Graphic Designers
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Overview
Design or create graphics to meet specific commercial or promotional needs, such as packaging, displays, or logos. May use a variety of mediums to achieve artistic or decorative effects.
Highlights
Undergraduate program resulting in the highest median salary ($75K): General Engineering
Largest undergraduate program (35.7% of workers): Commercial Art and Graphic Design
Explore Pathways
Titles for this career often contain these words
DesignerArtistGraphicSpecialistMultimediaAdvertisingLayoutGraphicsInterfaceProductionWorkerCatalogueIllustratorCommercialConceptDigitalFormsArtCoordinatorLabelMakerDeveloperOnlineProducerPhotoStylistPresentationPublicationsStudioUserVisual
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Responsibilities and activities

Graphic designers typically do the following:

  • Meet with clients or the art director to determine the scope of a project
  • Use digital illustration, photo editing software, and layout software to create designs
  • Create visual elements such as logos, original images, and illustrations to help deliver a message
  • Design layouts, including selection of colors, images, and typefaces
  • Present design concepts to clients or art directors
  • Incorporate changes recommended by clients or art directors into final designs
  • Review designs for errors before printing or publishing them

Graphic designers, also referred to as graphic artists or communication designers, combine art and technology to communicate ideas through images and the layout of websites and printed pages. They may use a variety of design elements to achieve artistic or decorative effects.

Graphic designers work with both text and images. They often select the type, font, size, color, and line length of headlines, headings, and text. Graphic designers also decide how images and text will go together in print or on a webpage, including how much space each will have. When using text in layouts, graphic designers collaborate with writers, who choose the words and decide whether the words will be put into paragraphs, lists, or tables. Through the use of images, text, and color, graphic designers may transform data into visual graphics and diagrams to make complex ideas more accessible.

Graphic design is important to market and sell products, and it is a critical component of brochures and logos. Therefore, graphic designers often work closely with people in advertising and promotions, public relations, and marketing.

Frequently, designers specialize in a particular category or type of client. For example, some designers create the graphics used on product packaging, and others may work on the visual designs used on book jackets.

Graphic designers need to keep up to date with software and computer technologies in order to remain competitive.

Some individuals with a background in graphic design become postsecondary teachers and teach in design schools, colleges, and universities.

Some graphic designers specialize in experiential graphic design. These designers work with architects, industrial designers, landscape architects, and interior designers to create interactive design environments, such as museum exhibitions, public arts exhibits, and retail spaces.

Salary
Median salary: $53,380 annually
Half of those employed in this career earn between $40,160 and $71,310.
$53K$0$20K$40K$60K$80K$100K
Context: Median Salary
How do salaries for this career compare to other jobs' salaries?
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Salary growth for graphic designers
Is this job likely to reward you for sticking with it through pay raises and promotions? The higher a job’s “experience quotient,” the more you are likely to get as you stay there.
Experience quotient percentile
Take a minute to look at how much you might expect your salary to increase with each five years' experience, as well as how the numbers working at each age change. Does this seem to be a job for the young or the old, or could it be a career offering steady salary growth for many years?
Salary distribution
$51K$60K$62K$43K$32K$61K$59K$60K$55K$0$50K$100K$150K20-2425-2930-3435-3940-4445-4950-5455-5960-64
Number employed
010K20K30K40K50K20-2425-2930-3435-3940-4445-4950-5455-5960-64
About Graphic Designers
How do benefits for this career compare to other jobs? The availability of health care, especially employer provided health care, and pension plans can add significantly to the value of compensation you receive in a career. These charts compare how this career compares to other careers with regard to health care and pension plans.
Employee has health insurance
Employer is providing health insurance
Employer-provided pension plan is available
Worker concerns
Some jobs are more stressful than others, and some are just plain dangerous. The following list gives the percentages of graphic designers who report hazardous or difficult situations typically occurring at least once a week.
  • Time Pressure (100%)
SOURCES:
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Personality and skills
Can you see yourself in the ranks of Graphic Designers? Here are the skills and traits that could lead to success.
Analytical skills
Graphic designers must be able to perceive their work from their consumers’ point of view to ensure that the designs convey the client’s message.
Artistic ability
Graphic designers must be able to create designs that are artistically interesting and appealing to clients and consumers. They produce rough illustrations of design ideas, either by hand sketching or by using computer programs.
Communication skills
Graphic designers must communicate with clients, customers, and other designers to ensure that their designs accurately and effectively convey information.
Computer skills
Most graphic designers use specialized graphic design software to prepare their designs.
Creativity
Graphic designers must be able to think of new approaches to communicating ideas to consumers. They develop unique designs that convey their client’s message.
Time-management skills
Graphic designers often work simultaneously on multiple projects, each with a different deadline.
Injury and Illness
About 2 graphic designers become injured or ill for every 10,000 workers, which reflects fewer events than in 58% of other careers. The most common specific concerns detailed following.
All cuts, lacerations, punctures
Education pathways to this career
Education attained by graphic designers
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), graphic designers typically hold a bachelor's degree.
Sometimes the typical education identified by the BLS differs a bit from the reality of the how much education current workers actually have. The donut shows the education level held by people currently working as graphic designers as reported in responses to the American Community Survey.
Details: Education and training recommended for graphic designers

A bachelor’s degree in graphic design or a related field is usually required. However, people who have a bachelor’s degree in another field may complete technical training in graphic design to meet most hiring qualifications.

The National Association of Schools of Art and Design accredits more than 360 postsecondary colleges, universities, and independent institutes with programs in art and design. Most programs include courses in studio art, principles of design, computerized design, commercial graphics production, printing techniques, and website design. In addition, students should consider courses in writing, marketing, and business, all of which are useful in helping designers work effectively on project teams.

High school students interested in graphic design should take basic art and design courses, if available. Many bachelor’s degree programs require students to complete a year of basic art and design courses before being admitted to a formal degree program. Some schools require applicants to submit sketches and other examples of their artistic ability.

Many programs provide students with the opportunity to build a portfolio—a collection of completed works that demonstrates an artist’s styles and abilities. For many artists, including graphic designers, developing a portfolio is essential because employers rely on portfolios in making hiring decisions.

Graphic designers must keep up with new and updated computer graphics and design software, either on their own or through formal software training programs. Professional associations that specialize in graphic design, such as AIGA, offer courses intended to keep the skills of their members up to date.

Details: Licensing and certification recommended for graphic designers

Certification programs are generally available through software product vendors. Certification in graphic design software demonstrates competence and may provide jobseekers with a competitive advantage.

Education level of Graphic Designers
About 63% of graphic designers have at least a bachelor's degree.
Education attained by graphic designers
None
High School
Some College
Associate's Degree
Bachelor's Degree
Master's Degree
Professional Degree
Doctorate
Top college degrees
Here are the top college degrees held by the 63% of people in this job who have at least a bachelor's degree. Some of degrees may link to multiple programs due to the way Census classifies college majors. Click on a program to learn more about career opportunities for people who major in that field.
  1. Commercial Art and Graphic Design
  2. Visual and Performing Arts
  3. Architecture
  4. Communications
  5. Business Management and Administration
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College majors held by graphic designers
This table shows the college majors held by people working as graphic designers. If you see "**" before the name of a degree/program, that means this field is one that the Department of Education believes is preparatory for this career. However, you can see from this list that those recommendations are far from your only path to this job!
Salary comparison for bachelor's only
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Career salary (tail) versus Career/Major salary (dot)
Does the bachelor's-only salary rise or fall with this major?
$47K$75K
Salary for bachelor's-only
For people with this career and major
Median
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Salary for all workers
For people with this career and major
Median
Middle 50%
Middle 80%
Education for Career and Major
Bachelor's
Master's
Professional
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Workers with this career/major
Percentage in this career with this major
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The link between degrees and this career
With the following sankey diagram, you can follow the top ten bachelor's degrees held by people working as graphic designers, and then, in turn, you can see the 10 occupations that hire the most of each degree's graduates. We hope this provides ideas for similar jobs and similar fields of study.
Expand degrees
Commercial Art and G...Fine ArtsArchitectureCommunicationsBusiness Management ...MarketingGeneral BusinessElectrical Engineeri...PsychologyEnglish Language and...All other degreesThis jobTop 10 majors
Where are the jobs
State-by-state employment numbers
Some careers tend to be centered in specific parts of the country. For example, most jobs in fashion are in New York or California. Let's see if your dream job is easy to find in your dream location! We have a few choices for viewing the data that can help you get a full employment picture.
Select a state to see local area details
Number of Graphic Designers per 1,000 workers (ACS)
AKMEWIVTNHWAIDMTNDMNILMINYMAORUTWYSDIAINOHPANJCTRICANVCONEMOKYWVVAMDDEAZNMKSARTNNCSCDCOKLAMSALGAHITXFLPR
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Job density versus job count
Which states hire the most graphic designers? We wonder if that's a fair question since states come in all sizes, so instead let's start with the question of which states have the highest density of people working as graphic designers. You can choose to view the number of jobs per state if you prefer.
Salaries by state
Let's get a feel for where graphic designers earn the highest salaries. There are several choices for which data we consider and how we view that data, and each can lead to different conclusions, so please read on...
Median salary versus state ratio
We use two methods to compare salaries across states:
  • In-state comparisons: the ratio of median (middle) salaries for graphic designers compared to the median salary for all people working in each state, or
  • Median salary: the unaltered median salaries for graphic designers.
We hope the ratio allows perspective about how salaries may compare to the regional cost-of-living.
The darkest shading corresponds to states in which graphic designers earn the highest salary when compared to other jobs in the state. We think this figure might be a better indicator than the actual salary for your buying power as a state resident.
Select a state to see local area details
Location-adjusted median salary for Graphic Designers (ACS)
AKMEWIVTNHWAIDMTNDMNILMINYMAORUTWYSDIAINOHPANJCTRICANVCONEMOKYWVVAMDDEAZNMKSARTNNCSCDCOKLAMSALGAHITXFLPR
Employment
20% of Graphic designers are working part time.
We’ve found that some jobs have a huge number of part-time workers, and typically that is because they are unable to find full-time work or the job itself can’t provide full-time hours. With 20% part-time workers, this occupation has a higher percentage of part-time workers than 67% of careers.
20%0%20%40%60%80%100%
Employer types
This donut shares the break-down of workers by employer type, giving us a picture of what employers most typically hire for this career.
Employers of undefined (ACS)
Private for-profit
Private not-for-profit
Local government
State government
Federal government
Self-employed incorporated
Self-employed not incorporated
Working without pay
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Distribution: Salaries of graphic designers by type of employer
Here are the salary distributions based on employer type.
$51K$53K$50K$37K$51K$49K$54K$0$20,000$40,000$60,000$80,000$100,000$120,000Self-employed not incorporatedSelf-employed incorporatedState governmentLocal governmentPrivate not-for-profitPrivate for-profitAll
Gender
Graphic designers and gender
With 47% women, this occupation has a higher percentage of women than 58% of careers.
Gender of Graphic designers
Men (53%)
Women (47%)
Distribution: salaries by gender
Does gender greatly influence your salary in this career? The closer the bars are, the less discrepancy there is.
$46K$57K$0$100K$200K$300KWomenMen
We only include salary data when the survey error is less than 20%, so you may see only partial information for some categories.
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Context: Women in the workforce
How does this career compare to other careers with regard to the percentage of women in the career.
47%0%20%40%60%80%100%
Context: Salary inequity
The median (middle) salary for all full-time male workers in the US exceeds the full-time median salary for women by 19%, and the difference for graphic designers tops that, with the median salary for men 22% higher than the median salary for women.
22%0%20%40%60%80%100%
Race/Origin
Race and origin of Graphic designers
This donut shows the distribution of race and origin among those employed as Graphic designers.
Race/origin of graphic designers
White (80% )
Asian (9% )
Black (5% )
Multiracial (3% )
Other (3% )
Hispanic (1% )
American Indian (0% )
Pacific Islander (0% )
Distribution: salaries by race/origin
Some careers might have a pay disparity based on race or origin, the closer the below bars are the less of a discrepancy is present.
$40K$45K$45K$48K$48K$51K$59K$0$50K$100K$150KAmerican IndianMultiracialBlackOtherHispanicWhiteAsian
We only include salary data when the survey error is less than 20%, so you may see only partial information for some categories.