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The differences between creative directors and senior creative directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a creative director and a senior creative director. Additionally, a senior creative director has an average salary of $141,259, which is higher than the $137,779 average annual salary of a creative director.
The top three skills for a creative director include graphic design, creative concepts and creative direction. The most important skills for a senior creative director are creative direction, brand development, and graphic design.
| Creative Director | Senior Creative Director | |
| Yearly salary | $137,779 | $141,259 |
| Hourly rate | $66.24 | $67.91 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 11,610 | 9,886 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 77% | Bachelor's Degree, 80% |
| Average age | 40 | 40 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A creative director is an individual who creates and maintains a vision for a company's products and branding through digital, print, and film installations. Creative directors supervise and innovative staff team such as graphic designers and artists to discuss and plan the vision's layout and visuals. They also meet with clients or marketing and advertising departments to create designs and make the necessary changes to the systems. Most creative directors must have a bachelor's degree in fine arts and should build work portfolios while starting their careers as graphic designers or photographers.
A senior creative director spearheads the visual aspects of a company's marketing and advertising departments. They manage creative teams and lead the efforts from conceptualizing to executing projects and campaigns. As a senior creative director, their responsibilities typically include setting goals and budgets, establishing guidelines, coordinating departments, delegating tasks to managers, researching new business opportunities, liaising with internal and external parties, and developing strategies to optimize procedures. Furthermore, they must serve as a mentor to junior directors and staff, promoting and enforcing the company's policies and regulations.
Creative directors and senior creative directors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Creative Director | Senior Creative Director | |
| Average salary | $137,779 | $141,259 |
| Salary range | Between $82,000 And $228,000 | Between $73,000 And $271,000 |
| Highest paying City | Menlo Park, CA | Chicago, IL |
| Highest paying state | California | Illinois |
| Best paying company | Apple | Sally Beauty Holdings |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between a creative director and a senior creative director in terms of educational background:
| Creative Director | Senior Creative Director | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 77% | Bachelor's Degree, 80% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | Harvard University | Harvard University |
Here are the differences between creative directors' and senior creative directors' demographics:
| Creative Director | Senior Creative Director | |
| Average age | 40 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 64.7% Female, 35.3% | Male, 71.3% Female, 28.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.4% Unknown, 5.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 7.8% White, 66.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 4.4% Unknown, 5.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.7% Asian, 7.2% White, 67.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |