Cartographer vs digital cartographer

The differences between cartographers and digital cartographers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a digital cartographer has an average salary of $68,029, which is higher than the $62,172 average annual salary of a cartographer.

The top three skills for a cartographer include GIS, data collection and extraction. The most important skills for a digital cartographer are GPS, , and .

Cartographer vs digital cartographer overview

	Cartographer	Digital Cartographer
Yearly salary	$62,172	$68,029
Hourly rate	$29.89	$32.71
Growth rate	3%	3%
Number of jobs	390	16,055
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 75%	Bachelor's Degree, 74%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	-	-

Cartographer vs digital cartographer salary

Cartographers and digital cartographers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Cartographer	Digital Cartographer
Average salary	$62,172	$68,029
Salary range	Between $42,000 And $90,000	Between $40,000 And $114,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	-
Highest paying state	Maine	-
Best paying company	Google	-
Best paying industry	Utilities	-

Differences between cartographer and digital cartographer education

There are a few differences between a cartographer and a digital cartographer in terms of educational background:

	Cartographer	Digital Cartographer
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 75%	Bachelor's Degree, 74%
Most common major	Geography	Geography
Most common college	Pennsylvania State University	University of Southern California

Cartographer vs digital cartographer demographics

Here are the differences between cartographers' and digital cartographers' demographics:

	Cartographer	Digital Cartographer
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 70.7% Female, 29.3%	Male, 75.0% Female, 25.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.3% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 10.8% Asian, 4.9% White, 75.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 3.4% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 11.0% Asian, 5.0% White, 75.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between cartographer and digital cartographer duties and responsibilities

Cartographer example responsibilities.

Provide geographic-based services, support and expertise to numerous divisions in GTNP using ESRI ArcGIS software.
Support cartographic map production through digital extraction and correlation of terrain and environmental features.
Create and teach tutorials regarding spatial methodology relate to spatial analysis for statewide agency GIS users.
Experience in production of NGA mapping products.
Conduct field surveys using GPS and other survey equipment.
Perform FDC/QC/FDV; select for dedicate QC and audit.

Digital cartographer example responsibilities.

Project manage large agreement, providing significant broadband solutions to a large business entity.
Convert maps to GPS coordinates.
Analyze and interpret USGS aerial photos and topographic maps.
Cut development time by simulating and debugging the DDR2 interface modifications before the rest of the system are available for testing.
Team leader for rapid prototyping systems development.
Analyze opportunities for ASIC implementation of targeting and tracking algorithms.

Cartographer vs digital cartographer skills

Common cartographer skills

GIS, 18%
Data Collection, 11%
Extraction, 11%
Remote Sensing, 8%
GPS, 6%
Bathymetric, 6%

Common digital cartographer skills

GPS, 100%

Updated January 8, 2025

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