How To Become A Motion Graphics Designer: What It Is and Career Path

What is a motion graphics designer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted expert

Tess Elliot

We have web designers, user interface designers, user experience designers, and then we have motion graphics designers. Motion graphics designers are comparatively new in the designing market. Similar to creative video producers and filmmakers, there are talented motion graphics designers who add a touch of creativity and fun to your apps, favorite movies, websites, and shows.

Professional motion graphics designers are into producing artworks for web, movies, and TV shows. They are responsible for attending creative meetings and submitting projects with the designated deadline. They also follow directives from clients, collaborate with fellow designers, make trail designs and edit them according to clients or senior designers' recommendations.

These savvy and innovative artists can make up to $28.39 per hour. Almost every designer has a bachelor's degree in graphics designing or animation working in the field. The profession is about combining technology and creativity, so learn how to do it perfectly before entering this field.

What general advice would you give to a motion graphics designer?

Tess Elliot

Assistant Professor, University of Oklahoma

Stay true to yourself. Be patient and have confidence in yourself and your work. Artists early in their careers often don't make money from their work. This is okay. Find a way to support yourself while continuing to make and share your work and things will fall into place. Seek out that unique path to career fulfillment.

ScoreMotion Graphics DesignerUS Average

Salary

4.9

Avg. Salary $62,558

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

4.2

Growth rate 3%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

4.5

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.37%

Asian 10.42%

Black or African American 3.42%

Hispanic or Latino 10.63%

Unknown 4.99%

White 70.17%

Gender

female 21.59%

male 78.41%

Age - 37

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 37

Stress level

4.2

Stress level is moderate

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.5

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

3.9

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a motion graphics designer

Explore motion graphics designer education requirements

Most common motion graphics designer degrees

Bachelor's

74.3 %

Associate

12.2 %

Master's

9.4 %

Start to develop specific motion graphics designer skills

Skills	Percentages
Animation	23.35%
Style Frames	15.49%
Cinema	6.96%
Adobe Creative Suite	4.05%
Sketch	3.97%

Complete relevant motion graphics designer training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New motion graphics designers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a motion graphics designer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real motion graphics designer resumes.

Research motion graphics designer duties and responsibilities

Lead team brainstorming sessions to solve creative problems.
Lead team of motion designers which include brainstorming, mood boards, creation of mock-ups and presentations to clients and stakeholders.
Train & supervise newly appoint employee in achieving realistic looking effects and help integrating the effects in compositing with cg elements.
Design and build interactive digital content for musicians including photography, video and custom HTML, CSS & JavaScript development.

Prepare your motion graphics designer resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your motion graphics designer resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a motion graphics designer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable motion graphics designer resume templates

Build a professional motion graphics designer resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your motion graphics designer resume.

Apply for motion graphics designer jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a motion graphics designer job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do motion graphics designers rate their job?

5/5

Based on 1 ratings

5 stars

4 stars

3 stars

2 stars

1 star

Motion graphics designer reviews

5.0

A zippia user wrote a review on Jun 2019

Pros

However for today's living we need food so, as that motion graphics is a great way in which people regularly needs graphics for each and every purpose.

Cons

Technical Issues