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The differences between media designers and visual 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 visual designer. Additionally, a visual designer has an average salary of $86,495, which is higher than the $54,018 average annual salary of a media designer.
The top three skills for a media designer include graphic design, animation and motion graphics. The most important skills for a visual designer are sketch, visual design, and graphic design.
| Media Designer | Visual Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $54,018 | $86,495 |
| Hourly rate | $25.97 | $41.58 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 52,989 | 46,815 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 69% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| 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.
A visual designer is someone who creates designs for a variety of platforms such as Internet and intranet sites, games, and wearables. The duties of visual designers depend on the specific project or industry in which they are working. Duties include creating user-centered interaction models, working with information technology and business teams to resolve complex issues, and designing logos, icons, and infographics. The qualifications to become a visual designer include possessing strong problem-solving, communication, and negotiation skills and obtaining a bachelor's degree in design.
Media designers and visual designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Media Designer | Visual Designer | |
| Average salary | $54,018 | $86,495 |
| Salary range | Between $39,000 And $73,000 | Between $51,000 And $143,000 |
| Highest paying City | Brookline, MA | San Bruno, CA |
| Highest paying state | Massachusetts | California |
| Best paying company | McKinsey & Company Inc | ByteDance |
| Best paying industry | Media | Start-up |
There are a few differences between a media designer and a visual designer in terms of educational background:
| Media Designer | Visual Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 69% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between media designers' and visual designers' demographics:
| Media Designer | Visual Designer | |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 66.6% Female, 33.4% | Male, 53.1% Female, 46.9% |
| 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% |