Annual Salary
£20,000 to £40,000
Average UK salary in 2023 was £34,963
(source Office for National Statistics)
Swap to Arts & crafts or Fashion & textiles or go back to all job sectors
Swap to Arts & crafts or Fashion & textiles or go back to all job sectors
Graphic designers create visual branding, adverts, brochures, magazines, website designs, product packaging and displays.
Average UK salary in 2023 was £34,963
(source Office for National Statistics)
You could work: evenings; occasionally
There will be
0.5% more Graphic designer jobs in 2027.
As a graphic designer, you could:
You could work in a creative studio, in an office, at a client's business or from home.
You can get into this job through:
You could take a foundation degree, higher national diploma or degree in a design related subject like:
Getting work experience during your course will give you an advantage when you start applying for jobs. Talk to your university careers service about work experience, internship and year placement opportunities, as well as any support offered to help you build a portfolio.
You'll usually need:
You could take a college course in graphic design or art and design, and use this to join a company as a design assistant.
You would need a good portfolio to showcase your skills to employers.
There's a lot of competition for graphic design work. You'll need a portfolio that shows your creative ideas, skills and work experience to help you get started.
Experience of using publishing software will also give you an advantage.
You could join the Chartered Society of Designers and the International Society of Typographical Designers for professional development and to make industry contacts.
You can get more information on working in creative careers from Discover Creative Careers.
With experience, you could:become a senior designer or creative director; move into project or studio management; go freelance or start your own design agency; move into teaching or lecturing
You could join the Chartered Society of Designers and the International Society of Typographical Designers for professional development and to make industry contacts.
You can find out more about careers and training in graphic design from Creative Choices.
You'll need: