Commercial and Industrial Designers Salary - BLS OEWS Wage Benchmarks
SOC 27-1021 · National · May 2024 OEWS Data
Median Annual Salary
$79,456
$38.20/hr
Verified BLS OEWS data · Updated Apr 3, 2025
Source: BLS OEWS · Published Apr 2, 2025
Next refresh: May 15, 2026
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The national median salary for Commercial and Industrial Designers is $79,456 per year ($38.20/hr) according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2024. The middle 50% of earners make between $62,046 and $103,168 annually. Top earners at the 90th percentile reach $134,846 per year. There are approximately 30,250 commercial and industrial designers employed in the United States.
About This Role
BLS Standard Occupational Classification 2018
Design and develop manufactured products, such as cars, home appliances, and children’s toys. Combine artistic talent with research on product use, marketing, and materials to create the most functional and appealing product design.
Career Outlook
BLS Employment Projections · 2024-2034
10-year growth
+3.2%
About as fast as average
Annual openings
3K
per year, on avg
Workforce today
31K
as of 2024
Why those openings exist
4% from new growth96% from people leaving the role
Most openings come from replacement, not growth. Retention matters more than recruiting here.
Typical entry requirements
Education
Bachelor's degree
Experience
None
On-the-job training
None
Industry Wage Breakdown
Top 5 industries by employment · median annual wage, sector-specific
Wage range across top 5 industries: $63,710 to $98,240 (54% spread)
Wage Percentiles
Hourly & annualized (2,080 hours)
Percentile
Hourly Rate
Annual Salary
P10
$23.74
$49,379
P25
$29.83
$62,046
P50MEDIAN
$38.20
$79,456
P75
$49.60
$103,168
P90
$64.83
$134,846
Market Context Signal
JOLTS · professional sector
Cooling
Openings Rate
4.2%
Quits Rate
2.0%
Professional & Business Services openings tumbled 318K in March -- the largest single-sector drop in this release. Openings rate fell from 5.5% to 4.2%. Layoffs jumped to 527K (+99K). White-collar demand has cooled abruptly.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the average commercial and industrial designers salary?
The national median salary for Commercial and Industrial Designers is $79,456 per year ($38.20/hr) according to BLS OEWS May 2024 data. The middle 50% earn between $62,046 and $103,168 annually.
How much do top-earning commercial and industrial designers make?
The 90th percentile salary for Commercial and Industrial Designers is $134,846 per year ($64.83/hr). The 75th percentile is $103,168 per year.
What is the entry-level salary for commercial and industrial designers?
Entry-level Commercial and Industrial Designers (10th percentile) earn approximately $49,379 per year ($23.74/hr). The 25th percentile is $62,046 per year.
Wage figures on this page come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2024 release. OEWS surveys roughly 1.1 million establishments annually. It is the most comprehensive employer-reported wage dataset in the United States.
P10 through P90 percentiles represent the wage distribution across all surveyed employers (not self-reported by workers). Geographic adjustments use BLS-derived cost multipliers calibrated from regional wage variation.
Wages are estimates. Individual compensation depends on experience, education, employer size, industry, and negotiation. Use this as benchmark context, not absolute ground truth.
CompSignal is a free labor market intelligence tool built for HR, compensation, and talent acquisition teams. We make BLS data, the same primary source Mercer and Radford cross-reference in their paid surveys, searchable and actionable without an enterprise subscription.
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