Whether you’re looking to hire a designer or looking to be a designer, you’ll need a good understanding of how much graphic designers earn. Making art for a living is certainly an attractive lifestyle, but it’s important to consider practical expectations for your future finances. This isn’t as straightforward as you might expect.
So what’s the average salary of a graphic designer? A designer with medium experience earns between $45,000 and $55,000 in the US on average. But skill set, experience and level of responsibility all play a big role in graphic designer salaries (not to mention, country or state). That’s why according to sources like PayScale, Glassdoor and SimplyHired graphic designer salaries can fluctuate between about 30K and 80K! Don’t forget that’s just an average for “graphic artists,” and it turns out that salaries can vary significantly depending on your area of design too (especially if you are a web designer or art director). Luckily, we’re here to help you find out where exactly you might fit in on the ever changing salary scale.
Salary for graphic designer in usa
A person working as a Graphic Designer in United States typically earns around 61,400 USD per year. Salaries range from 28,300 USD (lowest) to 97,700 USD (highest).
This is the average yearly salary including housing, transport, and other benefits. Graphic Designer salaries vary drastically based on experience, skills, gender, or location. Below you will find a detailed breakdown based on many different criteria.
Graphic Designer Salary Distribution in United States
The median, the maximum, the minimum, and the range
- Salary RangeGraphic Designer salaries in United States range from 28,300 USD per year (minimum salary) to 97,700 USD per year (maximum salary).
- Median SalaryThe median salary is 66,400 USD per year, which means that half (50%) of people working as Graphic Designer(s) are earning less than 66,400 USD while the other half are earning more than 66,400 USD. The median represents the middle salary value. Generally speaking, you would want to be on the right side of the graph with the group earning more than the median salary.
- PercentilesClosely related to the median are two values: the 25th and the 75th percentiles. Reading from the salary distribution diagram, 25% of Graphic Designer(s) are earning less than 42,600 USD while 75% of them are earning more than 42,600 USD. Also from the diagram, 75% of Graphic Designer(s) are earning less than 88,600 USD while 25% are earning more than 88,600 USD.
Graphic Designer Salary Comparison by Years of Experience
How does experience and age affect your pay?
The experience level is the most important factor in determining the salary. Naturally the more years of experience the higher your wage. We broke down Graphic Designer salaries by experience level and this is what we found.
A Graphic Designer with less than two years of experience makes approximately 32,100 USD per year.
While someone with an experience level between two and five years is expected to earn 42,800 USD per year, 34% more than someone with less than two year’s experience.
Moving forward, an experience level between five and ten years lands a salary of 63,300 USD per year, 48% more than someone with two to five years of experience
Additionally, Graphic Designer(s) whose expertise span anywhere between ten and fifteen years get a salary equivalent to 77,200 USD per year, 22% more than someone with five to ten years of experience.
If the experience level is between fifteen and twenty years, then the expected wage is 84,200 USD per year, 9% more than someone with ten to fifteen years of experience.
Lastly, employees with more than twenty years of professional experience get a salary of 91,100 USD per year, 8% more than people with fifteen to twenty years of experience.
Graphic Designer average salary change by experience in United States
| 0 – 2 Years | 32,100 USD | |
| 2 – 5 Years | +34% | 42,800 USD |
| 5 – 10 Years | +48% | 63,300 USD |
| 10 – 15 Years | +22% | 77,200 USD |
| 15 – 20 Years | +9% | 84,200 USD |
| 20+ Years | +8% | 91,100 USD |
Percentage increase and decrease are relative to the previous value
Graphic Designer Salary Comparison By Education
How do education levels affect salaries?
We all know that higher education equals a bigger salary, but how much more money can a degree add to your income? We broke down Graphic Designer salaries by education level in order to make a comparison.
When the education level is High School, the average salary of a Graphic Designer is 39,400 USD per year.
While someone with a Certificate or Diploma gets a salary of 46,300 USD per year, 18% more than someone having a High School degree.
A Bachelor’s Degree gets its holder an average salary of 67,200 USD per year, 45% more than someone with a Certificate or Diploma.
Professionals who hold a Master’s Degree are rewarded with an average salary of 88,000 USD per year, 31% more than someone with Bachelor’s Degree.
Graphic Designer average salary difference by education level in United States
| High School | 39,400 USD | |
| Certificate or Diploma | +18% | 46,300 USD |
| Bachelor’s Degree | +45% | 67,200 USD |
| Master’s Degree | +31% | 88,000 USD |
Percentage increase and decrease are relative to the previous value
