Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between lead graphic designers and freelance 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 freelance designer. Additionally, a lead graphic designer has an average salary of $76,009, which is higher than the $57,260 average annual salary of a freelance designer.
The top three skills for a lead graphic designer include adobe photoshop, graphic design and design concepts. The most important skills for a freelance designer are sketch, CSS, and HTML.
| Lead Graphic Designer | Freelance Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $76,009 | $57,260 |
| Hourly rate | $36.54 | $27.53 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 46,260 | 45,914 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| 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.
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.
Lead graphic designers and freelance designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Lead Graphic Designer | Freelance Designer | |
| Average salary | $76,009 | $57,260 |
| Salary range | Between $44,000 And $131,000 | Between $39,000 And $83,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | - |
| Highest paying state | California | - |
| Best paying company | Netflix | - |
| Best paying industry | Technology | - |
There are a few differences between a lead graphic designer and a freelance designer in terms of educational background:
| Lead Graphic Designer | Freelance Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | 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 lead graphic designers' and freelance designers' demographics:
| Lead Graphic Designer | Freelance Designer | |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 61.8% Female, 38.2% | Male, 48.0% Female, 52.0% |
| 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% |