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The differences between game artists and freelance designers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a game artist, becoming a freelance designer takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a game artist has an average salary of $86,932, which is higher than the $57,260 average annual salary of a freelance designer.
The top three skills for a game artist include animation, maya and sketch. The most important skills for a freelance designer are sketch, CSS, and HTML.
| Game Artist | Freelance Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $86,932 | $57,260 |
| Hourly rate | $41.79 | $27.53 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 5,040 | 45,914 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Average age | 40 | 38 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 12 |
This individual is tasked with just one thing, and that is to create 2D or 3D art for visual elements in video games. Their task is crucial in the process of creating games. They visualize how a game will look and ensure it comes out exactly that way. They design a few preliminary sketches and develop them according to the general style of the video game. They are required to work on components like characters, textures, vehicles, colors, lighting, objects, and environment.
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.
Game artists and freelance designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Game Artist | Freelance Designer | |
| Average salary | $86,932 | $57,260 |
| Salary range | Between $56,000 And $133,000 | Between $39,000 And $83,000 |
| Highest paying City | Las Vegas, NV | - |
| Highest paying state | Nevada | - |
| Best paying company | Amazon | - |
| Best paying industry | Start-up | - |
There are a few differences between a game artist and a freelance designer in terms of educational background:
| Game Artist | Freelance Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between game artists' and freelance designers' demographics:
| Game Artist | Freelance Designer | |
| Average age | 40 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 70.0% Female, 30.0% | Male, 48.0% Female, 52.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 7.6% White, 67.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | 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 | 11% | 13% |