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The differences between senior designers and freelance 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 senior designer and a freelance designer. Additionally, a senior designer has an average salary of $102,058, which is higher than the $57,260 average annual salary of a freelance designer.
The top three skills for a senior designer include sketch, graphic design and human centered design. The most important skills for a freelance designer are sketch, CSS, and HTML.
| Senior Designer | Freelance Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $102,058 | $57,260 |
| Hourly rate | $49.07 | $27.53 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 47,503 | 45,914 |
| Job satisfaction | 1 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
Senior designers are typically in charge of realizing design solutions that adhere to the business goals and marketing strategies of an organization. They should be comfortable managing graphics designers and making decisions. They must have extensive knowledge of styles, layout techniques, and graphic design while also managing projects and people effectively. Senior designers have a variety of duties, which include delegating tasks to junior designers, maintaining high-quality standards, and collaborating to improve digital creativity standards.
Freelance designers are creative, independent contractors who create visual and graphic designs for their clients. They develop text and illustrated versions of brands, messages, and communications with strong visible influence with their clients. Typical activities include networking, seeking projects, and negotiating prices to their customers. They manage client proposals, develop concepts, present solutions, and ensure the timely completion of projects. Freelance visual and graphic designers are creative, self-motivated as well as result and deadline oriented.
Senior designers and freelance designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Designer | Freelance Designer | |
| Average salary | $102,058 | $57,260 |
| Salary range | Between $72,000 And $143,000 | Between $39,000 And $83,000 |
| Highest paying City | Seattle, WA | - |
| Highest paying state | Washington | - |
| Best paying company | Lyft | - |
| Best paying industry | Media | - |
There are a few differences between a senior designer and a freelance designer in terms of educational background:
| Senior Designer | Freelance Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between senior designers' and freelance designers' demographics:
| Senior Designer | Freelance Designer | |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 71.0% Female, 29.0% | Male, 48.0% Female, 52.0% |
| 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% |