Side-by-side distribution
Creative Director
$165,000
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 54.5%
- Live roles
- 277
Industrial Designer
$125,000
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 52.9%
- Live roles
- 34
Highest-paying jobs
Creative Director
Head of Creative
Head of Creative Operations
Head of Brand Creative
Creative Director
Creative Director
Creative Director
Creative Director, Demand Gen
Director, Creative Operations
Creative Director, Marketing
Highest-paying jobs
Lead Industrial Designer
Staff Industrial Designer
Industrial Designer - AI Trainer
Staff Industrial Designer
Staff Industrial Designer
Senior Industrial Designer/Principal Industrial Designer Fully remote
Industrial Designer
Senior Industrial Designer - San Francisco
Industrial Designer
Industrial Systems Designer
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
Monks
|
$168,750 | 12 |
Highwire
|
$130,000 | 9 |
SharkNinja
|
$152,500 | 5 |
Braze
|
$175,250 | 4 |
Real Chemistry
|
$175,000 | 3 |
TubeScience
|
$150,000 | 3 |
Ogilvy
|
$127,500 | 3 |
VML
|
$80,855 | 3 |
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
|
Aurora Innovation
|
$188,500 | 2 |
KiwiCo Inc.
|
$103,670 | 2 |
CoCreativ
|
$90,750 | 2 |
|
Handshake
|
$260,000 | 1 |
|
Peloton
|
$239,600 | 1 |
| SA Skild AI | $200,000 | 1 |
|
Applied Intuition
|
$170,000 | 1 |
|
Plaud
|
$160,000 | 1 |
Creative Director salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| London | $216,252 | 4 |
| San Francisco | $179,750 | 20 |
| Boston | $171,250 | 4 |
| Austin | $170,000 | 9 |
| Chicago | $170,000 | 10 |
| Los Angeles | $167,500 | 21 |
| New York | $166,675 | 56 |
| Atlanta | $165,000 | 3 |
| Toronto | $127,905 | 5 |
Industrial Designer salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $160,000 | 5 |
Creative Director vs Industrial Designer: which pays more?
The median for Creative Director is $165,000 per year (typically $135,500–$200,000), versus $125,000 for Industrial Designer ($107,500–$170,000). That puts Creative Director about 32% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so Creative Director and Industrial Designer are compared on equal terms regardless of the currency each role was originally posted in. Only roles that publish a salary range feed the medians; numbers refresh every few hours as new roles post and older ones close, so this comparison reflects the market right now rather than a fixed survey. Use it as a directional benchmark when weighing one path against the other.