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Design manager vs studio designer

The differences between design managers and studio designers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes More than 10 years to become a design manager, becoming a studio designer takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a design manager has an average salary of $102,637, which is higher than the $95,724 average annual salary of a studio designer.

The top three skills for a design manager include sketch, project management and visualization. The most important skills for a studio designer are sketch, photoshop, and design studio.

Design manager vs studio designer overview

Design ManagerStudio Designer
Yearly salary$102,637$95,724
Hourly rate$49.34$46.02
Growth rate2%3%
Number of jobs61,27348,322
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 62%Bachelor's Degree, 81%
Average age4838
Years of experience-12

What does a design manager do?

A design manager is responsible for creating graphic and digital designs, following clients' specifications, and managing project deliverables efficiently. Design managers work closely with the marketing and public relations department, developing strategies to promote the brand to the target audience. They coordinate with the creative team and present the design ideas to the management, ask for final approval, perform revisions as needed, and follow the budget goals. A design manager must have excellent communication and leadership skills to handle the design team's concerns and needs.

What does a studio designer do?

A Studio designer is responsible for the production and sound presentation of the studio. He/She designs the studio in such a way that it could easily lure the attraction of the clients and visitors. Making sketches, plans, models, and then design the building set are the works of a Studio Designer.

Design manager vs studio designer salary

Design managers and studio designers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Design ManagerStudio Designer
Average salary$102,637$95,724
Salary rangeBetween $69,000 And $150,000Between $53,000 And $169,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CA-
Highest paying stateCalifornia-
Best paying companyMeta-
Best paying industryTechnology-

Differences between design manager and studio designer education

There are a few differences between a design manager and a studio designer in terms of educational background:

Design ManagerStudio Designer
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 62%Bachelor's Degree, 81%
Most common majorGraphic DesignGraphic Design
Most common collegeUniversity of Michigan - Ann ArborUniversity of Pennsylvania

Design manager vs studio designer demographics

Here are the differences between design managers' and studio designers' demographics:

Design ManagerStudio Designer
Average age4838
Gender ratioMale, 63.8% Female, 36.2%Male, 56.3% Female, 43.7%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 11.8% White, 71.5% 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 Percentage9%13%

Differences between design manager and studio designer duties and responsibilities

Design manager example responsibilities.

  • Help achieve status of medical device manufacturer through the FDA.
  • Manage several consultants preparing contract documents on the various NYC let and NYS let projects.
  • Manage and collaborate with ASIC library/memory vendors.
  • Manage design, tooling, equipment implementations and process improvements for foundry/machining metalworking manufacturer of automotive OEM products.
  • Design blueprints, bills of materials, FEA as required.
  • Include producing FDA and ISO-9000 level documentation of the project.
  • Show more

Studio designer example responsibilities.

  • Create & manage PPC advertising campaigns and perform basic SEO maintenance to improve web traffic.
  • Authore HTML & CSS coding standards.
  • Design wireframes, prototypes, and concept diagrams for product updates using HTML, CSS & Photoshop.
  • Create the UX vision in partnership with editors and writers.
  • Work closely with Turkish as well as American modelers and engineers to sketch and finalize concepts.
  • Create marketing concepts; print, interactive, and online design, HTML, and CGI.
  • Show more

Design manager vs studio designer skills

Common design manager skills
  • Sketch, 8%
  • Project Management, 8%
  • Visualization, 5%
  • User Experience, 4%
  • PowerPoint, 4%
  • Design Process, 4%
Common studio designer skills
  • Sketch, 31%
  • Photoshop, 13%
  • Design Studio, 13%
  • Adobe Creative Suite, 13%
  • Design Solutions, 9%
  • User Experience, 7%

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