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The differences between executive creative directors and art directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both an executive creative director and an art director. Additionally, an executive creative director has an average salary of $162,850, which is higher than the $88,367 average annual salary of an art director.
The top three skills for an executive creative director include sketch, graphic design and creative direction. The most important skills for an art director are graphic design, art direction, and creative concepts.
| Executive Creative Director | Art Director | |
| Yearly salary | $162,850 | $88,367 |
| Hourly rate | $78.29 | $42.48 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 72,952 | 11,472 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 80% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Average age | 40 | 40 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
An executive creative director is primarily in charge of directing and overseeing creative projects and campaigns. They manage a company's creative team that typically consist of writers, graphic designers, and content specialists. As an executive creative director, it is their duty to set goals and timelines, understand the client or company's needs, conceptualize plans and insights, control the budget, and develop strategies to optimize operations and outcomes. Moreover, they monitor the progress of all projects and campaigns, resolving issues and concerns should there be any.
An art director's duty will vary depending on the line of industry involved. However, most of the responsibilities will revolve in taking charge of the artistic direction and decisions in a project or campaign. Most of the time, it is an art director's call to conceptualize and bring a vision to completion and take the lead in coordinating with various artists and creative staff. Furthermore, an art director must oversee the progress of workflow and workforce, develop plans and strategies, and approve or provide suggestions in every creative output from staff.
Executive creative directors and art directors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Executive Creative Director | Art Director | |
| Average salary | $162,850 | $88,367 |
| Salary range | Between $88,000 And $300,000 | Between $57,000 And $135,000 |
| Highest paying City | New York, NY | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New York | Washington |
| Best paying company | Estée Lauder | The Walt Disney Company |
| Best paying industry | - | Technology |
There are a few differences between an executive creative director and an art director in terms of educational background:
| Executive Creative Director | Art Director | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 80% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | Harvard University | Harvard University |
Here are the differences between executive creative directors' and art directors' demographics:
| Executive Creative Director | Art Director | |
| Average age | 40 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 70.6% Female, 29.4% | Male, 57.4% Female, 42.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.4% Unknown, 5.8% Hispanic or Latino, 14.4% Asian, 7.8% White, 66.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% | Black or African American, 4.4% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 7.8% White, 67.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |