What kind of income does a web designer make?

[janet327]

I am wanting to learn web design. How much does a web designer usually make a year? I am trying to decide if I want to do this as a full time job or if I need to get a degree in something else and just do the web design part time? But I take care of my mother and think the web design would be good for me cause i could be at home with her.

[Chef Bek]

I would say...just like anything, you make what you put into it. your rates are determined by your demand.

Determine what you NEED to make and come up with a plan to do that! You can make as little or as much as you want. The ball is in your court.

So, to say how much one makes is not that simple. I feel I am successful and always strive to reach new goals.

[janet327]

Thank you Bek. I am wanting to know if its dependable income or not too? I want to make atleast $30000 a year but really more like $40000 or more. Is that possible with this career? If anyone does not want to put that kind of info or how much they make here, please feel free to send me a private message.......tia

[Chef Bek]

Janet. All i can tell you is that income is very possible.

[janet327]

thank you Bek

[Terry Bernard]

Hi,
It is a creative career and field if you want to be a web designer you should be creative first have new ideas for designs.It needs a lot of time and experience and much effort to be a good designer in the market.You have to create your own demand in the market.Once you have made your value in the market then your demand speak your price and worth.The more experience you get the more money you make.

Thanks...

[Chef Bek]

well said!!!!

[michaelthompson2000]

A web designer generally makes good money depending on the creativity s/he displays in desigining. Also, try some web development courses and also opt for web development language (asp, jsp, php, etc) certifications.

[mybrokengnome]

I'm going to disagree with the last person. You need to decide if you're going to be a designer or a developer. Pick one, stick with it, at least till you're a "master" at it. Basically, don't decide to be a designer, learn Photoshop for a month, then decide you can be a programmer to and decide to learn PHP for a month. You're going to end up being a jack of all trades, instead of a master of anything. You might get a few jobs, but you'll never be able to charge the same price the "masters" are charging.

The people charging $65/hr are, typically, only going to be good at one or the other, not both. I know a designer who charges $65/hr because he spends his entire life doing it, went to college for it, etc. He's very good and can charge that, but when a client needs a site with a shopping cart he has no clue what to do, so he contacts developers to do it. If you decide you want to be a developer, don't waste your time on certificates. They are the most useless things in the industry (except for network people), because all anyone really cares about is have you done what they need before, how fast can you do it, and how much will you charge. Just because you're certified doesn't mean you can do anything in the real world.

[WebMistresss]

Originally Posted by mybrokengnome

I'm going to disagree with the last person. You need to decide if you're going to be a designer or a developer. Pick one, stick with it, at least till you're a "master" at it. Basically, don't decide to be a designer, learn Photoshop for a month, then decide you can be a programmer to and decide to learn PHP for a month. You're going to end up being a jack of all trades, instead of a master of anything. You might get a few jobs, but you'll never be able to charge the same price the "masters" are charging.

The people charging $65/hr are, typically, only going to be good at one or the other, not both. I know a designer who charges $65/hr because he spends his entire life doing it, went to college for it, etc. He's very good and can charge that, but when a client needs a site with a shopping cart he has no clue what to do, so he contacts developers to do it. If you decide you want to be a developer, don't waste your time on certificates. They are the most useless things in the industry (except for network people), because all anyone really cares about is have you done what they need before, how fast can you do it, and how much will you charge. Just because you're certified doesn't mean you can do anything in the real world.

Totally agree. You can not be a developer and a designer. I took the design path, my sister took the development path. In our professional careers, we make the same amount of $. She's working as a developer though, I'm working as a project manager and I do my design stuff on the side. My team lead was a developer in previous positions