Technical pattern designer vs fashion designer

The differences between technical pattern designers and fashion designers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a technical pattern designer and a fashion designer. Additionally, a technical pattern designer has an average salary of $64,349, which is higher than the $54,265 average annual salary of a fashion designer.

The top three skills for a technical pattern designer include tech packs, and . The most important skills for a fashion designer are fashion design, sketch, and apparel.

Technical pattern designer vs fashion designer overview

	Technical Pattern Designer	Fashion Designer
Yearly salary	$64,349	$54,265
Hourly rate	$30.94	$26.09
Growth rate	3%	3%
Number of jobs	111,232	49,476
Job satisfaction	-	4
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 50%	Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Average age	47	37
Years of experience	6	6

Technical pattern designer vs fashion designer salary

Technical pattern designers and fashion designers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Technical Pattern Designer	Fashion Designer
Average salary	$64,349	$54,265
Salary range	Between $37,000 And $109,000	Between $37,000 And $78,000
Highest paying City	-	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	-	Nevada
Best paying company	-	Ralph Lauren
Best paying industry	-	Retail

Differences between technical pattern designer and fashion designer education

There are a few differences between a technical pattern designer and a fashion designer in terms of educational background:

	Technical Pattern Designer	Fashion Designer
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 50%	Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Most common major	Graphic Design	Graphic Design
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	Cornell University

Technical pattern designer vs fashion designer demographics

Here are the differences between technical pattern designers' and fashion designers' demographics:

	Technical Pattern Designer	Fashion Designer
Average age	47	37
Gender ratio	Male, 25.0% Female, 75.0%	Male, 17.3% Female, 82.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.2% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 12.9% White, 56.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 7.3% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 11.9% Asian, 11.6% White, 63.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	11%	18%

Differences between technical pattern designer and fashion designer duties and responsibilities

Technical pattern designer example responsibilities.

Develop marketing and brand awareness initiatives through social media outlets; create and manage company Facebook and Houzz profiles.
Establish and disseminate corporate-wide AutoCAD standards to facilitate the overall design process employing multiple operators.
Develop marketing and brand awareness initiatives through social media outlets; create and manage company Facebook and Houzz profiles.

Fashion designer example responsibilities.

Customize technical packages with POM specifications, manage grading standards, assisting in costing the BOM, etc.
Manage and facilitate fittings and quick changes, organizing wardrobe, transferring and directing costumes to desire locations.
Develop marketing and brand awareness initiatives through social media outlets; create and manage company Facebook and Houzz profiles.
Create packages containing new design ideas, swatches of fabrics and embroideries, pictures, cad and presentations.
Key player in implementation of PLM system.
Design and develop a variety of apparel, including menswear and women's clothing, for various purposes and client types.

Technical pattern designer vs fashion designer skills

Common technical pattern designer skills

Tech Packs, 100%

Common fashion designer skills

Fashion Design, 14%
Sketch, 12%
Apparel, 6%
Design Concepts, 5%
Adobe Illustrator, 5%
CAD, 4%

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Technical Pattern Designer
Technical Pattern Designer vs Fashion Designer

Updated January 8, 2025

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