|
Request free information from any of the interior design schools listed below. Get on the road to becoming an interior designer quickly and easily and start earning what you're worth in this rewarding career field.
About three-quarters of salaried interior designers work for architectural and landscape architectural design services, home-furnishing retailers, building materials retailers and wholesalers, residential building construction companies, and wholesale design houses. Approximately one-quarter of interiors designers provide direct design services. One-quarter of interior designers are self-employed. They may work full- or part-time. Self-employed designers may freelance in addition to holding salaried jobs in interior design or other fields.
Salaries vary tremendously based on experience, location, type of work, employer, and specialization, if any. Salaried interior designers who work in large design or architectural firms tend to earn higher salaries than others. Interior designers who work in retail or wholesale depend on commissions.
The following are the annual hourly mean wages for salaried interior designers in the five industries that employ the highest numbers. (Based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data for May 2007)
Industry |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage |
Specialized design service |
$24.77 |
$51,520 |
Architectural, engineering, and related services |
$25.17 |
$52,360 |
Furniture stores |
$21.61 |
$44,950 |
Residential building construction |
$25.01 |
$52,020 |
Building materials and supplies dealers |
$21.73 |
$45,210 |
Residential interior designers who are self-employed or who work in small firms typically earn a per-hour consulting fee, plus a percentage of the cost of the furniture, carpeting, etc. If they hire contractors they may also get a percentage of what the contractors earn.
Competition for interior design jobs is heavy and is expected to remain so. Interior design is considered a luxury. The downturn in the economy limits consumers’ ability to re-decorate or hire decorating professionals.
|
