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The differences between lighting specialists and lighting designers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a lighting specialist and a lighting designer. Additionally, a lighting designer has an average salary of $53,542, which is higher than the $51,353 average annual salary of a lighting specialist.
The top three skills for a lighting specialist include product knowledge, customer satisfaction and electrical products. The most important skills for a lighting designer are revit, photoshop, and light fixtures.
| Lighting Specialist | Lighting Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $51,353 | $53,542 |
| Hourly rate | $24.69 | $25.74 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 31,018 | 46,203 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 53% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Average age | 47 | 40 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
Lighting specialists and lighting designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Lighting Specialist | Lighting Designer | |
| Average salary | $51,353 | $53,542 |
| Salary range | Between $34,000 And $75,000 | Between $34,000 And $83,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | - | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | - | Rivian |
| Best paying industry | - | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between a lighting specialist and a lighting designer in terms of educational background:
| Lighting Specialist | Lighting Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 53% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Most common major | Business | Theatre |
| Most common college | SUNY College of Technology at Alfred | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between lighting specialists' and lighting designers' demographics:
| Lighting Specialist | Lighting Designer | |
| Average age | 47 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 58.8% Female, 41.2% | Male, 65.0% Female, 35.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.9% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.3% Asian, 5.2% White, 72.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 1.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.3% Asian, 10.1% White, 76.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 8% |