Side-by-side distribution
Art Director
$155,557
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 42.9%
- Live roles
- 380
UX Designer
$170,000
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 40.2%
- Live roles
- 1,572
Highest-paying jobs
Design Director, Core Experience
Director, Product Design
Design Director, Visual Systems
Art Director, Claude
Director Product Design - Structured Modes
Sr Director, Sound Design
Director, Design Verification
Director, Product Design
Executive Director, Motion Design
Director, User Research - Product Design
Highest-paying jobs
Senior Product Designer - Design System.
Product Designer
Principal Product Designer, AI Native, Core
Founding Product Designer (Contract), Handshake AI Enterprise
Product Designer
Product Designer, People Innovation Labs
Staff Product Experience Designer - Customer Interfaces
Product Designer
Product Designer
Sr. Product Designer
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
Omnicom Media
|
$115,000 | 7 |
| DE DEPT® | $146,000 | 5 |
Syska Hennessy Group
|
$141,811 | 5 |
Ogilvy
|
$100,000 | 5 |
Filevine
|
$125,000 | 4 |
VML
|
$122,927 | 4 |
| SX SALT XC | $97,000 | 4 |
The New York Times
|
$132,990 | 3 |
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
Air Apps
|
$47,724 | 11 |
Anduril Industries
|
$192,500 | 7 |
Robinhood
|
$190,882 | 7 |
Oscar Health
|
$142,649 | 6 |
Accenture Federal Services
|
$128,750 | 6 |
Konrad
|
$87,000 | 6 |
|
VML
|
$60,320 | 6 |
VML Enterprise Solutions
|
$60,320 | 6 |
Art Director salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $214,304 | 14 |
| Seattle | $214,304 | 6 |
| Los Angeles | $162,500 | 13 |
| New York | $156,423 | 54 |
| Atlanta | $155,000 | 3 |
| London | $125,498 | 9 |
| Chicago | $115,000 | 7 |
| Denver | $95,000 | 3 |
| Toronto | $80,855 | 7 |
UX Designer salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $213,825 | 130 |
| Austin | $210,000 | 13 |
| New York | $185,000 | 163 |
| Seattle | $179,000 | 26 |
| Chicago | $175,000 | 12 |
| Denver | $172,000 | 17 |
| Los Angeles | $168,500 | 14 |
| Boston | $168,000 | 23 |
| London | $115,301 | 28 |
| Toronto | $105,000 | 29 |
Art Director vs UX Designer: which pays more?
The median for Art Director is $155,557 per year (typically $115,000–$213,500), versus $170,000 for UX Designer ($132,000–$200,000). That puts UX Designer about 9% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so Art Director and UX 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.