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The differences between product designers and junior designers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a product designer, becoming a junior designer takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a product designer has an average salary of $102,033, which is higher than the $53,349 average annual salary of a junior designer.
The top three skills for a product designer include sketch, visual design and UI. The most important skills for a junior designer are sketch, graphic design, and adobe creative suite.
| Product Designer | Junior Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $102,033 | $53,349 |
| Hourly rate | $49.05 | $25.65 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 98,465 | 58,152 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Average age | 40 | 38 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 12 |
A product designer's key responsibilities are to perform design research, selecting the best materials, and develop user storyboards for the client and users' best interest. Product designers usually work with a whole design team, documenting suggestions to deliver high-quality outputs or improve existing products to match the market trends. They must also communicate with other skilled professionals to enhance their ideas and consult clients for any necessary adjustments that would affect the total user experience. A product designer should also have extensive knowledge of the consumer's preference to make the design more appealing and engaging.
A junior designer is an entry-level professional who is responsible for creating high-quality designs according to the requirements of clients. Under the supervision of senior designers, junior designers must understand project requirements and projects and use various techniques to create drafts, models, and prototypes. They collaborate with team members to pitch in creative ideas and produce final design solutions that can include banners or logos. Junior designers must also take on specially design tasks and use feedback from other designers to improve.
Product designers and junior designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Product Designer | Junior Designer | |
| Average salary | $102,033 | $53,349 |
| Salary range | Between $68,000 And $152,000 | Between $43,000 And $65,000 |
| Highest paying City | Sacramento, CA | Santa Rosa, CA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Netflix | Nike |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a product designer and a junior designer in terms of educational background:
| Product Designer | Junior Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | Carnegie Mellon University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between product designers' and junior designers' demographics:
| Product Designer | Junior Designer | |
| Average age | 40 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 74.2% Female, 25.8% | Male, 50.4% Female, 49.6% |
| Race ratio | 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% | 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 | 8% | 13% |