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The differences between production artists 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 production artist and a visual designer. Additionally, a visual designer has an average salary of $86,495, which is higher than the $61,870 average annual salary of a production artist.
The top three skills for a production artist include graphic design, adobe photoshop and adobe creative suite. The most important skills for a visual designer are sketch, visual design, and graphic design.
| Production Artist | Visual Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $61,870 | $86,495 |
| Hourly rate | $29.75 | $41.58 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 59,103 | 46,815 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
A production artist is responsible for managing digital content, meeting clients' standard specifications and requests for successful project completion. Production artists must have computer proficiency, especially on utilizing various software tools and applications to create illustrations and layouts. They also work closely with the creative team, cooperating in brainstorming sessions to ensure the consistency for each assigned task. A production artist should be keen on details, adjusting outputs as needed to maintain the highest quality for the actual presentation.
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.
Production artists and visual designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Production Artist | Visual Designer | |
| Average salary | $61,870 | $86,495 |
| Salary range | Between $40,000 And $94,000 | Between $51,000 And $143,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Bruno, CA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | California |
| Best paying company | Apple | ByteDance |
| Best paying industry | - | Start-up |
There are a few differences between a production artist and a visual designer in terms of educational background:
| Production Artist | Visual Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | 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 production artists' and visual designers' demographics:
| Production Artist | Visual Designer | |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 57.2% Female, 42.8% | 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% |