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The differences between digital media designers and head 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 digital media designer and a head designer. Additionally, a head designer has an average salary of $116,986, which is higher than the $56,476 average annual salary of a digital media designer.
The top three skills for a digital media designer include digital marketing, graphic design and adobe creative suite. The most important skills for a head designer are product design, UI, and sketch.
| Digital Media Designer | Head Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $56,476 | $116,986 |
| Hourly rate | $27.15 | $56.24 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 67,696 | 53,876 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 71% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
A digital media designer specializes in designing and developing visual materials for advertisements, campaigns, film, television, and print using special computer programs. They typically work as a member of a design team and create materials such as images, effects, or even animation. As a digital media designer, their responsibilities include understanding and identifying project needs and requirements, developing drafts for client approval, revising designs as necessary, and maintaining records of all transactions. Moreover, a digital media designer must keep an open communication line with team members for an efficient workflow.
The Head Designer is the overall command over the creative team's design and the entire company. The heads of the organization look toward the head designer to provide insights into the artistic path the company will take to achieve a unique brand in the market. The head designer is highly-creative, good in management, and can articulate abstract ideas clearly and relay them to company administrators, customers, and clients. A head designer's responsibilities are to handle the creative team, train each member, and provide guidance in every part of the designing process.
Digital media designers and head designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Digital Media Designer | Head Designer | |
| Average salary | $56,476 | $116,986 |
| Salary range | Between $41,000 And $76,000 | Between $71,000 And $191,000 |
| Highest paying City | Seattle, WA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | California |
| Best paying company | FNB | Airbnb |
| Best paying industry | Start-up | Hospitality |
There are a few differences between a digital media designer and a head designer in terms of educational background:
| Digital Media Designer | Head Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 71% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | Carnegie Mellon University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between digital media designers' and head designers' demographics:
| Digital Media Designer | Head Designer | |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 66.2% Female, 33.8% | Male, 50.1% Female, 49.9% |
| 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% |