Graphic designer: salary in the UK
ONS occupation: Graphic and multimedia designers (SOC 2142)
About £29,226 a year after tax (England, Wales and Northern Ireland, 2026/27)
median salary a year, full-time, +9.6% on last year
£2,975 a month About £2,435 a month after tax 48 thousand full-time jobs
Gross pay before tax, including bonuses, commission and overtime. Not included: benefits in kind such as a company car. About the data
Pay range
The dark part is the middle half of full-time employees (25% to 75%); the light bar runs from 10% to 90%. ONS doesn't publish the highest or lowest salary, and x means a figure wasn't published.
Pay by year
The median went from £26,000 in 2021 to £35,703 in 2026 (+37%); for all full-time employees in the UK it changed by +31% over the same years.
Figures by year
| P10 | P25 | Median | P75 | P90 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | £20,132 | £22,425 | £26,000 | £31,022 | x |
| 2022 | £19,998 | x | x | x | x |
| 2023 | x | x | £29,544 | x | x |
| 2024 | £23,407 | £26,159 | £31,706 | £37,511 | x |
| 2025 | £24,646 | £27,006 | £32,573 | £40,000 | x |
| 2026 | £25,587 | £28,827 | £35,703 | £44,916 | x |
ONS figures for each year, not adjusted for inflation. Years before 2021 used a different occupation classification, so they can't be compared. Earlier years are ONS's revised figures; the latest is provisional.
Half of full-time employees in this occupation earn less than £35,703 a year and half earn more. That is 13% less than the median for all full-time employees in the UK (£40,911).
The middle half earn between £28,827 and £44,916; one in ten earns less than £25,587.
Ranked by median, it is number 202 of the 362 occupations with a published figure.
At the median salary, take-home pay after Income Tax and National Insurance is about £2,435 a month in England, Wales or Northern Ireland and £2,434 in Scotland.
The median for men is £36,160 and for women £33,988, a gap of 6% in men's favour. This compares full-time salaries only and doesn't account for seniority or hours.
Percentiles
| Percentile | Annual | Monthly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th (P10) | £25,587 | £2,132 |
| 20th | £27,695 | £2,308 |
| 25th (P25) | £28,827 | £2,402 |
| 30th | £29,683 | £2,474 |
| 40th | £31,803 | £2,650 |
| Median (50th) | £35,703 | £2,975 |
| 60th | £39,335 | £3,278 |
| 70th | £42,958 | £3,580 |
| 75th (P75) | £44,916 | £3,743 |
| 80th | £47,568 | £3,964 |
| 90th (P90) | x | x |
Men and women
| Median | Mean | Jobs (thousands) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men | £36,160 | £40,254 | 30 |
| Women | £33,988 | £39,313 | 18 |
Take-home pay at the median
| Where you live | Per year | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| England, Wales, NI | £29,226 | £2,435 |
| Scotland | £29,204 | £2,434 |
After Income Tax and National Insurance for 2026 to 2027, with the standard tax code and no pension or student loan. Work out your own take-home pay · Take-home pay on £36,000
Job titles in this occupation
ONS codes these 91 job titles to SOC 2142 Graphic and multimedia designers. Pay figures are for the whole occupation, not for each title.
- 2d animator
- 3d animator
- 3d artist
- 3d designer
- 3d modeller
- 3d visualiser
- Advert designer
- Animation supervisor
- Animator
- Apple mac operator
- Art designer
- Artist
- Artworker
- Commercial artist
- Compositor
- Computer 2d animator
- Computer 3d animator
- Computer animator
- Computer artist
- Computer games artist
- Copyist
- Creative artworker
- Creative design assistant
- Creative services officer
- Data visualisation designer
- Design assistant
- Design copier
- Design copyist
- Designer
- Designer's copyist
- Desk top publishing operator
- Digital artist
- Digital artworker
- Digital designer
- Digital effects artist
- Digital illustrator
- Display controller
- Display decorator
- Display designer
- Dtp operator
- Effects technical director
- Environment artist
- Environment modeller
- Exhibition designer
- Flame artist
- FX technical director
- Generative AI artist
- Graphic and web designer
- Graphic artist
- Graphic communicator
- Graphic design assistant
- Graphic design consultant
- Graphic design coordinator
- Graphic designer
- Graphics assistant
- Graphics officer
- Graphics technician
- Health data designer
- Illuminator
- Infographic designer
Show all 91 titles
- Layout artist
- Lead artist
- Lettering artist
- Litho artist
- Lithographic artist
- Mac artist
- Mac operator
- Motion graphics designer
- Multimedia designer
- Publications assistant
- Publishing assistant
- Senior artworker
- Setter-out
- Special effects technician
- Stereo artist
- Stop motion animator
- Technical artist
- Technical illustrator
- Texture artist
- Vfx animator
- Vfx artist
- VFX production manager
- Vfx supervisor
- VFX technical director
- Vfx technician
- Virtual production specialist
- Visual effects animator
- Visual effects artist
- Visual effects supervisor
- Visual effects technician
- Visualiser
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Source: ONS, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings 2026 provisional, Table 14.7a (full-time employees, gross annual pay, UK, tax year ending 5 April 2026). Provisional figures may be revised.