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The differences between art directors and designers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become an art director, becoming a designer takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, an art director has an average salary of $88,367, which is higher than the $66,347 average annual salary of a designer.
The top three skills for an art director include graphic design, art direction and creative concepts. The most important skills for a designer are sketch, customer service, and graphic design.
| Art Director | Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $88,367 | $66,347 |
| Hourly rate | $42.48 | $31.90 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 11,472 | 52,433 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 75% | Bachelor's Degree, 61% |
| Average age | 40 | 38 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 12 |
An art director's duty will vary depending on the line of industry involved. However, most of the responsibilities will revolve in taking charge of the artistic direction and decisions in a project or campaign. Most of the time, it is an art director's call to conceptualize and bring a vision to completion and take the lead in coordinating with various artists and creative staff. Furthermore, an art director must oversee the progress of workflow and workforce, develop plans and strategies, and approve or provide suggestions in every creative output from staff.
A designer is someone who creates a master plan of the look or workings of something before it will be made. It could be tangible or intangible objects, products, procedures, laws, events, games, graphics, services, and even experiences. Designers are creative thinkers with a great eye to configure the skeletal and structural properties of the targeted output. They work in several fields, such as fashion, architecture, web graphics, and user experience. In spite of the variety of professionals in the design industry, all of them are artistic, passionate, inspiring, and emotionally connected to their projects and brands.
Art directors and designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Art Director | Designer | |
| Average salary | $88,367 | $66,347 |
| Salary range | Between $57,000 And $135,000 | Between $45,000 And $97,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Seattle, WA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | Washington |
| Best paying company | The Walt Disney Company | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between an art director and a designer in terms of educational background:
| Art Director | Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 75% | Bachelor's Degree, 61% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | Harvard University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between art directors' and designers' demographics:
| Art Director | Designer | |
| Average age | 40 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 57.4% Female, 42.6% | Male, 56.9% Female, 43.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.4% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 7.8% White, 67.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 3.4% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.6% Asian, 10.4% White, 70.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 13% |