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Senior graphic designer salary
Average senior graphic designer salary
$73,921
Average Senior Graphic Designer Salary
The average salary for a Senior Graphic Designer in the United States is approximately $73,921 per year, or about $36 per hour. Various factors play a role in salary variance, including geographic location, years of experience, and the specific industry. For instance, designers in metropolitan areas often earn more due to higher demand and cost of living considerations.
Where Can You Earn More?
States such as California, New York, and Washington are among the highest-paying locations for Senior Graphic Designers. Each state offers unique opportunities and salary potentials that reflect local market demands. Additionally, industries like advertising, technology, and entertainment tend to offer more competitive salaries.
Career Opportunities
For those looking to advance their careers, exploring senior roles in larger firms or specializing in high-demand areas like UX/UI design can lead to increased earnings. Understanding these dynamics provides a clearer picture of potential growth within the graphic design field.
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Where can a Senior Graphic Designer earn more?
Senior graphic designer salary estimates from across the web
Average senior graphic designer salary by state
The average senior graphic designer salary in Washington, California, and Massachusetts are the highest in the U.S. The lowest average senior graphic designer salary states are Arkansas, Alabama, and Montana.
- State view
- County view
Highest paying states for senior graphic designers
| Rank | State | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Washington | $93,978 | $45.18 |
| 2 | Massachusetts | $87,958 | $42.29 |
| 3 | California | $91,339 | $43.91 |
| 4 | New York | $84,171 | $40.47 |
| 5 | Utah | $77,288 | $37.16 |
| 6 | Oregon | $78,624 | $37.80 |
| 7 | District of Columbia | $85,215 | $40.97 |
| 8 | Virginia | $78,939 | $37.95 |
| 9 | Nevada | $87,079 | $41.86 |
| 10 | Pennsylvania | $74,129 | $35.64 |
| 11 | Rhode Island | $72,306 | $34.76 |
| 12 | Michigan | $71,049 | $34.16 |
| 13 | Wisconsin | $71,833 | $34.54 |
| 14 | New Jersey | $79,191 | $38.07 |
| 15 | Illinois | $71,517 | $34.38 |
| 16 | Alaska | $80,172 | $38.54 |
| 17 | Maryland | $74,772 | $35.95 |
| 18 | North Carolina | $69,363 | $33.35 |
| 19 | Idaho | $72,760 | $34.98 |
| 20 | West Virginia | $74,620 | $35.88 |
| 21 | Ohio | $69,142 | $33.24 |
| 22 | Hawaii | $84,835 | $40.79 |
| 23 | Minnesota | $68,345 | $32.86 |
| 24 | Arizona | $68,156 | $32.77 |
| 25 | Missouri | $68,517 | $32.94 |
| 26 | New Hampshire | $67,143 | $32.28 |
| 27 | Kansas | $66,855 | $32.14 |
| 28 | Delaware | $69,416 | $33.37 |
| 29 | Colorado | $67,640 | $32.52 |
| 30 | Texas | $64,036 | $30.79 |
| 31 | Nebraska | $67,099 | $32.26 |
| 32 | Vermont | $66,219 | $31.84 |
| 33 | Wyoming | $65,305 | $31.40 |
| 34 | Tennessee | $64,762 | $31.14 |
| 35 | Connecticut | $65,951 | $31.71 |
| 36 | Georgia | $60,916 | $29.29 |
| 37 | Maine | $59,955 | $28.82 |
| 38 | Iowa | $60,101 | $28.89 |
| 39 | North Dakota | $60,072 | $28.88 |
| 40 | New Mexico | $60,017 | $28.85 |
| 41 | Florida | $58,751 | $28.25 |
| 42 | South Carolina | $59,449 | $28.58 |
| 43 | Indiana | $58,637 | $28.19 |
| 44 | Mississippi | $58,860 | $28.30 |
| 45 | Montana | $55,533 | $26.70 |
| 46 | Louisiana | $59,451 | $28.58 |
| 47 | Arkansas | $56,112 | $26.98 |
| 48 | Alabama | $55,781 | $26.82 |
| 49 | Oklahoma | $48,100 | $23.13 |
| 50 | Kentucky | $51,690 | $24.85 |
| 51 | South Dakota | $47,452 | $22.81 |
Highest paying cities for senior graphic designers
The highest-paying cities for senior graphic designers are San Francisco, CA, Seattle, WA, and Boston, MA.
| Rank | City | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Francisco, CA | $99,250 | $47.72 |
| 2 | Seattle, WA | $94,794 | $45.57 |
| 3 | Boston, MA | $88,074 | $42.34 |
| 4 | Las Vegas, NV | $86,359 | $41.52 |
| 5 | Washington, DC | $85,229 | $40.98 |
| 6 | New York, NY | $84,346 | $40.55 |
| 7 | Arlington, VA | $79,997 | $38.46 |
| 8 | Newark, NJ | $79,346 | $38.15 |
| 9 | Portland, OR | $78,491 | $37.74 |
| 10 | Salt Lake City, UT | $76,839 | $36.94 |
| 11 | Baltimore, MD | $74,990 | $36.05 |
| 12 | Philadelphia, PA | $74,410 | $35.77 |
| 13 | Charleston, WV | $73,848 | $35.50 |
| 14 | Milwaukee, WI | $71,852 | $34.54 |
| 15 | Chicago, IL | $71,802 | $34.52 |
| 16 | Raleigh, NC | $70,442 | $33.87 |
| 17 | Newark, DE | $69,462 | $33.40 |
| 18 | Flagstaff, AZ | $69,300 | $33.32 |
| 19 | Reynoldsburg, OH | $68,959 | $33.15 |
| 20 | Minneapolis, MN | $68,407 | $32.89 |
Senior Graphic Designers are the most in-demand in these five cities:
Senior graphic designer salary details
A senior graphic designer's salary ranges from $51,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $105,000 at the 90th percentile.
What is a senior graphic designer's salary?
| Percentile | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90th Percentile | $105,000 | $8,750 | $50 |
| 75th Percentile | $89,000 | $7,417 | $43 |
| Average | $73,921 | $6,160 | $36 |
| 25th Percentile | $61,000 | $5,083 | $29 |
| 10th Percentile | $51,000 | $4,250 | $25 |
Highest paying senior graphic designer jobs
The highest paying types of senior graphic designers are head designer, lead designer, and senior designer.
| Job title | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Designer/Art Director | $97,448 | $8,121 | $46.85 | 53,314 |
| Graphic Artist | $54,900 | $4,575 | $26.39 | 8,752 |
| Designer | $66,347 | $5,529 | $31.90 | 52,433 |
| Production Designer | $54,760 | $4,563 | $26.33 | 96,682 |
| Visual Designer | $86,495 | $7,208 | $41.58 | 46,815 |
| Freelance Designer | $57,260 | $4,772 | $27.53 | 45,914 |
How would you rate the starting salaries for senior graphic designers, as well as the prospects for salary advancement?
Abby Guido
Assistant Professor, Tyler School of Art and Architecture, Temple University
Top companies hiring senior graphic designers now:
Which companies pay senior graphic designers the most?
Senior graphic designer salaries at Practice Fusion and BGC Partners are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average senior graphic designer salary at companies like Quirky and Datadog are highly competitive.
| Rank | Company | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Practice Fusion | $124,128 | $59.68 |
| 2 | BGC Partners | $118,448 | $56.95 |
| 3 | Quirky | $118,129 | $56.79 |
| 4 | Datadog | $114,474 | $55.04 |
| 5 | AIG | $109,155 | $52.48 |
| 6 | Newmark Grubb Knight Frank | $106,211 | $51.06 |
| 7 | Amazon | $105,832 | $50.88 |
| 8 | Cisco | $105,658 | $50.80 |
| 9 | ServiceNow | $105,241 | $50.60 |
| 10 | Parsons | $104,536 | $50.26 |
| 11 | Marcus & Millichap | $104,531 | $50.26 |
| 12 | Yahoo | $103,793 | $49.90 |
| 13 | Nike | $102,952 | $49.50 |
| 14 | PVH | $102,780 | $49.41 |
| 15 | RH | $102,065 | $49.07 |
| 16 | CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield | $101,691 | $48.89 |
| 17 | Visa | $100,491 | $48.31 |
| 18 | Neiman Marcus Group | $99,458 | $47.82 |
| 19 | AT&T | $99,120 | $47.65 |
| 20 | Autodesk | $98,269 | $47.24 |
Wage gap by gender, race and education
Senior Graphic Designer salary by industry
The average senior graphic designer salary varies across industries:
- The average senior graphic designer salary in the technology industry is $78,796, the highest of any industry.
- The average senior graphic designer salary in the finance industry is $77,537.
- Senior graphic designers in the hospitality industry earn an average salary of $56,507, the lowest of any industry.
Highest paying industries for senior graphic designers
| Rank | Industry | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Technology | $78,796 | $37.88 |
| 2 | Media | $77,537 | $37.28 |
| 3 | Real Estate | $77,146 | $37.09 |
| 4 | Professional | $75,997 | $36.54 |
| 5 | Manufacturing | $75,848 | $36.47 |
| 6 | Retail | $71,244 | $34.25 |
| 7 | Hospitality | $56,507 | $27.17 |
High paying senior graphic designer jobs
Senior graphic designer salary trends
The average senior graphic designer salary has risen by $12,975 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average senior graphic designer earned $60,946 annually, but today, they earn $73,921 a year. That works out to a 12% change in pay for senior graphic designers over the last decade.
Compare senior graphic designer salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.
Average senior graphic designer salary over time
Compare senior graphic designer salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.
Senior graphic designer salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $73,900 | $35.54 | +2.4% |
| 2024 | $72,200 | $34.69 | +3.3% |
| 2023 | $69,800 | $33.54 | +3.3% |
| 2022 | $67,400 | $32.42 | +2.2% |
| 2021 | $66,000 | $31.72 | +1.6% |
Recently added senior graphic designer salaries
| Company | Job | Location | Date added | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gensler | Visual/Graphic Designer-Senior | Los Angeles, CA | 06/30/2025 | $98,000 |
| Transwestern | Senior Graphic Designer | Bethesda, MD | 06/30/2025 | $75,000 |
| Knitwellgroup | SR. Graphic Designer | New York, NY | 06/29/2025 | $65,000 |
| Cushman & Wakefield Inc. | Senior Graphic Designer | Chicago, IL | 06/28/2025 | $69,700 |
| Cushman & Wakefield | Senior Graphic Designer | Houston, TX | 06/28/2025 | $69,700 |
| Cushman & Wakefield Inc. | Senior Graphic Designer | Miami, FL | 06/28/2025 | $69,700 |
| Muckleshoot Casino Resort | Senior Graphic Designer | Auburn, WA | 06/28/2025 | $85,346 |
| Wilson Sporting Goods | SR. Graphic Designer, Sportswear | Chicago, IL | 06/28/2025 | $80,000 |
| Columbus Museum of Art | Senior Graphic Designer | Columbus, OH | 06/27/2025 | $65,000 |
| Darkstar Intelligence | Graphic Designer, JM-Senior | McLean, VA | 06/26/2025 | $135,000 |
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