A product designer is one of the key factors that will determine the success of a product. They are the minds and executors of the entire design process.
Product designers are designers, creatives, managers, leaders, marketers, and salesmen – all combined.
With so many apps and websites coming out, product design has become one of the most important (and popular) jobs in the tech world. And it makes sense! A product designer is a problem-solver.
When a product is launched on the market, a product designer is one of the key factors determining whether it will succeed. Product designers have many names: information architect, experience designer, interaction designer, experience architect, etc. So, it’s no wonder it has also become one of the highest-paid jobs in the UI UX design industry. But what does a product designer do exactly?
If you’re interested in building a career in product design and wondering about the product designer salary – we’re here with all the answers! In this article, we will talk about what is product design, the role of a product designer, and the difference between UI UX design and product design.
What Does a Product Designer Do?
A product designer's main goal is to ensure the entire product design process goes smoothly while considering user needs. Depending on the size and type of company in which they work, a product designer can have various tasks.
To understand the role better, let’s say you worked for a business producing makeup goods. The company wants to launch a new lip gloss with better formula and packaging. The first step you would take as a product designer would be to envision an enhanced design for it. You must determine what visual traits can elevate your lip gloss and make it stand out. Your company has been producing these goods for a while - how will this new one exceed them?
The next step is researching what features can be added to the product: Will including sparkling particles make the lip gloss more desirable? Will a slicker shape for the container make it easier to carry around in a purse? The usability of a product is just as significant as its appearance.
And now, you must keep all the functionality in mind while creating a visually stunning product design. As a product designer, you must be constantly in tune with trends – regardless of the product you want to launch. Whether it is a website design, an app design, or even a packaging design – from the colors to the materials you pick, you will aim to make your goods as eye-catching as possible.
A product designer is the jack of all trades: they deal with research, design, marketing, and selling. But what specific skills are required to become a successful product designer?
Technical Skills
There are a few UI UX design-related skills that every product designer needs to have. It mainly concerns prototyping, interaction, visual design, user research, and wireframing. You would not be able to create a successful website or app design if you didn’t understand what your users are looking for. This is called a user-centered design process.
Visual Skills
The first thing most people will think about when they hear the word designer is the aesthetic side of it – the UI design part. But a product designer is a perfect example of balancing tech and arts. So be careful! Even if we might be well-versed in the technical aspect of UI UX design, we will not flourish in product design without strong visual skills. This is the case for UI designers as well.
Project Management Skills
When you work as a product designer, you need to have user-centric and big-picture design thinking – whether for a website design, an app design, or even a physical product design. There is so much planning and strategizing involved in this field. Hence, experience in leadership roles and generally great organizational skills will really come in handy in such a position. Being a team player is also instrumental, as you will never work alone. The design process implies lots and lots of communication with other departments.
Types Of Product Design
The digital creative world is incredibly complex. Naturally, different types of product designers fill out various roles and respond to the market needs. We will see three types of product design: system design, process design, and interface design.
System Design
The easiest way to understand the types of product designs is to think about a clothing store. Think about its layout and similarity to a product designer's work - the clothing items are organized according to different criteria. The product designer decides how to manipulate the layout of the store to boost sales.
In this system design, the driving principle is that both user and business needs are met. For example, new collections will be displayed at the store's entrance to make it easier for customers to find them and for the business owners to increase the chances of selling them.
Another example of how product designers imagine a profitable and intuitive system design is by placing different items near the cash register. That way, clients might remember forgetting to purchase something, while the store can boost sales.
Process Design
Product designers are responsible for imagining products that will benefit users from the first step until the last. We can look at the process of ordering goods from a website to understand this. From selecting the specific product to filling in our details to selecting the shipping and payment method, these are all mandatory steps that we need to take to reach our goal.
These actions are not required from users without a reason, but they represent a process designed to create an effective experience in the website design.
Interface Design
The visual experience of product designing is found in interface design. The most important trait of an interface is that the user finds it intuitive and easy to navigate. Let’s say you were visiting a foreign country and had to use the subway to commute. You are unfamiliar with the native language, and the ticket ATM does not have English as an option. Visual elements such as colors, icons, and animations could be lifesavers. This is why interface design must be user-centric before anything.
Of course, the product designer's salary depends on the country you are in, your experience level, and even the company you are working for. However, due to the high demand in the tech world, product design jobs are high-paid, and you will find they have similar salary ranges.
Here is a breakdown of the average product designer salary in 2024 across multiple countries around the world, according to Glassdoor:
United States:
Junior Product Designer Salary – $81.000/year
Average Product Designer Salary: $94.000/year
Medium Level Product Designer Salary – $100.000/year
Senior Product Designer Salary – $126.000/year
Canada:
Junior Product Designer Salary – CA$69.000/year
Average Product Designer Salary: CA$85.000/year
Senior Product Designer Salary – CA$95.000/year
United Kingdom:
Junior Product Designer Salary – £43.000/year
Average Product Designer Salary: £50.000/year
Medium Level Product Designer Salary – £55.000/year
Senior Product Designer Salary – £75.000/year
Note: The average salaries for a product designer in the UK are based on London salaries.
Australia:
Junior Product Designer Salary – A$95.000/year
Average Product Designer Salary: A$109.000/year
Medium Level Product Designer Salary – A$117.000/year
Senior Product Designer Salary – A$139.000/year
Note: The average salaries for a product designer in Australia are based on Sydney salaries.
India:
Junior Product Designer Salary – ₹9L/year
Average Product Designer Salary: ₹15L/year
Medium Level Product Designer Salary – ₹16L/year
Senior Product Designer Salary – ₹23L/year
Note: The average salaries for a product designer in India are based on Bangalore salaries.
Nigeria:
Junior Product Designer Salary – NGN 125K/month
Average Product Designer Salary: NGN 200K/month
Medium Level Product Designer Salary – NGN 300K/month
Senior Product Designer Salary – NGN 637K/month
If this brief introduction to the world of product designing has spiked your interest, note that there are a few things you should follow to break into this field:
Make sure that you have the proper education and documentation about product design;
Gain hands-on experience and the skills we have previously discussed;
Consider taking up online courses to broaden your knowledge and perspective;
Practice networking and make connections in the industry;
Build an eye-catching portfolio to display your projects;
Apply for product design jobs that fit your interests and skillset – while you might aspire for a senior product designer salary, maybe you will have a long time until then.
uinkits – Our Figma Design System and UI Kits
We at uinkits understand the importance of inputs in great user experiences and creating amazing UI designs. That’s why we’ve developed a Figma UI Kit with design components that include these essential UI elements that enable you to design intuitive and user-friendly interfaces effortlessly.
“You press the button, we do the rest,” – Kodak.
Inspired by this iconic tagline from Kodak, we believe in simplifying the design process for you. Our Figma UI Kit, uinkits, is a complete design system with UI components that allows you, as a UI UX designer, to create your products as quickly as pressing a button.
Our design system includes components, icons, variables, cards, buttons, and everything you need for your design process. All you have to do is take your UI design component needed, and you’re ready to use it in your designs!
