Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations
BLS May 2025 wages Wide pay band SOC 27-1022

Fashion Designers

The published band from $39,490 to $146,870 is the distinctive signal for this role, not a twin of Art Directors.

Full salary details → About this data

Same-major-group titles next to Fashion Designers: Art Directors ($115K) , Media and Communication Workers, All Other ($74K) , Technical Writers ($90K) , Editors ($78K) . Hash-ordered per card so residual SOC siblings do not share an identical peer sentence.

What Fashion Designers publish as work

O*NET task statements for SOC 27-1022 - occupation-level descriptions, not every employer's posting. Sibling cards diverge here because the task set is entity-keyed.

  1. 1. Sketch rough and detailed drawings of apparel or accessories, and write specifications such as color schemes, construction, material type…
  2. 2. Examine sample garments on and off models, modifying designs to achieve desired effects
  3. 3. Determine prices for styles
  4. 4. Confer with sales and management executives or with clients to discuss design ideas
  5. 5. Select materials and production techniques to be used for products
  6. 6. Provide sample garments to agents and sales representatives, and arrange for showings of sample garments at sales meetings or fashion shows
  7. 7. Direct and coordinate workers involved in drawing and cutting patterns and constructing samples or finished garments
  8. 8. Develop a group of products or accessories, and market them through venues such as boutiques or mail-order catalogs
  9. 9. Identify target markets for designs, looking at factors such as age, gender, and socioeconomic status
  10. 10. Draw patterns for articles designed, cut patterns, and cut material according to patterns, using measuring instruments and scissors
  11. 11. Collaborate with other designers to coordinate special products and designs
  12. 12. Attend fashion shows and review garment magazines and manuals to gather information about fashion trends and consumer preferences

O*NET skills and knowledge for Fashion Designers

Importance-ranked O*NET profile for SOC 27-1022 - entity-keyed; sibling cards diverge here even when peer titles overlap.

Top skills

  1. 1. Active Listening 3.9
  2. 2. Speaking 3.9
  3. 3. Critical Thinking 3.9
  4. 4. Active Learning 3.8
  5. 5. Social Perceptiveness 3.8
  6. 6. Coordination 3.8
  7. 7. Judgment and Decision Making 3.8
  8. 8. Time Management 3.8

Knowledge areas

  1. 1. Design 4.4
  2. 2. Computers and Electronics 3.4
  3. 3. Production and Processing 3.3
  4. 4. Sales and Marketing 3.2
  5. 5. English Language 3.1
  6. 6. Fine Arts 2.7
Published pay band (10th to 90th)
$39,490 to $146,870
median $80,960 · ~3.7× spread
$81K
National median
↑ +2%
Growth 2024-2034
2,300
Annual openings
21,450
Estimated US jobs
Art Directors
Highest-pay peer · $115K

Typical Entry and Preparation Assignments

Entry education Bachelor's degree

Top Paying States for Fashion Designers

1. Washington $82,030
2. Connecticut $81,510
3. Colorado $94,140
4. New York $98,640
5. Ohio $82,050
6. New Hampshire $100,160
7. Virginia $94,120
8. Vermont $79,610
9. Massachusetts $103,520
10. New Jersey $101,610

Other Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations titles

  1. 1. Technical Writers $90,390
  2. 2. Art Directors $114,850
  3. 3. Editors $77,920
  4. 4. Commercial and Industrial Designers $83,910
  5. 5. Special Effects Artists and Animators $102,030
  6. 6. Media and Communication Workers, All Other $73,620

The OEWS band for Fashion Designers runs from $39,490 (10th) to $146,870 (90th), about 3.7× wide, with median $80,960. That spread, not the midpoint alone, is the distinctive published fact.

Employment Projections expect +2% change between 2024 and 2034 (about as fast as average vs baseline 3.1%). About 2,300 annual openings are projected. BLS assigns Bachelor's degree as typical education needed for entry. These are occupation-level assignments, not universal requirements. BLS does not publish a separate occupation-specific safety rate for this role; its broad SOC-group rate is excluded from this career card's grade.

Highest published state median in this ranking: Washington at $82,030. The table records differences without proving causes. Highest-pay peer shown here: Art Directors at $114,850. Compare the same statistic in the relevant local wage area before treating the national median as a personal benchmark; OEWS excludes employer benefits.

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Data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Projections from BLS Employment Projections program, 2024–2034.

Dive into Fashion Designers in more depth or explore nearby career data.

Full Salary Details

State, metro, and percentile breakdown

Jobs in Washington

Top-paying state for this role

Jobs in Connecticut

Second-highest state pay

Art Directors

Highest-pay peer · $115K

Media and Communication Workers, All Other

Lower-pay peer · $74K

All Career Cards

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Highest-Paying Rankings

Top careers nationwide

Compare Side-by-Side

Head-to-head with another role
Compare Fashion Designers with another occupation →

Pay-band next reads

Entry-Level vs Experienced Pay

What percentile bands reveal

Using Salary Data for Negotiation

Leverage BLS percentiles

Frequently Asked Questions

What do fashion designers do day to day? ▼
O*NET lists published task statements for Fashion Designers. Leading ones include: Sketch rough and detailed drawings of apparel or accessories, and write specifications such as color schemes, construction, material type…; Examine sample garments on and off models, modifying designs to achieve desired effects; Determine prices for styles; Confer with sales and management executives or with clients to discuss design ideas. These are occupation-level task descriptions, not every employer's job description.
Which O*NET skills rank highest for fashion designers? ▼
For SOC 27-1022, O*NET importance scores lead with Active Listening (3.9), Speaking (3.9), Critical Thinking (3.9), Active Learning (3.8). Knowledge areas emphasize Design, Computers and Electronics, Production and Processing. These are occupation-level profiles, not a hiring checklist for every employer.
How does Fashion Designers sit next to other Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations titles? ▼
On this card, neighboring same-major-group titles include Art Directors, Media and Communication Workers, All Other, Technical Writers, Editors. Among those peers, Art Directors holds the highest published national median ($114,850). Media and Communication Workers, All Other sits lower at $73,620. Peer titles are hash-ordered per card so adjacent SOC pages do not share an identical ladder.
What is the median salary for Fashion Designers? ▼
The median salary for Fashion Designers is $80,960 per year according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (May 2025 OEWS data). This means half of workers in this occupation earn more and half earn less. The full range is $39,490 (10th percentile) to $146,870 (90th percentile). For context beside Art Directors ($114,850), this role's median is the OEWS national figure above.
Is Fashion Designers a growing occupation? ▼
The BLS projects +2% employment change for Fashion Designers from 2024 to 2034. There are approximately 2,300 projected annual openings. This is about as fast as average relative to the current all-occupations baseline of 3.1%.
What education do you need to become a fashion designers? ▼
BLS assigns Fashion Designers to Bachelor's degree for typical education needed for entry. These occupation-level categories are not requirements for every employer or worker.
Which states pay fashion designers the most? ▼
The highest published state medians in this ranking for Fashion Designers are Washington ($82,030), Connecticut ($81,510), Colorado ($94,140). The table does not identify why state estimates differ.

Source data and WageDex calculations are identified in context on this page. Wage and state figures use BLS OEWS May 2025; growth and education use BLS Employment Projections for 2024–2034; safety fields cite BLS CFOI/SOII; task statements cite O*NET where shown. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

Disclaimer: Wage and outlook figures on this page are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute career, financial, or salary-negotiation advice. Actual pay varies by employer, experience, and local conditions; consult a career counselor or the hiring employer for guidance specific to your situation.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OES Occupational wage estimates by area and industry · 2025

All federal data sources used on this page
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS / OES) - wage estimates by area + occupation. bls.gov/oes
  • O*NET OnLine - occupation task statements (importance-ranked). onetcenter.org
  • BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) - quarterly employment and wage totals by industry. bls.gov/cew
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - demographic and labor-force context for metro/state aggregates. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • BLS Current Employment Statistics (CES) - monthly nonfarm payroll baselines. bls.gov/ces
  • IRS Statistics of Income (SOI) - payroll-tax aggregate context. irs.gov/statistics
  • BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) - unemployment context for labor-market comparisons. bls.gov/lau