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The differences between freelance designers and assistant 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 freelance designer and an assistant designer. Additionally, a freelance designer has an average salary of $57,260, which is higher than the $52,475 average annual salary of an assistant designer.
The top three skills for a freelance designer include sketch, CSS and HTML. The most important skills for an assistant designer are sketch, tech packs, and adobe illustrator.
| Freelance Designer | Assistant Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $57,260 | $52,475 |
| Hourly rate | $27.53 | $25.23 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 45,914 | 47,598 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
Freelance designers are creative, independent contractors who create visual and graphic designs for their clients. They develop text and illustrated versions of brands, messages, and communications with strong visible influence with their clients. Typical activities include networking, seeking projects, and negotiating prices to their customers. They manage client proposals, develop concepts, present solutions, and ensure the timely completion of projects. Freelance visual and graphic designers are creative, self-motivated as well as result and deadline oriented.
Assistant designers act as administrative support to senior designers in creating innovative designs by negotiating with the vendors about the prices of decoration materials. They are keen and up-to-date to the latest fashion and trends by conducting surveys and research. They are exceptionally creative and innovative and have excellent IT skills as they use illustration, typography, and photography layouts in the design process. However, being an assistant designer, career development relies on his/her /her specialism, reputation, and experience depending on how its opportunities are influenced by the company he/she works for.
Freelance designers and assistant designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Freelance Designer | Assistant Designer | |
| Average salary | $57,260 | $52,475 |
| Salary range | Between $39,000 And $83,000 | Between $37,000 And $73,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Seattle, WA |
| Highest paying state | - | Washington |
| Best paying company | - | PVH |
| Best paying industry | - | Construction |
There are a few differences between a freelance designer and an assistant designer in terms of educational background:
| Freelance Designer | Assistant Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between freelance designers' and assistant designers' demographics:
| Freelance Designer | Assistant Designer | |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 48.0% Female, 52.0% | Male, 28.3% Female, 71.7% |
| 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% |