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The differences between creative designers and senior graphic designers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a creative designer and a senior graphic designer. Additionally, a senior graphic designer has an average salary of $73,921, which is higher than the $69,771 average annual salary of a creative designer.
The top three skills for a creative designer include sketch, graphic design and adobe creative suite. The most important skills for a senior graphic designer are sketch, adobe creative suite, and creative concepts.
| Creative Designer | Senior Graphic Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $69,771 | $73,921 |
| Hourly rate | $33.54 | $35.54 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 47,394 | 46,310 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 72% |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
A creative designer's duties depend on their place or industry of employment. Typically, their responsibilities revolve around meeting with clients to learn their needs and preferences, understanding the message and purpose of the subject, developing concepts and ideas, drafting preliminary designs and prototypes for approval, and updating clients on the progress of procedures. In a company setting, a creative designer must coordinate with different teams and personnel for the production processes, all while adhering to the company's policies and regulations.
A senior graphic designer oversees all of the designing operations in a company, from conceptualization to production. One of their primary responsibilities is to ensure that all designs produced are according to a client's preference and brand. They also encourage fresh ideas from the team, communicate with clients or representatives, and manage the schedules to meet all deadlines. Furthermore, as a senior graphic designer, they are responsible for leading and mentoring a team of graphic designers, all in the joint effort to reach project goals.
Creative designers and senior graphic designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Creative Designer | Senior Graphic Designer | |
| Average salary | $69,771 | $73,921 |
| Salary range | Between $48,000 And $101,000 | Between $51,000 And $105,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | Washington |
| Best paying company | Meta | Practice Fusion |
| Best paying industry | Automotive | Technology |
There are a few differences between a creative designer and a senior graphic designer in terms of educational background:
| Creative Designer | Senior Graphic Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 72% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between creative designers' and senior graphic designers' demographics:
| Creative Designer | Senior Graphic Designer | |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 51.2% Female, 48.8% | Male, 53.2% Female, 46.8% |
| Race ratio | 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% | 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 | 13% | 13% |