Residential Designer Salary in the United States

How much does a Residential Designer make in the United States?

As of September 01, 2026, the average salary for a Residential Designer in the United States is $70,078 per year, which breaks down to an hourly rate of $34.

However, a Residential Designer's salary can vary significantly. Here’s a look at the typical salary range:

  • Top Earners (90th percentile): $79,724
  • Majority Range (25th-75th percentile): $63,059 to $75,127
  • Entry-Level (10th percentile): $56,669

Key Factors That Influence Residential Designer Salaries

A Residential Designer's salary isn't a fixed number. It's shaped by several important factors. Below, we'll explore how your years of experience, geographic location, education and company size can directly affect your earning potential.

How Experience Level Affects Residential Designer Salaries?

Experience is a primary driver of a Residential Designer's salary. As you build your skills and take on more complex tasks, your compensation generally increases. Here's how the average salary grows at different career stages:

  • Entry-Level (less than 1 year): $53,555
  • Early Career (1-2 years): $60,523
  • Mid-Level (2-4 years): $69,707
  • Senior-Level (5-8 years): $80,414
  • Expert (over 8 years): $93,153
Levels Salary
Interior ... Level Residential Designer$53,555
Interior ... Level Residential Designer$60,523
Residenti... Level Residential Designer$69,707
Interior ... Level Residential Designer$80,414
Interior ... Level Residential Designer$93,153

How Do Residential Designer Salaries Vary from State to State?

Your salary can change significantly depending on where you work. States with a higher cost of living and strong industrial sectors often pay more to attract Residential Designers. For example, consider the average annual salaries in these key locations:
  • District of Columbia: $77,590.
  • California: $77,296.
  • Massachusetts: $76,266.

Top Paying Cities for Residential Designers

Salaries can also vary between different cities. Major metropolitan areas or cities with a high demand for technicians often offer more competitive pay. Here are a few examples of average annual salaries in different U.S. cities:

  • San Jose: $88,389
  • San Francisco: $87,422
  • Oakland: $85,579

What Skills Can Increase a Residential Designer's Salary?

Demanded Skills for the Role:

  • Presentation (Mentioned in 5.75% Job Postings): Presentation conveys information from a speaker to an audience. Presentations are typically demonstrations, introduction, lecture, or speech meant to inform, persuade, inspire, motivate, build goodwill, or present a new idea/product.
  • Photoshop (Mentioned in 2.05% Job Postings): Photoshop is an image creation, graphic design and photo editing software developed by Adobe. It is used to demonstrate knowledge of image resolution, image size, and image file format for web, video, and print.
  • Programming (Mentioned in 1.23% Job Postings): Executing logic to facilitate computing operations and functionality in one or more languages.
Skills Demand Percentage
Presentation 5.75%
Photoshop 2.05%
Programming 1.23%

What skills can make your compensation higher?

Mastering certain specialized skills can lead to a significant increase in pay. Here are examples of skills and the potential impact they can have on a Residential Designer's salary.

  • Leadership: Can increase your salary by up to 8%.
  • Collaboration: Can increase your salary by up to 7%.
  • Project Management: Can increase your salary by up to 7%.
Skill Salary Salary % Increase
Leadership $75,684
8%
Collaboration $74,983
7%
Project Management $74,983
7%

Residential Designer Salary by Industry: Top Paying Sectors

For Residential Designer roles, the industry you choose can impact your earning potential by as much as 90% (the gap between the highest and lowest paying industries). Data shows that the highest-paying industry, Business Services, offers compensation 50% above the average. Conversely, Residential Designer positions in Retail & Wholesale typically offer lower base pay, as this sector often view Residential Designer as a support function rather than a direct revenue driver.

The top paying industry for a Residential Designer

Industry Sector Average Annual Salary Average Hourly Rate Pay vs.Avg
Business Services$105,117$51.050%

How Education impacts a Residential Designer's Salary?

Your level of education can impact your salary potential. While many Residential Designers enter the field with a Bachelor's Degree degree, higher education can lead to more specialized and higher-paying roles.

According to our 100% employer-reported salary data, the median salary for a Residential Designer with a Bachelor's Degree is between $63,991 and $70,604).

Residential Designer Salaries by Degree Level

Typical Education for Residential Designer
Degree Level % of user with this level of education
No Diploma 1.6%
High School 1.6%
Associates 8.1%
Bachelors 78.3%
Masters 12.0%
Doctorate 0.0%

Residential Designer Salary: Hourly Rate, Weekly Pay, and Monthly Pay

Understanding how a Residential Designer's annual salary breaks down can help with budgeting. Below, you can see the average hourly rate, weekly pay, and monthly pay for this role. Use the buttons to switch between different pay periods.

Last Updated on September 01, 2026
$63,059
Average $70,078/year
$75,127
$5,255
Average $5,840/month
$6,261
$1,213
Average $1,348/week
$1,445
$30
Average $34/hour
$36
Annual Salary Monthly Pay Weekly Pay Hourly Wage
75th Percentile $75,127 $6,261 $1,445 $36
Average $70,078 $5,840 $1,348 $34
25th Percentile $63,059 $5,255 $1,213 $30

Most common benefits for Residential Designer

  • Social Security
  • 401 (k)
  • Disability
  • Healthcare
  • Pension
  • Time Off (days)

Common company salaries for Residential Designer

Here are companies hiring for Residential Designer and their salaries, click below for more details.

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FAQ about Residential Designer

1. What industry pays the highest salary for Residential Designer?

The Business Services industry offers the highest average compensation for Residential Designer roles, with salaries approximately 50% above the market median.

Where Does Our Salary Data Come From?

Salary.com provides salary estimates, histograms, trends, and comparisons using data from employer job postings and third-party sources.

We offer detailed salary information across multiple percentiles for your reference. (Click here to learn Why the Salary Midpoint Formula Is Crucial for Achieving Pay Equity.)

With the most extensive online, real-time compensation data available, Salary.com helps you pinpoint your exact pay target.

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