, and the institute as a whole is small, with 1,084 students.
The Bachelor of Science in Computer Science in Real-Time Interactive Simulation is accredited by ABET's Computing Accreditation Commission and carries an Unreal Engine Academic Partner designation. Students build their own game engines and ship a team game every year. Tuition is $38,600, the net price for aided first-years is $40,015, and graduates of all majors earn $79,878 ten years after enrolling, school-wide figures that reflect a technical specialty school.
Local students can compare the cost of attendance, $65,001 school-wide, with the net price of $40,015 for aided first-years. The program director frames low-level programming and engine building as valuable well beyond games.
Seattle, WA · Private nonprofit · Animation program · 1 miles
33.4
#80 of 82 in animation
1 miles from Seattle
Animation
Private
Cornish College of the Arts is 1 mile from Seattle, and the animation program meets at its South Lake Union campus. The B.F.A. is a four-year, 120-credit, in-person degree with August and January start dates. Students learn 2D, 3D and stop motion techniques, character design, storytelling and visual effects, with Adobe Animate and Toon Boom Storyboard Pro as core 2D software and Blender offered as an elective for 3D work. Class sizes average 15 students.
Professional Practice courses cover budgeting, grant writing, assembling pitch decks, marketing and teamwork, and students show work in annual showcases and submit projects to local and national film and animation festivals. The page also points to internships with animation studios and Seattle-based companies.
Tuition is $40,038 for every student, and aided first-years pay a net price of $40,164. About 3 students finish the program each year. Cornish is a small college of 505 students, with a 62% admit rate and a 54% completion rate school-wide.
Seattle, WA · Private nonprofit · Game design program · 1 miles
31.0
#89 of 89 nationally
1 miles from Seattle
Private
The Game Art BFA is based at Cornish's South Lake Union campus, roughly a mile from central Seattle. The program is in person and runs four years and 120 credits, with starts in August and January. Students collaborate with Seattle-area game studios and tech companies and hear from industry professionals who visit the studios or teach there.
Each semester brings an exhibition, and the year ends with a BFA exhibition co-produced with graphic design, illustration and interaction design students. Published tuition is $40,038, and aided first-year students pay a net price of $40,164 school-wide. This is a small college with 505 students, and 54% of entering students finish within eight years. Two students graduate from the program in an average year.
The rest of the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metro and the nearby areas are covered on the Washington page.
StateWashington2 ranked game bachelor's · 9 programs in allView the Washington guide ›
More ways in
Other Game Programs in Seattle
4 more programs inside the Seattle, Tacoma and Bellevue metro offer a way into game work without a ranked bachelor's. These associate, graduate and certificate programs aren't in the bachelor's ranking, so they carry no score. Grads a year is the program's IPEDS average, 2022 to 2024, and admission is the college's fall 2024 rate (College Scorecard).
Game-related pay in Seattle is high. Software developers, the group that includes game programmers and engine developers, have a metro median of $167,280, a figure $31,300 over the national median that barely clears Washington's own, at $740 more. Web and digital interface designers, where game and UI designers are counted, earn $133,760.
Graphic designersWhere many art and UI graduates start
$76,720
$61,140–$98,590$61k–$99k$61,140 to $98,590
2,710
$72,710
$62,960
Computer programmersProgramming roles outside software development
$167,970May 2024
$124,270–$201,230$124k–$201k$124,270 to $201,230, May 2024May 2024
1,990May 2025
$125,620May 2025
$100,390
Art directorsSenior art leads; rarely a first job
$124,610
$86,730–$157,140$87k–$157k$86,730 to $157,140
520
$121,170
$114,850
Annual wages, BLS OEWS May 2025, for the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metropolitan area. The middle half earns between the 25th and 75th percentile. Figures tagged May 2024 are from that earlier BLS release, because BLS didn't publish one for the Seattle, Tacoma and Bellevue metro in the current release.
Special effects artists and animators earn a metro median of $134,120, $32,090 above the national median. Graphic designers earn $76,720, and art directors earn $124,610, though that's rarely a first job. BLS published no metro figure for computer programmers.
Prices here sit above the national average of 100, with an overall level of 111.1 and housing at 151.3. A big salary doesn't stretch as far as the table suggests, especially early in a career when you're closer to the bottom of the middle range.
About 92,770 people work as software developers in the Seattle, Tacoma and Bellevue metro, a heavier concentration than the country as a whole (location quotient 4.10). Web and digital interface designers, where BLS counts game designers, earn $133,760 in Seattle, 29% more than the $104,000 national median. Prices in the Seattle, Tacoma and Bellevue metro run 11.1% above the U.S. average on BEA's index, which takes a bite out of both pay and a student budget.
Seattle's metro is heavy on software, and the Census numbers show it. Software and game publishers are 6.9 times the national concentration, with 93,968 employees at 645 businesses. Custom programming studios are 1.7 times the national concentration. Those two rows are where most game employers get counted, since Census doesn't give studios their own category and files most under software publishers.
Industry
What it covers
Businesses
Employees
Concentration
Software and game publishers
Software publishers (game publishers and studios are filed here)
645
93,968
6.90
Custom programming studios
Custom computer programming services (contract and co-development studios)
1,147
23,012
1.69
Film, video and animation production
Motion picture and video production (animation and VFX studios)
198
1,038
0.49
Graphic design firms
Graphic design services
270
853
1.28
Establishments and March payroll employees in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metro, County Business Patterns 2023. Concentration is the industry's share of metro employees divided by its share nationally: 1.00 matches the U.S., 2.00 is twice as concentrated.
Animation is the weak spot, with film, video and animation production at 49% of the national concentration, so artists chasing film-style animation jobs will find fewer of them.
By occupation, web and digital interface designers have the highest location quotient at 6.80, then software developers at 4.10 and special effects artists and animators at 3.84. Art directors are the one group that's less common than nationally, at 0.73. Programmers and UI designers have the clearest local case here.
How Common Game-Adjacent Jobs Are in Seattle
Occupation
Jobs per 1,000
Location quotient
Software developers
44.47
4.10
Web and digital interface designers
4.95
6.80
Special effects artists and animators
0.49
3.84
Graphic designers
1.30
1.02
Computer programmers
0.95
1.61
Art directors
0.25
0.73
BLS OEWS May 2025. Jobs per 1,000 of all metro jobs; a location quotient above 1.00 means the occupation is more common in the metro than nationally.
Talent pipeline
How Many Game Graduates Seattle Produces
Schools nearby send out about 213 game-related graduates annually, 182 of them bachelor's degree holders, and every one of those programs is inside the metro. Against 104,130 core jobs, metro graduates equal 0.2%. DigiPen alone accounts for the two biggest programs, 92 a year in modeling, virtual environments and simulation and 65 in animation and related fields.
The largest of them by graduates a year are the programs in the ranking and the other programs above, led by DigiPen Institute of Technology with about 92 a year.
A tiny share means local schools can't fill the region's tech payroll by themselves. It's not a promise of work, though. Core jobs here are mostly software and interface work for companies that aren't making games, and graduates move in both directions, so some of the competition for any opening will come from out of town.
Cost near Seattle
Paying for School in Seattle
Three public colleges sit within 50 miles, all in Washington, the same state as the city. Expect to pay $3,291 in-state or $8,804 out of state at Lake Washington Institute of Technology, a premium of $5,513, with a school-wide net price of $8,545. Shoreline Community College lists $4,263 in-state, and Highline College charges $3,742 to everyone, so there's no out-of-state premium there at all.
The public colleges within 50 miles that offer a game-related program, all in Washington. Tuition is the published undergraduate rate for 2023-24 (IPEDS IC), before aid; net price is the school-wide average for aided first-year students, 2022-23 (IPEDS SFA).
Washington College Grant, run by the Washington Student Achievement Council, is the state aid to check first if you're a resident. If you're coming from another western state, ask whether the Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE) applies to the program you want before assuming out-of-state rates.
State Aid in Washington
Washington's main need program for undergraduates is the Washington College Grant, run by the Washington Student Achievement Council. In its own words: "WA Grant gives eligible people more money for more types of education and training beyond high school." The Washington page covers state aid and public college costs in more detail.
Tuition Exchanges
Washington belongs to the Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE). In the program's own words, "WUE enables eligible students to enroll as nonresidents in 170 participating public colleges and universities and pay 150% (or less) of the enrolling institution’s resident tuition."
Living costs
Living in Seattle as a Student
Seattle rent runs $563 above the U.S. median: $2,050 for the metro against $1,487 nationally. Expect $1,814 monthly for a one-bedroom, which adds up to $21,768 across a year. That's real money on a student budget, and housing prices sit at 151.3 against the national level of 100.
Monthly rent
Seattle, Tacoma and Bellevue metro
U.S.
All rentals, median
$2,050
$1,487
One bedroom, median
$1,814
$1,301
Two bedrooms, median
$2,162
$1,490
Median gross rent (rent plus utilities the tenant pays), American Community Survey 2024 1-year estimates, tables B25064 and B25031.
A shared two-bedroom at $2,162 works out to $1,081 per person. Four of the five nearby colleges have housing, and the on-campus numbers vary a lot: Highline College is cheapest at $13,026, Cornish College of the Arts is $15,760, DigiPen Institute of Technology is $16,240 and Shoreline Community College is the priciest at $19,422. Lake Washington Institute of Technology has no campus housing, so you'd find your own place there.
Rent is the big cost in the Seattle, Tacoma and Bellevue metro: the median is $2,050 a month, $563 over the U.S. median.
Each college's own yearly estimates for a full-time undergraduate, 2023-24 (IPEDS IC). Off-campus is for a student not living with family.
Look at the mix before the rankings. There are two ranked game programs and three ranked animation programs, so your choice is narrow and it matters which side you're on. The DigiPen game ranking is a simulation program, which leans technical, while the Cornish game ranking is a game design program, which leans toward design and art.
Public versus private is a real split here. Both ranked game programs are private, so the public path runs through the Kirkland animation program or an associate program, which keeps the sticker price low.
Commuting is plausible for the city-center option and harder for the others. Cornish is 1 mile from the center, DigiPen is 11 miles out in Redmond and Lake Washington is 10 miles out in Kirkland, all straight-line distances. Game employers across the metro are places to ask about internships.
Admission is rarely the hard part here: 3 of the 5 colleges on this page admit anyone with a high school diploma; DigiPen Institute of Technology admitted 64% of applicants for fall 2024. None requires SAT or ACT scores.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Seattle-Area Schools Rank Highest for Game Design?
Lake Washington Institute of Technology has the top-ranked program in Seattle, an animation bachelor's scoring 75.2. Price is its strength: aided first-year students pay $8,545, $17,605 under the ranking's median, though 49% completion trails the 59% median. About 21 students a year graduate from it, a mid-sized program by the ranking's standards. DigiPen Institute of Technology is next at 47.3, one of 5 ranked programs in the metro. See the ranked programs.
What Do Game Developers Earn in Seattle?
Software developers, the BLS occupation that counts game programmers, earn a median of $167,280 in the Seattle, Tacoma and Bellevue metro, against $135,980 nationally (BLS May 2025). Web and digital interface designers, where game designers are counted, earn $133,760 in the Seattle, Tacoma and Bellevue metro, 29% more than the $104,000 national median. Prices in the Seattle, Tacoma and Bellevue metro run 11.1% above the U.S. average on BEA's index, which takes a bite out of both pay and a student budget. See what game jobs pay in Seattle.
How Much Is In-State Tuition Near Seattle?
In-state tuition at public colleges near Seattle starts at $3,291 a year, at Lake Washington Institute of Technology, and runs up to $4,263 at Shoreline Community College. Nonresidents pay $8,804 at Lake Washington Institute of Technology. 3 public colleges within 50 miles offer a game-related program, and private colleges charge every student the same tuition. After grants, Lake Washington Institute of Technology has the lowest average net price nearby, $8,545, under the $13,240 public average in the median state. See paying for school in Seattle.
How Far Are the Game Schools From Downtown Seattle?
5 ranked programs sit inside the Seattle, Tacoma and Bellevue metro, and 4 associate, graduate or certificate programs add other ways in. Lake Washington Institute of Technology scores highest, at 75.2. The top program is 10 miles from central Seattle, close enough to commute if housing nearby is out of reach. 9 game-related programs sit within 25 miles of central Seattle and 9 within 50, counting every level. The rest of the metro and the nearby areas are on the Washington page. See the ranked programs.
What Does It Cost to Live Near Seattle Game Design Schools?
Median rent in the Seattle, Tacoma and Bellevue metro was $2,050 a month in 2024, $563 above the U.S. median of $1,487 (Census ACS). A one-bedroom runs $1,814. On-campus room and board at nearby colleges starts at $13,026 a year at Highline College, which bundles meals and avoids a lease. Housing is the expensive part: BEA puts it at 151.3 against a U.S. average of 100. See living in Seattle as a student.
Can I Get Into DigiPen or Other Seattle-Area Game Schools?
Admission is rarely the hard part here: 3 of the 5 colleges on this page admit anyone with a high school diploma; DigiPen Institute of Technology admitted 64% of applicants for fall 2024. None requires SAT or ACT scores. Starting at an open-admission college and transferring after two years is the most reliable way in. The nearest open-admission option is Shoreline Community College, 9 miles from central Seattle. Each program card shows its college's admission rate where one is reported. See how to choose a program.
2NCES, IPEDS Outcome Measures 2023 The completion factor: the share of all entering students, full-time, part-time and transfer, who earned an award within eight years. School-wide.
