Designers --Inhouse or freelance $$??

90k?

Get real, not even top designers at adultdesign.com or bluedesignstudios.com are earning 7500+ a month.

Don't get me wrong, your work is nice but I think you have a bit high expectations here..

I was actually impressed with the quality of work on gimme-website's website, but I think you can find equally impressive designers, a LOT cheaper.

Im not expecting anything.. nor am i claiming that im at that figure. But if I had to give up what ive got now.. thats what id ask.

What im asking is what can be expected from going inhouse? What is the higher echelon of pay?

And does this mean that the smart designers never bother? They stay freelance forever?

I have been inhouse with programs over recent years with a salary exceeding $90k on 2 occasions

I would never want to go inhouse for a different company. I would have to be offered well over 100k a year.

im ok for 60k inhouse, do I win?

have been freelance and self employed for over 10 years now, fuck cubicles.

inhouse almost always pays less than freelancing. freelancing is more risk which makes it not everybody's cup of tea. some like stability and will stick with less.
mind you it's all subjective.

To make $7500 a month, based on your prices, you would need to do 17 paysite tours a month, a little more than 4 a week. Most design companies do that amount of tours PER YEAR if they're lucky. Personally, I think there might be one or two in-house designers that make that figure per month. Maybe. But common sense tells you that most companies would rather pay $7500 per month to Dickmans or Wyldesites and get like 3 top notch tours while avoiding the hassle and extra costs.

In short, you aren't being any close to reality. I bet any designer here would be really happy with half of what you ask per month. Hell, let's go further and I bet 90% of designers here would be happy with 1 quarter of what you want to just "read a job advert". The numbers you mention are only attainable for companies with several designers of individual designers that may charge $3000 a tour, not $450

Not knocking on your job or anything, but you gotta admit neither you, neither me, neither anyone that posted here is anywhere close to Dickmans, so asking for even more than them "just to read a job advert"... Sheena puhleez

I really dont want to make this about what I earn.

But your dead wrong. Freelance, 70k is more than possible for a lone designer who knows how to maximize value from each sale.

But is that same designer worth 90k on the open market? That was my question. I think the answer seems to be yes and no.

well, I might be dead wrong then, I'm a newbie and like to talk out of my ass, so you might be right there.

However, newbie or not, I can see how you changed your premises just by..... 20k. From 90k to 70k is quite a difference. And let's remember what you said:

Now, even though I admit there are chances that I'm dead wrong, let me follow this basic logical process by using the available data. I'll take your downsized figure to make it even fairer:

Let's say I own a program and I'm looking for an in-house designer. I had a lot of luck and you decided to read my job advert even at 70k per year, and to make it even better, you sent me your resume. So I visit your site and I love your work. While at it, I just notice that you only charge $450 per tour. Then, as a smart businessman I think for myself: "Hey, having 4 tours per month would cost me $1800 instead of the $5833 I was planning to pay. I'll offer this designer $900 per tour (please note the 100% on top) and pay only $3600 per month and save a lot of money! Furthermore, with the difference I'll pay another designer to do alternative tours for testing and I'll still save $400+!!! Gee, How lucky I am!!!"

Now, if you're talking of a Mike Wylde or someone like him, then yes, he probably makes those $5800 or more per month (let's not forget you want $7500 per month for starters!). Anyway, it doesn't matter how much do I earn, but I can promise you that I don't do that amount on design, believe me. And if someone tells me: "hey, I'll pay you $50k a year SECURED and you design only for me" I'd pay attention to the very least. For 90k a year on design only SECURED I won't read the advert. I'll read the fucking Encyclopedia Britannica if needed!

anyway, I don't know your economy and as I said, I'm quite new at this, so I hope you get those 90k+, and I really mean it, it would be the sign that things are really getting better. However, I'd rather stick to objective data.

btw, I did a simulation at PayScale.com using a very good scenario. For this I included I currently live in US, I've an UCLA PhD (1993), I'm currently self-employed making 70k, I've 20 years experience. The average income is as follows:

that is $5604 per month, 67k per year.

Now, if I change it to just a MA (Master on Arts) these are the figures per year (we're talking mainstream, mainly IT companies):



yes, the top is $81k per year (UCLA MA, 20 years experience). The average is $57,922

in conclusion, you're not being realistic and either I'm not THAT wrong or there's a huge conspiracy to hide the truth

I agree with guys above - getting 90k as a designer in adult is hard (freelance or inhouse) maybe if you're the company owner taking the cream on top and paying your workers relatively low wages.. When you're on your own and taking care of everything (late payments, sending out invoices, doing revisions and dealing with clients who want the site to "pop" more by adding scrolling marquees but keep it serious and corporatey, or making a certain color gradient from yellow to red but without the orange part :D ) that stuff takes time from your real work hours, and hitting the 90k (or even 50k from design alone last few years) seems hard.
A solution is somewhere in between, to be the go-to guy for a few reliable clients sending you steady work, people you are on the same wavelength with, and ppl who know what they want, so you can make the best possible use of your time and make room for more projects.

Getting a bit more realistic, yea.

Not a designer, but I do provide a service. In my opinion, forget inhouse. Having multiple clients and streams of income is WAY better and more stable if you have what it takes. Yes there is risk working freelance, but at least if you lose one client, you don't lose your entire income.

^^ Agreed

In house = 1 client essentially, that almost means if you get fired, you go from xxxx income/month to $0 income quite fast... no "job security" in an in-house job IMO.

If you make 50k as a freelance then your only worth 25k inhouse.

Just the way it is. Nobody is going to hire you for 100 percent of what your worth. LMAO

BUT, do you want the risk of running your own business and having to hustle? Or the garunteed pay check each week?

MOST choose number 2 and for damn good reason. Truly is different strokes for different folks.

I wish you would stop basing your argument on guide prices that are published on my folio.
In fact I'm going to take the day off and update them.

I haven't done a $450 3 page tour for over a year Harvey. That's why I say they are guide prices and to contact me for a quote. And if your as good at sales as you are designing... then its easy to maximize the value of each job.

I think sarah understood what my overall point was.
Not that I think im worth 90k.. or even that im looking for a 90k job.
But if i had to swap what ive got.. thats what id ask for.

And weve got one fella saying hes had 90k salarys twice ...

like others have said before... it's very unlikely will earn more working in-house...
steady paycheck = less risk = less $$ earned

Yes, but don't forget Zayne is one of the best overall designers out there.

mudpixel.com in the phillipines does good work imho i recc them

Nice guy too. Did he do ndngirls.com?

Sorry, but you guys with the math and the charts are wrong. But then it does depend on the designer and the scope of what they do and the quality of their work. I'm not going to put out any actual numbers, but I've been designing for ten years, and a 6 figure designer for 7 of those, with multiple companies and clients, and the big shot mainstream graphic designers make far more than that and do less projects. And then there is also the other end of the spectrum... the fresh design grads that are starving and eating ramen. The field is definitely over saturated, but then, what field isn't these days.

wow thanks guys!

Well I'd be happy if I'm earning $35k a year as a freelancer in here.
But I firmly believe that providing excellent and honest service, everything's is achievable, and for the scammers, they will realize that they'll eventually lose more than gain a little.

your site is down....