Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between graphic artists and lead graphic 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 graphic artist and a lead graphic designer. Additionally, a lead graphic designer has an average salary of $76,009, which is higher than the $54,900 average annual salary of a graphic artist.
The top three skills for a graphic artist include graphic design, adobe photoshop and adobe illustrator. The most important skills for a lead graphic designer are adobe photoshop, graphic design, and design concepts.
| Graphic Artist | Lead Graphic Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $54,900 | $76,009 |
| Hourly rate | $26.39 | $36.54 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 8,752 | 46,260 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
A graphic artist is either an illustrator or an animator who creates art work that will be used in graphic projects such as advertisements, posters, or even book covers. Although a graphic artist has his/her own style of artwork, he/she may be often commissioned to create art specifically for a particular project. A graphic artist may work with a graphic designer in order to convey the overall message of a project. The portfolio of a graphic artist includes cartoons, illustrations, and graphic novels.
A lead graphic designer is responsible for creating, designing, and updating the company's visual aspects. The lead graphic designer works closely with the branding department alongside the advertising and marketing team. It is essential for the lead graphic designer must be creative, willing to think outside the box, and brave to dare novel ideas. The lead graphic designer is also responsible for leading the creative department in accomplishing assigned tasks from management.
Graphic artists and lead graphic designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Graphic Artist | Lead Graphic Designer | |
| Average salary | $54,900 | $76,009 |
| Salary range | Between $35,000 And $84,000 | Between $44,000 And $131,000 |
| Highest paying City | Bellevue, WA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | California |
| Best paying company | Parsons | Netflix |
| Best paying industry | Non Profits | Technology |
There are a few differences between a graphic artist and a lead graphic designer in terms of educational background:
| Graphic Artist | Lead Graphic Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between graphic artists' and lead graphic designers' demographics:
| Graphic Artist | Lead Graphic Designer | |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 54.6% Female, 45.4% | Male, 61.8% Female, 38.2% |
| 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% |