Also called: T-Shirt Designer, Merch Designer, Print & Graphics Designer
Creates the graphics printed on T-shirts, hoodies, sports gear, and band or creator merchandise.
An apparel graphic designer might sketch a vintage-style logo for a summer surf collection, separate the colors for screen printing, and check a sample tee from the factory. For band merch they work fast around a tour schedule.
Approximate; in-house at apparel brands or freelance for bands and creators.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Bachelor's degree (4-year), about 4 years after high school. Graphic design degree or strong self-taught portfolio.
Ways in: 4-year college, 2-year college, Self-taught. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Graphic Design, Fashion Design.
Growing about average (about 2% over 10 years). Similar to graphic designers overall.
Medium risk in 5 years, high in 10. AI generates quick shirt graphics, flooding print-on-demand; brand-specific design and print production still need people.
Classes: Graphic design CTE, AP Studio Art, Marketing.
Official data: O*NET occupation 27-1024.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.