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The differences between user experience designers 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 user experience designer and a visual designer. Additionally, a user experience designer has an average salary of $91,159, which is higher than the $86,495 average annual salary of a visual designer.
The top three skills for a user experience designer include sketch, UI and user research. The most important skills for a visual designer are sketch, visual design, and graphic design.
| User Experience Designer | Visual Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $91,159 | $86,495 |
| Hourly rate | $43.83 | $41.58 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 52,582 | 46,815 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 71% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
A User Experience (UX) designer is an individual who measures and optimizes applications to improve the experience of end-users. His/Her or her duties and responsibilities include considering a design's human-computer interaction element, defining interaction models, and working with creative directors and designers. The key skills for UX designers include strong mathematical and problem-solving skills and excellent information technology and programming skills. Having a bachelor's degree in a design or computing-related subject is an advantage to qualify for the UX designer position.
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.
User experience designers and visual designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| User Experience Designer | Visual Designer | |
| Average salary | $91,159 | $86,495 |
| Salary range | Between $65,000 And $127,000 | Between $51,000 And $143,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Bruno, CA | San Bruno, CA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | California |
| Best paying company | BitGo | ByteDance |
| Best paying industry | Start-up | Start-up |
There are a few differences between a user experience designer and a visual designer in terms of educational background:
| User Experience Designer | Visual Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 71% | 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 user experience designers' and visual designers' demographics:
| User Experience Designer | Visual Designer | |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 59.6% Female, 40.4% | 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% |