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The differences between media designers and graphic 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 media designer and a graphic designer. Additionally, a media designer has an average salary of $54,018, which is higher than the $49,450 average annual salary of a graphic designer.
The top three skills for a media designer include graphic design, animation and motion graphics. The most important skills for a graphic designer are adobe creative suite, adobe photoshop, and adobe illustrator.
| Media Designer | Graphic Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $54,018 | $49,450 |
| Hourly rate | $25.97 | $23.77 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 52,989 | 45,625 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 69% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
A media designer is a marketing professional who plans, visualizes, and creates marketing materials such as printed documents, electronic or web-based media based on the business needs and guidance from team members in a company. Media designers must develop brand loyalty among customers about the company's line of products. They are required to make known the image of a given company using graphics, design, video, or interactivity to draw in users or customers. Media designers must also create a social marketing presence by establishing blogs or networking pages on a company's website.
Graphic designers are visual communicators who create graphic ideas to deliver a message through art and images which inspire, inform, and motivate consumers with the use of computer software, especially Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign or by hand. They have the ability to design stunning illustrations that are easily understood, even without a lot of thinking or based on the demand of their clients. It is very crucial to them as well to be flexible and to stay on top of the design trends. They create websites, posters, packaging, logos, advertising, and marketing materials, depending on the nature of the business.
Media designers and graphic designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Media Designer | Graphic Designer | |
| Average salary | $54,018 | $49,450 |
| Salary range | Between $39,000 And $73,000 | Between $34,000 And $69,000 |
| Highest paying City | Brookline, MA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | Massachusetts | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | McKinsey & Company Inc | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Media | Technology |
There are a few differences between a media designer and a graphic designer in terms of educational background:
| Media Designer | Graphic Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 69% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between media designers' and graphic designers' demographics:
| Media Designer | Graphic Designer | |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 66.6% Female, 33.4% | Male, 49.8% Female, 50.2% |
| 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% |