Salary Survey Report for Job: Graphic Artist / Designer

• Multi-Media Artists and Animators - Create special effects, animation, or other visual images using film, video, computers, or other electronic tools and media for use in products or creations, such as computer games, movies, music videos, and commercials.
• Graphic Designers - Design or create graphics to meet specific commercial or promotional needs, such as packaging, displays, or logos. May use a variety of mediums to achieve artistic or decorative effects.
• Desktop Publishers - Format typescript and graphic elements using computer software to produce publication-ready material.

Graphic Designer Salary Research

Graphic design is a great career for people who love a meld of the creative and technical. New technology for creating and editing pictures and video is constantly being introduced, so a graphic designer's toolset is ever-expanding. Whether using cutting-edge software or good old-fashioned colored pencil, a graphic designer is in the fortunate position of making a career from his or her art. Many highly artistic people struggle to make a living with their art, save for the very few who make it big (see musician salary data to compare). By contrast, graphic designers can make a stable living using their artistic skills in a vast array of industries, from publishing to web design to television and film. Since graphic artists are needed in so many different capacities, it follows that not all graphic designer salaries are created equal. The influx of new tools and fresh talent into the graphic design market mean that the average salary of a graphic designer may fluctuate from year to year, so it's important to stay current on your graphic designer salary research. Using PayScale's graphic artist salary data, you can research how factors such as experience, location and industry affect graphic designer salaries.

Graphic Designer Salaries - Data

West coast graphic designers have the right idea - the Graphic Designer Salary by City chart shows that Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Seattle are all among the top cities for graphic designer salaries, and measuring Graphic Artist Salary by State shows California far out in the lead. When it comes to location, though, looking at salary numbers alone isn't enough. Use PayScale's cost of living calculator to compare Graphic Artist Cost of Living in Los Angeles to the national average, and you'll start to see why graphic designer salaries are as high as they are in the City of Angels. If you're looking to increase your graphic designer salary without a big move, you might be able to just wait it out. After all, the Average Salary of a Graphic Designer by Years Experience increases by over 50% over 20 years. Experience is impossible to come by quickly, however, and a fledgling graphic designer doesn't have that option. Instead, take a look at Graphic Designer Salaries by Industry to compare the average salary of a graphic designer in industries such as publishing, marketing, and manufacturing/distribution. A skilled graphic artist has a lot of opportunities to change industries, which could lead not only to earning higher graphic designer salaries, but also new skills and tools to put on a resume.

Average Salary of a Graphic Designer

Informed research can make all the difference when it comes to negotiating salary offers - it's important to have all the facts. To find out why "what is the median graphic designer salary" is a better question than "what is the average salary of a graphic designer," just Ask Dr. Salary! Read his post "Why is Median Better than Mean for a Typical Salary?" over in the Ask Dr. Salary blog.