Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2011

27-1021 Commercial and Industrial Designers

Develop and design 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.


National estimates for this occupation
Industry profile for this occupation
Geographic profile for this occupation

National estimates for this occupation: Top

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for this occupation:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3)
Mean hourly
wage
Mean annual
wage (2)
Wage RSE (3)
28,710 3.9 % $30.56 $63,570 1.1 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $16.60 $21.57 $29.21 $38.28 $46.02
Annual Wage (2) $34,520 $44,870 $60,760 $79,620 $95,710


Industry profile for this occupation: Top

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Specialized Design Services 3,200 2.80 $30.68 $63,820
Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services 3,090 0.24 $35.96 $74,800
Other Miscellaneous Manufacturing 1,720 0.65 $27.93 $58,100
Plastics Product Manufacturing 900 0.18 $27.55 $57,290
Miscellaneous Durable Goods Merchant Wholesalers 870 0.30 $25.47 $52,980

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Specialized Design Services 3,200 2.80 $30.68 $63,820
Other Miscellaneous Manufacturing 1,720 0.65 $27.93 $58,100
Furniture and Home Furnishing Merchant Wholesalers 560 0.61 $27.15 $56,470
Household Appliance Manufacturing 320 0.56 $31.46 $65,430
Motor Vehicle Manufacturing 800 0.52 $42.61 $88,630

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Motor Vehicle Manufacturing 800 0.52 $42.61 $88,630
Scientific Research and Development Services 260 0.04 $37.56 $78,130
Electrical and Electronic Goods Merchant Wholesalers (8) (8) $37.29 $77,570
Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services 3,090 0.24 $35.96 $74,800
Cutlery and Handtool Manufacturing 60 0.14 $35.46 $73,760


Geographic profile for this occupation: Top

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.





States with the highest employment level in this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Michigan 4,100 1.07 4.78 $36.30 $75,500
California 2,850 0.20 0.91 $31.71 $65,960
New York 2,050 0.24 1.09 $31.64 $65,800
Pennsylvania 1,980 0.36 1.59 $29.49 $61,350
Texas 1,800 0.17 0.78 $31.05 $64,590




States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Michigan 4,100 1.07 4.78 $36.30 $75,500
Rhode Island 270 0.61 2.71 $29.56 $61,490
Wisconsin 1,360 0.51 2.29 $26.94 $56,040
Vermont 140 0.49 2.17 $24.78 $51,540
Pennsylvania 1,980 0.36 1.59 $29.49 $61,350




Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Oregon 160 0.10 0.45 $39.01 $81,130
New Mexico 30 0.04 0.19 $37.99 $79,030
Michigan 4,100 1.07 4.78 $36.30 $75,500
Mississippi 80 0.08 0.34 $36.23 $75,360
Massachusetts 680 0.22 0.97 $34.72 $72,210





Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Warren-Troy-Farmington Hills, MI Metropolitan Division 2,370 2.28 10.18 $38.80 $80,700
New York-White Plains-Wayne, NY-NJ Metropolitan Division 1,460 0.29 1.29 $32.95 $68,530
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, CA Metropolitan Division 1,230 0.32 1.44 $28.38 $59,030
Detroit-Livonia-Dearborn, MI Metropolitan Division 700 1.04 4.63 $34.22 $71,170
Chicago-Joliet-Naperville, IL Metropolitan Division 660 0.18 0.82 $31.24 $64,980
Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, TX 530 0.21 0.92 $34.38 $71,520
Dallas-Plano-Irving, TX Metropolitan Division 500 0.25 1.10 $29.29 $60,930
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI 480 0.28 1.25 $26.55 $55,220
Philadelphia, PA Metropolitan Division 480 0.26 1.17 $30.00 $62,410
Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI 420 0.52 2.33 $27.19 $56,550




Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Warren-Troy-Farmington Hills, MI Metropolitan Division 2,370 2.28 10.18 $38.80 $80,700
Niles-Benton Harbor, MI 110 1.95 8.69 $28.46 $59,190
Wausau, WI 90 1.33 5.93 $22.61 $47,030
Detroit-Livonia-Dearborn, MI Metropolitan Division 700 1.04 4.63 $34.22 $71,170
Holland-Grand Haven, MI 100 0.95 4.25 $28.94 $60,200
Oshkosh-Neenah, WI 80 0.92 4.13 $25.48 $53,000
Appleton, WI 90 0.75 3.33 $27.79 $57,810
Grand Rapids-Wyoming, MI 250 0.67 3.01 $33.57 $69,820
Kalamazoo-Portage, MI 80 0.62 2.76 $30.76 $63,980
Sheboygan, WI 30 0.60 2.66 $34.36 $71,480




Top paying metropolitan areas for this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City, CA Metropolitan Division 210 0.21 0.96 $41.51 $86,350
Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA 40 0.24 1.07 $40.97 $85,230
Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA 110 0.38 1.71 $40.76 $84,780
Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA 190 0.20 0.88 $39.34 $81,840
Ann Arbor, MI 90 0.46 2.04 $39.10 $81,340
Warren-Troy-Farmington Hills, MI Metropolitan Division 2,370 2.28 10.18 $38.80 $80,700
Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA NECTA Division 380 0.23 1.01 $37.41 $77,820
St. Louis, MO-IL 200 0.16 0.71 $36.76 $76,460
Chattanooga, TN-GA 60 0.25 1.11 $36.42 $75,750
Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX (8) (8) (8) $36.38 $75,660

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Balance of Lower Peninsula of Michigan nonmetropolitan area 270 0.98 4.36 $32.92 $68,470
North Central Texas nonmetropolitan area 100 1.28 5.73 $25.31 $52,650
Southern Indiana nonmetropolitan area 90 0.59 2.62 $19.13 $39,790
Northeast Maine nonmetropolitan area 80 1.16 5.20 $21.64 $45,010
West Northwestern Ohio nonmetropolitan area 80 0.35 1.55 $24.03 $49,990

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
North Central Texas nonmetropolitan area 100 1.28 5.73 $25.31 $52,650
Northeast Maine nonmetropolitan area 80 1.16 5.20 $21.64 $45,010
Balance of Lower Peninsula of Michigan nonmetropolitan area 270 0.98 4.36 $32.92 $68,470
Southern Indiana nonmetropolitan area 90 0.59 2.62 $19.13 $39,790
Southern Vermont nonmetropolitan area 60 0.56 2.49 $28.58 $59,440

Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Central Missouri nonmetropolitan area 40 0.23 1.04 $34.34 $71,430
East Central Pennsylvania nonmetropolitan area (8) (8) (8) $33.79 $70,290
Balance of Lower Peninsula of Michigan nonmetropolitan area 270 0.98 4.36 $32.92 $68,470
Northeastern North Carolina nonmetropolitan area 50 0.27 1.20 $29.51 $61,390
Southwest Maine nonmetropolitan area 40 0.23 1.05 $29.16 $60,650


About May 2011 National, State, Metropolitan, and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors, all metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas, and all states and the District of Columbia. The top employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable XLS files.

The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall. The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate--50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median. More about percentile wages.


(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.

(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours; for those occupations where there is not an hourly mean wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.

(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.

(8) Estimate not released.

(9) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration. A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average.


Other OES estimates and related information:

May 2011 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2011 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2011 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2011 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

List of Occupations in SOC Code Number Order

List of Occupations in Alphabetical Order

Download May 2011 Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates in Zipped XLS files

Technical Notes

 

Last Modified Date: March 27, 2012