How much does a designer cost?

Are you interested in seeing an objective picture - how much do designers earn? How does salary depend on work experience, what is the share of income from freelancing? We were interested too, and we decided to use the published research of Liza Shchetnikova, the author of the Khaltura-Architecture channel , who surveyed more than 500 architects and compiled a table of indicators of designer's salary depending on experience, region, etc.

Thanks to the researcher for the work done , and we will see what conclusions can be drawn from this work.

The main sample of specialists who took part in the survey consisted of representatives from Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan, Yaroslavl, Vladivostok, Novosibirsk, Samara, Yekaterinburg, Sochi, there are several specialists from Kursk, Obninsk, Tula, Rostov-on-Don, etc.

35% of respondents have a salary of 80 to 100 thousand rubles at their main job.

Architects and designers with more than 5 years of experience have salaries of 120-170 thousand and more, but this is mainly in Moscow. Only 2.3% of the representative sample earn more than 200 thousand rubles.

Leading specialists have the highest incomes. Beginning architects are doomed to low salaries - around 30-60 thousand rubles, if you're lucky, you can grow to 80 thousand rubles.

Almost no one neglects part-time work, even chief and leading architects. Additionally, specialists take freelance orders for amounts from 30 to 100 thousand and more. On average, this is an additional 50% of the main income. Those who are able to handle more orders overtime can double their income. Such specialists are found in the sample. And some, thanks to their experience and an established base of regular customers, earn from 1 million rubles and more on remote additional work.

And what about Europe and the USA? After all, in order for the criterion for assessing the level of “our” salaries to be objective, they need to be compared with the state of affairs in the leading countries of the industry.

According to beincrypto.com, the average annual salary of an architect (converted into rubles at today's exchange rate) in Europe as of December 2023 is about $131,000 (~12 million rubles), while the average salary range is $103,000-160,000 per year (~9,000-14 million rubles).

In Great Britain, one of the most advanced European countries, the minimum is 80 thousand dollars a year, the average is 130 thousand dollars a year, and the maximum is 180 thousand dollars a year.

In the US, the average salary for architects/designers/planners as of December 2023 is a range from $86,000 to $225,000 per year.

By converting these figures into monthly salaries, we can establish how much the services of designers and architects cost in Europe and the USA – there, specialists earn from 4 to 12 thousand dollars a month, that is, approximately from 360,000 to 1,080,000 rubles. Anything higher is outside the average range.

Impressive numbers…

Almost all architects and designers constantly improve their qualifications – they study and improve, pumping up their skills. This is in addition to the education they received at universities. The most popular format of training is online courses, offline is less common. Some indicate several types of completed training programs. Everything suggests that an architect, a designer needs to be on trend, and for this, constantly study, that is, for today's realities, education received at a university is not enough.

Many people work remotely, and the hybrid format is less common. The office is preferred by a minority. But this is logical. Obviously, those who are required to work in the office are the ones who do so by their employer. If remote work has all the necessary conditions for full-fledged work, anyone will choose the opportunity not to waste time on the road and the benefits that working from home provides.

To sum it up, we can say that many architects, designers and planners are satisfied with their working conditions, since almost no one said that they are actively looking for a new place. However, all respondents are somehow in good shape and constantly monitor the market for better conditions and "tasty" orders. This means that they want more, better, they want to earn money for their growing needs.

Of course, the best of all are designers and architects from Moscow – they can count on a good pool of options with high fees and salaries.

How much a designer, architect, engineer earns in today's reality is the result of his activity and self-improvement. Water does not flow under a lying stone. You can get a job and receive a stable salary, but you have seen the numbers - you can't earn good money that way.

What is our vision – how to earn more? How can a designer, architect, or planner feel stable and confident?

Our experts believe that everything depends on the place of work and the level of orders you undertake. Experienced designers, architects, and planners are capable of not only taking on, but also processing many times more orders. You can gain experience only if you develop in different directions in design.

Having a diverse experience gives you “weight” in the specialist market and allows you to sell yourself at a higher price.

Freelancing can give you different directions, since in a project company you will most likely be put on a narrow specialization. In order to develop a “form” you will have to work and study additionally. Here a freelance exchange, such as Plandi.ru , will be a good help.

On the platform, you will learn how to communicate and negotiate with customers, gain experience in different areas. You will adapt to work under different requirements and different conditions, which will make you a more versatile specialist.

A modern designer who wants to earn more needs to have a good command of English in order to take on orders on foreign freelance exchanges and work for foreign companies.

A designer and architect must learn all the time. This industry is inseparable from the progress and development of BIM technologies. Free command of programs, monitoring of new technologies, practice at construction sites and finishing works will make you the most "tasty object" for the customer and employer.

So, the cost of designer/architect services on the market is growing along with experience, knowledge and the desire to be something more than an ordinary designer who has “settled” in a non-competitive company for many years.

The Plandi.ru ecosystem will provide invaluable assistance in self-realization in this industry. Register on the platform, create a professional profile according to our recommendations , create a personal account, monitor orders - we regularly find and share them.

We also made a survey similar to the one proposed in this post. And even more - based on monitoring specialists, whose circle on our platform is regularly growing, we created a whole project management system that can be used by anyone who is looking for additional orders or works only as a freelancer.

What is an integral part of a freelancer's work? Constantly searching for orders. If you don't "move" yourself, there will be no work. Here you need to make a statement - present yourself somewhere, show your level, experience.

Plandi.ru is an exchange that provides a range of services and all the tools for remote work with projects:

- online office for managing and processing projects, assembling a team;

- templates of the Technical Assignment with examples that are filled in automatically, with minimal effort;

- templates of contract forms, drawn up by lawyers who have worked with documents in this industry, will insure you against unfair business practices and financial problems, including with foreign orders;

- a stable flow of Russian and foreign orders, including orders from the CIS countries;

- the ability to download free BIM models for inclusion in your project;

- sell your intellectual work repeatedly – on Plandi.ru you can sell your BIM models and ready-made design solutions developed earlier for any project.

Thus, using the Plandi.ru service, you can develop yourself as a remote businessman-designer. We have already covered in the article “Confession of a designer” ( https://plandi.ru/blog/articles/ispoved-proektirovshhika/2100 ) the factors that will lead a person of this profession to good earnings without losing the quality of life - their own business. In this case, it is not at all necessary to immediately “aim” at your own company, try yourself as an individual businessman remotely.

You can make money not only from design.

"Wisdom is the daughter of experience," said the great Leonardo Da Vinci. Be wise - sell your colossal and diverse experience. Offer yourself as an expert, even without accreditation. You can consult users of the Plandi.ru platform for additional money on drawing up initial technical specifications, check projects of specialists who are taking on something they have not done before for the first time. However, for consulting, your profile and portfolio must contain full confirmation of experience with relevant projects.

Here is a complete picture of the possibilities that shows how a designer/architect/planner can earn more without losing quality of life.