Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
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Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2021
27-1024 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. Excludes “Web and Digital Interface Designers” (15-1255).
National estimates for Graphic Designers
Industry profile for Graphic Designers
Geographic profile for Graphic Designers
National estimates for Graphic Designers:
Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Graphic Designers:
| Employment (1) |
Employment
RSE (3) |
Mean hourly
wage |
Mean annual
wage (2) |
Wage RSE (3) |
| 204,040 |
1.3 % |
$ 28.83 |
$ 59,970 |
1.0 % |
Percentile wage estimates for Graphic Designers:
| Percentile |
10% |
25% |
50%
(Median) |
75% |
90% |
| Hourly Wage |
$ 15.06 |
$ 18.88 |
$ 24.38 |
$ 35.92 |
$ 47.24 |
| Annual Wage (2) |
$ 31,310 |
$ 39,270 |
$ 50,710 |
$ 74,700 |
$ 98,260 |
Industry profile for Graphic Designers:
Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Graphic Designers are provided.
For a list of all industries with employment in Graphic Designers, see the Create Customized Tables function.
Industries with the highest levels of employment in Graphic Designers:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Specialized Design Services |
22,710 |
16.77 |
$ 29.98 |
$ 62,350 |
| Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services |
22,510 |
5.17 |
$ 29.31 |
$ 60,960 |
| Printing and Related Support Activities |
17,470 |
4.75 |
$ 20.78 |
$ 43,220 |
| Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers |
12,200 |
4.92 |
$ 23.47 |
$ 48,820 |
| Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services |
10,550 |
0.68 |
$ 30.53 |
$ 63,510 |
Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Graphic Designers:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Specialized Design Services |
22,710 |
16.77 |
$ 29.98 |
$ 62,350 |
| Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services |
22,510 |
5.17 |
$ 29.31 |
$ 60,960 |
| Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers |
12,200 |
4.92 |
$ 23.47 |
$ 48,820 |
| Printing and Related Support Activities |
17,470 |
4.75 |
$ 20.78 |
$ 43,220 |
| Other Miscellaneous Manufacturing |
9,160 |
3.33 |
$ 22.43 |
$ 46,660 |
Top paying industries for Graphic Designers:
Geographic profile for Graphic Designers:
States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Graphic Designers are provided.
For a list of all areas with employment in Graphic Designers, see the Create Customized Tables function.
States with the highest employment level in Graphic Designers:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| California |
28,940 |
1.75 |
1.21 |
$ 33.70 |
$ 70,090 |
| New York |
17,470 |
2.02 |
1.39 |
$ 35.82 |
$ 74,510 |
| Texas |
13,450 |
1.10 |
0.76 |
$ 24.48 |
$ 50,920 |
| Florida |
11,910 |
1.38 |
0.96 |
$ 25.83 |
$ 53,720 |
| Illinois |
10,180 |
1.81 |
1.25 |
$ 27.67 |
$ 57,550 |
States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Graphic Designers:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| District of Columbia |
1,490 |
2.26 |
1.56 |
$ 40.90 |
$ 85,070 |
| Nebraska |
1,970 |
2.06 |
1.42 |
$ 25.08 |
$ 52,170 |
| New York |
17,470 |
2.02 |
1.39 |
$ 35.82 |
$ 74,510 |
| Rhode Island |
890 |
1.94 |
1.34 |
$ 31.30 |
$ 65,100 |
| Illinois |
10,180 |
1.81 |
1.25 |
$ 27.67 |
$ 57,550 |
Top paying states for Graphic Designers:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| District of Columbia |
1,490 |
2.26 |
1.56 |
$ 40.90 |
$ 85,070 |
| Washington |
5,810 |
1.81 |
1.25 |
$ 36.26 |
$ 75,420 |
| New York |
17,470 |
2.02 |
1.39 |
$ 35.82 |
$ 74,510 |
| Massachusetts |
5,240 |
1.54 |
1.07 |
$ 34.51 |
$ 71,770 |
| California |
28,940 |
1.75 |
1.21 |
$ 33.70 |
$ 70,090 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Graphic Designers:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA |
17,910 |
2.06 |
1.42 |
$ 36.77 |
$ 76,480 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
13,260 |
2.32 |
1.60 |
$ 32.74 |
$ 68,100 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI |
8,250 |
1.95 |
1.35 |
$ 28.50 |
$ 59,270 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV |
5,020 |
1.71 |
1.18 |
$ 36.94 |
$ 76,840 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX |
4,880 |
1.36 |
0.94 |
$ 25.61 |
$ 53,280 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
4,670 |
2.08 |
1.44 |
$ 40.42 |
$ 84,070 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA |
4,370 |
2.28 |
1.57 |
$ 39.28 |
$ 81,700 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH |
4,140 |
1.60 |
1.11 |
$ 35.97 |
$ 74,830 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA |
3,880 |
1.50 |
1.04 |
$ 28.74 |
$ 59,780 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL |
3,880 |
1.58 |
1.09 |
$ 27.76 |
$ 57,740 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Graphic Designers:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Lawrence, KS |
140 |
2.98 |
2.05 |
$ 21.41 |
$ 44,540 |
| Oshkosh-Neenah, WI |
260 |
2.87 |
1.98 |
$ 25.39 |
$ 52,810 |
| Provo-Orem, UT |
740 |
2.71 |
1.87 |
$ 25.78 |
$ 53,630 |
| Lincoln, NE |
460 |
2.68 |
1.85 |
$ 24.71 |
$ 51,400 |
| Boulder, CO |
460 |
2.52 |
1.74 |
$ 31.55 |
$ 65,620 |
| Omaha-Council Bluffs, NE-IA |
1,110 |
2.38 |
1.65 |
$ 26.10 |
$ 54,290 |
| Ann Arbor, MI |
480 |
2.38 |
1.64 |
(8) |
(8) |
| Bellingham, WA |
190 |
2.35 |
1.62 |
$ 33.00 |
$ 68,640 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
13,260 |
2.32 |
1.60 |
$ 32.74 |
$ 68,100 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA |
4,370 |
2.28 |
1.57 |
$ 39.28 |
$ 81,700 |
United States Department of Labor
