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The differences between creative leads and creative designers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 8-10 years to become a creative lead, becoming a creative designer takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a creative lead has an average salary of $93,742, which is higher than the $69,771 average annual salary of a creative designer.
The top three skills for a creative lead include sketch, project management and adobe creative suite. The most important skills for a creative designer are sketch, graphic design, and adobe creative suite.
| Creative Lead | Creative Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $93,742 | $69,771 |
| Hourly rate | $45.07 | $33.54 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 6,384 | 47,394 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 77% | Bachelor's Degree, 72% |
| Average age | 39 | 38 |
| Years of experience | 10 | 12 |
A creative lead is responsible for leading a team of creative staff in conceptualizing designs according to project requirements and client specifications. Creative leads must have excellent technical and critical-thinking skills for utilizing various software tools and applications to generate designs and adjust initial outlines as needed. They also assist the creative staff with the documentation and submission of layouts that meet quality standards and budget limitations. A creative lead works closely with the creative director to establish creative solutions that would attract the audience and enhance the brand's image on market platforms.
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.
Creative leads and creative designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Creative Lead | Creative Designer | |
| Average salary | $93,742 | $69,771 |
| Salary range | Between $51,000 And $169,000 | Between $48,000 And $101,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Meta | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Automotive |
There are a few differences between a creative lead and a creative designer in terms of educational background:
| Creative Lead | Creative Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 77% | Bachelor's Degree, 72% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | University of Wisconsin - Madison | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between creative leads' and creative designers' demographics:
| Creative Lead | Creative Designer | |
| Average age | 39 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 62.1% Female, 37.9% | Male, 51.2% Female, 48.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.0% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 8.7% Asian, 8.2% White, 74.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | 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 | 10% | 13% |