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The differences between lead graphic designers and 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 lead graphic designer and a designer. Additionally, a lead graphic designer has an average salary of $76,009, which is higher than the $66,347 average annual salary of a designer.
The top three skills for a lead graphic designer include adobe photoshop, graphic design and design concepts. The most important skills for a designer are sketch, customer service, and graphic design.
| Lead Graphic Designer | Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $76,009 | $66,347 |
| Hourly rate | $36.54 | $31.90 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 46,260 | 52,433 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 61% |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
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.
A designer is someone who creates a master plan of the look or workings of something before it will be made. It could be tangible or intangible objects, products, procedures, laws, events, games, graphics, services, and even experiences. Designers are creative thinkers with a great eye to configure the skeletal and structural properties of the targeted output. They work in several fields, such as fashion, architecture, web graphics, and user experience. In spite of the variety of professionals in the design industry, all of them are artistic, passionate, inspiring, and emotionally connected to their projects and brands.
Lead graphic designers and designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Lead Graphic Designer | Designer | |
| Average salary | $76,009 | $66,347 |
| Salary range | Between $44,000 And $131,000 | Between $45,000 And $97,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Seattle, WA |
| Highest paying state | California | Washington |
| Best paying company | Netflix | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a lead graphic designer and a designer in terms of educational background:
| Lead Graphic Designer | Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 61% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between lead graphic designers' and designers' demographics:
| Lead Graphic Designer | Designer | |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 61.8% Female, 38.2% | Male, 56.9% Female, 43.1% |
| 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% |