Side-by-side distribution
Creative Director
$162,500
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 51.3%
- Live roles
- 275
Motion Designer
$120,000
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 29%
- Live roles
- 162
Highest-paying jobs
Creative Director, Block
Creative Director, Tidal
Creative Director
Head of Brand Creative
Creative Director
Creative Director
Head of Creative Design
Creative Director, Marketing
Head of Product Creative
Senior Director, Brand Strategy & Creative Studio
Highest-paying jobs
Staff Motion Designer, Design Innovation
Motion Designer / Video Producer
Motion Designer (Brand Team)
Staff Motion Designer
Staff UX Motion Designer - MetaMask
Motion Designer
Rive Motion Designer and Animator (Contract-to-Hire)
Motion Designer
Social Graphic / Motion Designer (Contract)
Senior Motion Designer
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
VML
|
$165,000 | 12 |
Braze
|
$175,250 | 4 |
Highwire
|
$130,000 | 4 |
Ogilvy
|
$127,500 | 4 |
Code and Theory
|
$192,500 | 3 |
Monks
|
$175,000 | 3 |
The New York Times
|
$159,000 | 3 |
| SX SALT XC | $157,500 | 3 |
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
|
Highwire
|
$97,500 | 4 |
Wild Card Creative Group
|
$120,000 | 2 |
Directive
|
$69,443 | 2 |
|
Macroscope
|
$300,000 | 1 |
|
Pinterest
|
$242,818 | 1 |
|
Baseten
|
$215,000 | 1 |
|
Harvey
|
$196,300 | 1 |
|
Perplexity
|
$195,000 | 1 |
Creative Director salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $180,000 | 15 |
| Austin | $179,500 | 5 |
| New York | $165,000 | 60 |
| Chicago | $165,000 | 10 |
| Los Angeles | $162,500 | 12 |
| Boston | $130,500 | 3 |
| Toronto | $84,713 | 6 |
Motion Designer salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $146,000 | 13 |
| New York | $120,000 | 11 |
| Los Angeles | $79,500 | 3 |
Creative Director vs Motion Designer: which pays more?
The median for Creative Director is $162,500 per year (typically $130,000–$189,280), versus $120,000 for Motion Designer ($96,500–$145,000). That puts Creative Director about 35% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so Creative Director and Motion 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.