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Exterior designer vs residential designer

The differences between exterior designers and residential designers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both an exterior designer and a residential designer. Additionally, an exterior designer has an average salary of $93,819, which is higher than the $58,162 average annual salary of a residential designer.

The top three skills for an exterior designer include CAD, design concepts and photoshop. The most important skills for a residential designer are CAD, construction drawings, and design services.

Exterior designer vs residential designer overview

Exterior DesignerResidential Designer
Yearly salary$93,819$58,162
Hourly rate$45.11$27.96
Growth rate-1%
Number of jobs43,80753,507
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 61%Bachelor's Degree, 53%
Average age4442
Years of experience44

Exterior designer vs residential designer salary

Exterior designers and residential designers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Exterior DesignerResidential Designer
Average salary$93,819$58,162
Salary rangeBetween $58,000 And $150,000Between $37,000 And $90,000
Highest paying CitySacramento, CA-
Highest paying stateCalifornia-
Best paying companyTesla-
Best paying industryAutomotive-

Differences between exterior designer and residential designer education

There are a few differences between an exterior designer and a residential designer in terms of educational background:

Exterior DesignerResidential Designer
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 61%Bachelor's Degree, 53%
Most common majorBusinessArchitecture
Most common collegeCornell UniversityCornell University

Exterior designer vs residential designer demographics

Here are the differences between exterior designers' and residential designers' demographics:

Exterior DesignerResidential Designer
Average age4442
Gender ratioMale, 72.1% Female, 27.9%Male, 65.4% Female, 34.6%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 0.4% Unknown, 3.4% Hispanic or Latino, 5.8% Asian, 5.2% White, 85.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%Black or African American, 1.5% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 7.6% Asian, 4.6% White, 82.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage13%23%

Differences between exterior designer and residential designer duties and responsibilities

Exterior designer example responsibilities.

  • Develop customized user interaction models using object-orient prototyping.
  • Issue mass production drawings for various parts and vehicles.
  • Assist with cost and weight reports for the Acura MDX.
  • Create structural concepts, base on style data and underbody negotiation, and develop them into mass production parts.
  • Optimize production processes reducing unnecessary part cost without losing functionality and performance by designing new shapes or alterations for manufacturing.

Residential designer example responsibilities.

  • Modify SRV-1 source code using JavaScript software to attain tracking at any instantaneous time.
  • Modify AutoCAD construction documents and create new Revit construction documents of residential designs for a large variety of clients.
  • Develop original concepts from thumbnail sketch to finish product.
  • Design, modele and render graphically intensive exteriors and interior environments and animations utilizing the latest in visualization technology.
  • Monitor orders using the retail point of sale (POS) system.

Exterior designer vs residential designer skills

Common exterior designer skills
  • CAD, 51%
  • Design Concepts, 28%
  • Photoshop, 17%
  • Design Presentations, 4%
Common residential designer skills
  • CAD, 22%
  • Construction Drawings, 22%
  • Design Services, 12%
  • Revit, 11%
  • Sketch, 7%
  • Design Concepts, 4%

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