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Graphic technician vs lead designer

The differences between graphic technicians and lead 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 technician and a lead designer. Additionally, a lead designer has an average salary of $110,001, which is higher than the $42,632 average annual salary of a graphic technician.

The top three skills for a graphic technician include graphic design, adobe illustrator and adobe photoshop. The most important skills for a lead designer are sketch, user experience, and architecture.

Graphic technician vs lead designer overview

Graphic TechnicianLead Designer
Yearly salary$42,632$110,001
Hourly rate$20.50$52.89
Growth rate3%3%
Number of jobs8,85045,423
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 50%Bachelor's Degree, 64%
Average age3838
Years of experience1212

Graphic technician vs lead designer salary

Graphic technicians and lead designers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Graphic TechnicianLead Designer
Average salary$42,632$110,001
Salary rangeBetween $30,000 And $60,000Between $78,000 And $154,000
Highest paying CityPhoenix, AZSan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateWashingtonCalifornia
Best paying companyVentura County Community FoundationAirbnb
Best paying industryTechnologyStart-up

Differences between graphic technician and lead designer education

There are a few differences between a graphic technician and a lead designer in terms of educational background:

Graphic TechnicianLead Designer
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 50%Bachelor's Degree, 64%
Most common majorGraphic DesignGraphic Design
Most common collegeUniversity of PennsylvaniaUniversity of Pennsylvania

Graphic technician vs lead designer demographics

Here are the differences between graphic technicians' and lead designers' demographics:

Graphic TechnicianLead Designer
Average age3838
Gender ratioMale, 58.3% Female, 41.7%Male, 73.2% Female, 26.8%
Race ratioBlack 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 Percentage13%13%

Differences between graphic technician and lead designer duties and responsibilities

Graphic technician example responsibilities.

  • Create spec sheets, perform mathematical typesetting, proofread comps and color separations, and manage file archive.
  • Apply graphics to vehicles, windows and billboards.
  • Typeset new jobs, printing and bindery work.
  • Maintain print files for digital retrieval on PC and Macintosh computers.
  • Operate copy center, run bindery equipment, and basic typesetting.
  • Maintain Macintosh and PC network with associate output devices (plotters, printers etc . )
  • Show more

Lead designer example responsibilities.

  • Lead development of HTML5, CSS3 and mobile platform prototypes.
  • Lead team in fit meetings and collaborate with TD on sketch updates.
  • Lead & design all creative content stemming from apparel design to web identity.
  • Prepare HTML, CSS and JavaScript coding guides and best practices, and implement, enforce through peer code reviews.
  • Provide expertise skills in CSS, dynamic HTML, java script, and Java development languages.
  • Develop interactive UI features, database schema design, security module design and development.
  • Show more

Graphic technician vs lead designer skills

Common graphic technician skills
  • Graphic Design, 16%
  • Adobe Illustrator, 14%
  • Adobe Photoshop, 9%
  • PC, 7%
  • Windows, 6%
  • Computer Graphics, 5%
Common lead designer skills
  • Sketch, 14%
  • User Experience, 6%
  • Architecture, 5%
  • UI, 5%
  • Design Solutions, 5%
  • Project Management, 4%

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