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The differences between mechanical designers and designers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a mechanical designer, becoming a designer takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a designer has an average salary of $66,347, which is higher than the $62,541 average annual salary of a mechanical designer.
The top three skills for a mechanical designer include mechanical design, revit and auto cad. The most important skills for a designer are sketch, customer service, and graphic design.
| Mechanical Designer | Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $62,541 | $66,347 |
| Hourly rate | $30.07 | $31.90 |
| Growth rate | 2% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 65,748 | 52,433 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 61% |
| Average age | 41 | 38 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 12 |
A mechanical designer is responsible for designing mechanical equipment and devices, together with the engineers and other technology professionals. Mechanical designers create layouts following the clients' specifications, perform structural analysis, and analyze dimensions to ensure quality. They also inspect overall equipment performance and recommend adjustments as needed to improve its quality and boost optimization. Mechanical designers assist with installation and system upgrades, respond with the clients' inquiries and concerns, and escalate it to the appropriate personnel for resolution. A mechanical designer must have a strong knowledge of the mechanical and technology industry to build designs according to the highest standards.
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.
Mechanical designers and designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Mechanical Designer | Designer | |
| Average salary | $62,541 | $66,347 |
| Salary range | Between $46,000 And $83,000 | Between $45,000 And $97,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Seattle, WA |
| Highest paying state | Massachusetts | Washington |
| Best paying company | Apple | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Energy | Technology |
There are a few differences between a mechanical designer and a designer in terms of educational background:
| Mechanical Designer | Designer | |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 61% |
| Most common major | Drafting And Design | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | Carnegie Mellon University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between mechanical designers' and designers' demographics:
| Mechanical Designer | Designer | |
| Average age | 41 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 89.1% Female, 10.9% | Male, 56.9% Female, 43.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.4% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 9.1% Asian, 10.5% White, 72.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% | 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 | 5% | 13% |