The median salary for an interior designer can depend on a wide range of factors, such as state or years of experience. Interior designers working in the US make about $46,762 per year, while those working in Canada earn around C$46,109 ($35,407) each year. Meanwhile, the interior designer salary in Australia rests at AU$52,392 ($38,876) per year.
Interior designers in the United Kingdom make about £24,732 ($31,796) every year, while those working in Norway earn NOK499,562 ($60,596) annually. The same professionals living in Switzerland earn a median yearly salary of CHF 64,778 ($65,163). Find out what you need to take into consideration when striving for an interior design salary.
Interior Designer Salary Influencers
1. Industry
The median interior designer salary strongly depends on the employer or the industry one works in:
- Self-employed workers: 19%
- Specialized design services industry: 31%
- Architectural, engineering, and related services field: 16%
- Furniture stores: 8%
- Wholesale trade: 5%
2. Geographical Area
| Interior Designer Salary | US | Canada | UK | Australia | Switzerland | Norway |
| Hourly Wage | $19.65 | C$20.48 ($15.72) | £12.57 ($16.16) | AU$25.52 ($18.93) | CHF31.14* ($66.96) | NOK240 ($29.13) |
| Annual Wage | $46,762 | C$46,109 ($35,397) | £24,732 ($31,788) | AU$52,392 ($38,860) | CHF64,778 ($65,160) | NOK499,562 ($60,639) |
*The hourly pay was extrapolated from the annual pay.
Interior Designer Salary in the US
Even more significant than the industry is the location, as far as the mean salary of an interior designer is concerned. In some states, these professionals can make double the national salary median, while in others they barely pass $35k. In the United States, the state that offers the highest salary for interior designers is the District of Columbia, with $86,410. It surpasses all other states by at least $15k. A few other states that have top interior design job salary ranges are:
- Rhode Island – $71,060
- NYC – $66,300
- Texas – $65,070
- California – $64,410
Someone that wants to increase their chances of getting hired and finding openings for interior designer jobs, they should also look into California, Texas, Florida, New York and Illinois, as these states have the highest employment rates in the country.
The states that offer the lowest salary interior designer estimates are:
- Mississippi – $35,040
- Puerto Rico – $35,720
- Montana – $35,840
- Arkansas – $36,920
- West Virginia – $39,160
Interior Designer Salary by State
| State | Annual mean wage ($) |
| Alabama | 63,010 |
| Alaska | 47,660 |
| Arizona | 51,990 |
| Arkansas | 36,920 |
| California | 64,410 |
| Colorado | 50,650 |
| Connecticut | 63,770 |
| Delaware | 50,940 |
| District of Columbia | 86,410 |
| Florida | 47,730 |
| Georgia | 49,110 |
| Hawaii | 52,170 |
| Idaho | 39,780 |
| Illinois | 55,210 |
| Indiana | 54,410 |
| Iowa | 39,860 |
| Kansas | 41,660 |
| Kentucky | 48,740 |
| Louisiana | 42,520 |
| Maine | 46,180 |
| Maryland | 55,640 |
| Massachusetts | 63,890 |
| Michigan | 45,200 |
| Minnesota | 49,070 |
| Mississippi | 35,040 |
| Missouri | 53,940 |
| Montana | 35,840 |
| Nebraska | 46,460 |
| Nevada | 51,780 |
| New Hampshire | 48,540 |
| New Jersey | 57,950 |
| New Mexico | 51,200 |
| New York | 66,300 |
| North Carolina | 47,570 |
| North Dakota | 45,150 |
| Ohio | 46,590 |
| Oklahoma | 40,980 |
| Oregon | 49,360 |
| Pennsylvania | 49,950 |
| Puerto Rico | 35,720 |
| Rhode Island | 71,060 |
| South Carolina | 42,310 |
| South Dakota | 51,900 |
| Tennessee | 41,560 |
| Texas | 65,070 |
| Utah | 61,020 |
| Vermont | 44,710 |
| Virginia | 54,480 |
| Washington | 54,120 |
| West Virginia | 39,160 |
| Wisconsin | 40,970 |
| Wyoming | 48,380 |
Interior Designer Salary in Canada
PayScale reports that the median hourly wage for an interior designer from Canada is about C$20.48, therefore, the annual salary is at C$46,109. This professional also wins up to C$6,302 per year in bonuses, up to C$12,480 in profit sharing, and between C$1,008 and C$39,037 from commission. Resulting a total yearly pay between C$32,494 and C$69,466.
Interior Designer Salary in the UK
The annual salary for a beginner interior designer in the UK ranges around £24,000 per year, however, it starts to gradually rise while they acquire more experience, reaching as much as £37,000 after more than 20 years on the job. Meanwhile, the average annual salary for this position rests at £24,732, with an hourly rate of £12.57.
Interior Designer Salary in Australia
According to PayScale, in Australia, the pay is AU$25.52 per hour, that means around AU$52,392 per year. Usually, interior designers in Australia earn between AU$40,773 and AU$79,392 per year.
Interior Designer Salary in Switzerland
In Switzerland, the median interior designer salary is CHF64,778 per year. With annual bonuses of up to CHF5,000 this professional can make between CHF25,076 and CHF153,600 every year.
Interior Designer Salary in Norway
The interior designer hourly salary in Norway is at NOK204, which translates to about NOK499,562 per year. Professional living and working in this country also get annual bonuses of up to NOK15,686.
3. Experience
There is pretty big gap between the entry-level interior design salary and the senior interior designer salary. Data extracted from surveys by Salary.com concludes that the lowest 10% of interior designers made $25,633 in the United States, while the top 75% made $46,510 and the top 90% made $50,261.
Same professionals living in Canada see a rise from the junior interior designer salary of C$42,000 per year, to C$73,000 or more for professionals with more than 20 years in the field. A similar trend can be seen in Australia, were from an AU$50,000 beginner’s salary, after accumulating experience this professional can win as much as AU$91,000 after 20 years on the job.
Working Hours
The majority of interior designers work full time, but this aspect depends on whether they work for a company or if they are self-employed and work on their own schedule. The interior designer job description usually involves traveling on location to the space that will be designed, but the usual working environment for interior designers is an office.
Bonuses & Benefit Packages
As far as bonuses, insurance plans and other benefits are concerned, Salary.com provides an accurate description for the complete interior designer salary package in the US. The base median salary for an interior designer is about 67.7% of the total compensation, while healthcare represents 9.9%. Out of the final compensation package, we can also identify the following benefits and values: time off being 8.5%, social security being 5.3%, and pension is 4.3%. Meanwhile, the 401K/403B is 2.5%, bonuses are 1.2%, and disability is 0.6%.
In the UK an interior designer can win besides its median annual pay, up to £4,122 in bonuses, between £206 and £14,544 commission, and around £800 in profit sharing. Meanwhile, these same employees working in Australia can win bonuses of up to AU$6,787 per year, profit sharing of up to AU$2,250, and a yearly commission between AU$986 and AU$20,058.
Job Outlook
Generally, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the interior design annual salary is $51,500, with the interior designer’s salary per hour of $24.76. Naturally, the interior design assistant salary will be lower than this, while the senior interior designer salary will be higher.
Even though the interior design salary range is quite pleasing, the job outlook isn’t as promising for professionals in this field. From 2016 to 2026 there will most likely be only a 4% increase in employment. This is quite slow, considering the fact that the percent change in employment for all jobs in the U.S. economy is 7% for the same timeframe. Nevertheless, interior designers who live in upper-class cities and neighborhoods can expect more opportunities for work.
Conclusion
To put it in a nutshell, the interior designer salary is quite an attractive aspect for job candidates even though statistics show that there might not be that many job openings in the year to come. However, one can always sharpen their skills and relocate to lucrative areas in order to pursue this career. Moreover, if interested in this field look at the architect salary as well.
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