Career profile · 27-1021
Commercial and Industrial Designers
Design and develop manufactured products, such as cars, home appliances, and children's toys. Combine artistic talent with research on product use, marketing, and materials to create the most functional and appealing product design.
What the work can involve
- Prepare sketches of ideas, detailed drawings, illustrations, artwork, or blueprints, using drafting instruments, paints and brushes, or computer-aided design equipment.
- Modify and refine designs, using working models, to conform with customer specifications, production limitations, or changes in design trends.
- Evaluate feasibility of design ideas, based on factors such as appearance, safety, function, serviceability, budget, production costs/methods, and market characteristics.
- Confer with engineering, marketing, production, or sales departments, or with customers, to establish and evaluate design concepts for manufactured products.
- Present designs and reports to customers or design committees for approval and discuss need for modification.
- Research production specifications, costs, production materials, and manufacturing methods and provide cost estimates and itemized production requirements.
Selected core tasks from O*NET 31.0. Responsibilities vary by employer, specialization and experience.
Preparation and entry routes
This O*NET group commonly calls for substantial preparation, often including a bachelor’s degree or considerable relevant experience. An introductory vocational course alone may not provide an entry route.
Check the route for the specific occupation where you plan to work. Education, employer experience requirements, occupational licensing and industry certification can be separate steps.
Understand the different credentials →Skills used in this occupation
- Active Listening
- Reading Comprehension
- Critical Thinking
- Speaking
- Monitoring
Selected from the highest importance ratings available in O*NET 31.0. These describe the occupation, not a particular school's curriculum.
Knowledge to build
- Design
- Engineering and Technology
- Mechanical
- Production and Processing
- Computers and Electronics
Selected from the highest importance ratings available in O*NET 31.0. These describe the occupation, not a particular school's curriculum.
Common work activities
- Drafting, Laying Out, and Specifying Technical Devices, Parts, and Equipment
- Making Decisions and Solving Problems
- Working with Computers
- Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
- Getting Information
Selected from the highest importance ratings available in O*NET 31.0. These describe the occupation, not a particular school's curriculum.
Training subjects to investigate
The federal education-to-occupation crosswalk connects this role to the subjects below. These links do not endorse a school or guarantee that any particular award qualifies a graduate for the job.
Working conditions to consider
These are the most common published responses to selected O*NET work-setting questions. They describe occupation-level survey findings, not every employer or a particular job.
| Work-setting question | Most common response | Share giving that response |
|---|---|---|
| Contact With Others | Constant contact with others | 59.8%08/2019 · sample 17 |
| Exposed to Contaminants | Once a year or more but not every month | 48.4%08/2019 · sample 18 |
| Exposed to Disease or Infections | Never | 99.8%08/2019 · sample 17 |
| Exposed to Hazardous Conditions | Never | 80.7%08/2019 · sample 18 |
| Spend Time Sitting | Continually or almost continually | 49.9%08/2019 · sample 18 |
| Spend Time Standing | Less than half the time | 84.3%08/2019 · sample 18 |
| Spend Time Using Your Hands to Handle, Control, or Feel Objects, Tools, or Controls | Less than half the time | 41.7%08/2019 · sample 18 |
| Time Pressure | Once a week or more but not every day | 37.3%08/2019 · sample 18 |
| Work Schedules | Irregular (changes with weather conditions, production demands, or contract duration) | 56.6%08/2019 · sample 18 |
O*NET 31.0 Work Context, selected topics. Only unsuppressed source responses with sample size at least 10 are shown. A most-common response need not be a majority. Sampling uncertainty applies; source dates vary. Ask employers about actual schedules, accessibility, protective equipment and working conditions.
Software used in the workplace
Use these O*NET examples to ask how a course builds practical digital skills. They are workplace examples, not a required shopping list or confirmation of a school’s curriculum.
- Analytical or scientific software: Finite element analysis software, Minitab, The MathWorks MATLAB
- Cloud-based data access and sharing software: Software as a service SaaS
- Computer aided design CAD software: Ashlar-Vellum Cobalt, Autodesk AliasStudio, Autodesk AutoCAD, Autodesk Maya
- Computer aided manufacturing CAM software: 1CadCam Unigraphics, Geometric CAMWorks, Siemens NX
- Data base user interface and query software: Microsoft Access
- Desktop communications software: Eko
- Desktop publishing software: Adobe InDesign, Microsoft Publisher, QuarkXPress
- Development environment software: Apache Maven, C, National Instruments LabVIEW, Verilog
- Document management software: Adobe Acrobat
- Electronic mail software: Email software, IBM Notes
- Enterprise resource planning ERP software: SAP software
- Financial analysis software: Delphi Technology
Selected categories and examples from O*NET 31.0 Software Skills. Products and employer requirements change. These examples are not endorsements; check the complete official occupation profile.
Pay & employment outlook
Salary estimates for commercial and industrial designers
The median divides workers into two equally sized groups by pay. It is not a starting salary, a school’s graduate outcome or a promise of employment. Lower percentiles are not automatically new graduates.
National outlook: 2025–2035
- Typical education for entry
- Bachelor's degree
- Related work experience
- None
- Typical on-the-job training
- None
BLS national employment projections, 2025–2035. Openings include people leaving occupations or the labor force; these are not advertised vacancies. Education categories describe typical entry, not legal eligibility or a guarantee that any specific program is sufficient.
Compare wages across 44 state/DC estimates
| State | Annual median | Hourly median | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $63,640 | $30.60 | 130 |
| Arizona | $76,420 | $36.74 | 170 |
| Arkansas | $92,540 | $44.49 | 230 |
| California | $100,770 | $48.45 | 5,300 |
| Colorado | $90,590 | $43.55 | 400 |
| Connecticut | $81,300 | $39.09 | 160 |
| Florida | $78,720 | $37.85 | 1,990 |
| Georgia | $91,360 | $43.92 | 360 |
| Idaho | $80,730 | $38.81 | 180 |
| Illinois | Not published | Not published | 480 |
| Indiana | $88,040 | $42.33 | 1,110 |
| Iowa | $70,420 | $33.85 | 440 |
| Kansas | $104,870 | $50.42 | 260 |
| Kentucky | $76,100 | $36.59 | 420 |
| Louisiana | $98,040 | $47.13 | 130 |
| Maine | Not published | Not published | 200 |
| Maryland | $70,870 | $34.07 | 490 |
| Massachusetts | $101,720 | $48.90 | 1,240 |
| Michigan | $102,160 | $49.12 | 2,930 |
| Minnesota | $94,370 | $45.37 | 590 |
| Missouri | $75,440 | $36.27 | 270 |
| Montana | $72,990 | $35.09 | 60 |
| Nebraska | $71,570 | $34.41 | 90 |
| Nevada | $76,680 | $36.87 | 210 |
| New Hampshire | $74,050 | $35.60 | 110 |
| New Jersey | $90,310 | $43.42 | 1,230 |
| New Mexico | $62,710 | $30.15 | 110 |
| New York | $89,640 | $43.10 | 2,400 |
| North Carolina | $80,620 | $38.76 | 1,000 |
| Ohio | $79,470 | $38.21 | 1,190 |
| Oklahoma | $76,640 | $36.85 | 240 |
| Oregon | $76,970 | $37.01 | 480 |
| Pennsylvania | $82,610 | $39.72 | 770 |
| Rhode Island | $101,140 | $48.62 | 190 |
| South Carolina | $77,300 | $37.16 | 810 |
| South Dakota | $60,110 | $28.90 | 190 |
| Tennessee | $71,230 | $34.25 | 750 |
| Texas | Not published | Not published | 2,350 |
| Utah | $62,620 | $30.11 | 480 |
| Vermont | $80,690 | $38.79 | 120 |
| Virginia | $82,230 | $39.53 | 1,480 |
| Washington | $94,280 | $45.33 | 340 |
| West Virginia | $73,030 | $35.11 | 110 |
| Wisconsin | $80,590 | $38.75 | 820 |
Metropolitan and nonmetropolitan wages
Search the 144 published local-area estimates for this occupation. Metropolitan areas can cross state lines; a city’s postal name is not necessarily the statistical area’s name.
Sources: BLS May 2025 OEWS public downloads and 2025–2035 employment projections, retrieved September 9, 2026. Unpublished estimates stay unavailable. “+” means BLS’s upper reporting threshold ($239,200 annually or $115 hourly). Wages exclude self-employment and nonwage benefits. How to interpret these figures.
Compare the route and prepare for work
Questions to test the fit
- What does an entry-level working day look like, and how does it differ from the experienced role described here?
- Which tasks, work environments and schedules would I enjoy or find difficult?
- What education, supervised practice and credentials do local employers actually request?
- Can I speak with someone in the occupation or arrange a suitable workplace visit?
- How does the complete training cost compare with my realistic budget and available routes?
Related occupations to compare
- Engineering Technologists and Technicians, Except Drafters, All Other→
- Non-Destructive Testing Specialists→
- Photonics Technicians→
Related through shared training-subject mappings. Entry requirements can differ substantially.
Sources and attribution
This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under CC BY 4.0. Trade School Guides selects and organizes the material and adds explanatory guidance. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed or tested these modifications. Occupation code: 27-1021.00.
Training connections: CIP 2020–SOC 2018 crosswalk. Snapshot: September 8, 2026. See the methodology.