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The differences between custom designers and visual 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 visual designer. Additionally, a visual designer has an average salary of $86,495, which is higher than the $59,230 average annual salary of a custom designer.
The top three skills for a custom designer include sketch, customer orders and customer service. The most important skills for a visual designer are sketch, visual design, and graphic design.
| Custom Designer | Visual Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $59,230 | $86,495 |
| Hourly rate | $28.48 | $41.58 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 45,123 | 46,815 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 50% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| 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.
A visual designer is someone who creates designs for a variety of platforms such as Internet and intranet sites, games, and wearables. The duties of visual designers depend on the specific project or industry in which they are working. Duties include creating user-centered interaction models, working with information technology and business teams to resolve complex issues, and designing logos, icons, and infographics. The qualifications to become a visual designer include possessing strong problem-solving, communication, and negotiation skills and obtaining a bachelor's degree in design.
Custom designers and visual designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Custom Designer | Visual Designer | |
| Average salary | $59,230 | $86,495 |
| Salary range | Between $42,000 And $81,000 | Between $51,000 And $143,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Bruno, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | General Motors | ByteDance |
| Best paying industry | Retail | Start-up |
There are a few differences between a custom designer and a visual designer in terms of educational background:
| Custom Designer | Visual Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 50% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between custom designers' and visual designers' demographics:
| Custom Designer | Visual Designer | |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 44.4% Female, 55.6% | Male, 53.1% Female, 46.9% |
| 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% |