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The differences between senior web designers and lead web developers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a senior web designer and a lead web developer. Additionally, a lead web developer has an average salary of $108,800, which is higher than the $80,678 average annual salary of a senior web designer.
The top three skills for a senior web designer include html css, sketch and UI. The most important skills for a lead web developer are web application, javascript, and CSS.
| Senior Web Designer | Lead Web Developer | |
| Yearly salary | $80,678 | $108,800 |
| Hourly rate | $38.79 | $52.31 |
| Growth rate | 13% | 13% |
| Number of jobs | 52,749 | 250,411 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 70% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Average age | 37 | 37 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A senior web designer leads a team of website designers to create, enhance, and optimize company websites. The senior web designer's goal is to meet the clients' expectations and build a website that embodies the company's characteristics, voice, style, and vision. The web designer also ensures that customers accessing the website experiences a smooth, functional, and fast website, free from bugs and other problems that may affect user experience and satisfaction. A senior web designer's responsibilities are to efficiently delegate tasks to other team members to meet client expectations.
A lead web developer is in charge of spearheading the development of web applications and systems. In a company setting, their responsibilities include managing a team of developers, identifying and understanding project requirements, heading the planning and execution stages, setting objectives and timelines, establishing guidelines, delegating tasks, and providing technical support and guidance to staff. They must also respond to issues and concerns, resolving them promptly and efficiently. Moreover, being the lead web developer, they must encourage teams to reach goals, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
Senior web designers and lead web developers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Web Designer | Lead Web Developer | |
| Average salary | $80,678 | $108,800 |
| Salary range | Between $55,000 And $116,000 | Between $84,000 And $140,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | Washington |
| Best paying company | Roku | First Republic Bank |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Professional |
There are a few differences between a senior web designer and a lead web developer in terms of educational background:
| Senior Web Designer | Lead Web Developer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 70% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Computer Science |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
Here are the differences between senior web designers' and lead web developers' demographics:
| Senior Web Designer | Lead Web Developer | |
| Average age | 37 | 37 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 66.7% Female, 33.3% | Male, 81.3% Female, 18.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.7% Unknown, 6.6% Hispanic or Latino, 12.5% Asian, 15.1% White, 58.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 6.6% Unknown, 6.5% Hispanic or Latino, 12.2% Asian, 15.7% White, 58.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 9% |