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The differences between custom designers and freelance 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 custom designer and a freelance designer. Additionally, a custom designer has an average salary of $59,230, which is higher than the $57,260 average annual salary of a freelance designer.
The top three skills for a custom designer include sketch, customer orders and customer service. The most important skills for a freelance designer are sketch, CSS, and HTML.
| Custom Designer | Freelance Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $59,230 | $57,260 |
| Hourly rate | $28.48 | $27.53 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 45,123 | 45,914 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 50% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
A custom designer's duties depend on their line of work or industry of employment. They are typically working together with a company's design and creative team where the tasks include meeting with clients to identify their preferences and needs, gathering and analyzing data to determine the best procedures, conceptualizing plans, drafting designs, and producing samples or prototypes for client approval. Furthermore, as a custom designer, it is essential to maintain an active communication line with the creative and production team to ensure the accuracy and quality of the end product.
Freelance designers are creative, independent contractors who create visual and graphic designs for their clients. They develop text and illustrated versions of brands, messages, and communications with strong visible influence with their clients. Typical activities include networking, seeking projects, and negotiating prices to their customers. They manage client proposals, develop concepts, present solutions, and ensure the timely completion of projects. Freelance visual and graphic designers are creative, self-motivated as well as result and deadline oriented.
Custom designers and freelance designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Custom Designer | Freelance Designer | |
| Average salary | $59,230 | $57,260 |
| Salary range | Between $42,000 And $81,000 | Between $39,000 And $83,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | - |
| Highest paying state | California | - |
| Best paying company | General Motors | - |
| Best paying industry | Retail | - |
There are a few differences between a custom designer and a freelance designer in terms of educational background:
| Custom Designer | Freelance Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 50% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between custom designers' and freelance designers' demographics:
| Custom Designer | Freelance Designer | |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 44.4% Female, 55.6% | Male, 48.0% Female, 52.0% |
| 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% |