Show me the money...

What are typical kitchen designer salaries? Do some companies pay a lot more for this position than others? What does a top earner make in this field?

What skills should you learn to increase your salary?

beginning the hunt nd would like to know what others are making

Try doing a few searches on the Indeed Salary Search tool. Here is a search I did for "Kitchen Designer" which shows the average salary being around $40K: www.indeed.com/salary?q1=kitchen+designer&l1=&tm=1

Notice however that the confidence bar located directly below the average salary is set at medium confidence.

I then expanded the search to "Interior Designer" which yielded a high confidencs ranking with an average salary of $53K: www.indeed.com/salary?q1=interior+designer&l1=&tm=1

It honestly depends on location and demand. I have worked as a kit/bath designer in two locations. One high market in design, one not so high. The average salary was very different. I am fairly young so it only pertains to people with 2-5 years experience. 40k in high market and 32k in low.

In NYC...be prepared. Highs can go 100K based on % and as low as 50K for the same total yearly sales. It's what the dealer/construction firm can wrangle out of you.

Jen Philadelphia in Pleasant View, Tennessee said: It honestly depends on location and demand. I have worked as a kit/bath designer in two locations. One high market in design, one not so high. The average salary was very different. I am fairly young so it only pertains to people with 2-5 years experience. 40k in high market and 32k in low.

Hi Jen,
$40K is the starting salary in NYC for a person with 1 year of experience. But then an average kitchen cost in the big apple is 37K for a typical NYC galley kitchen replacement.
15K labor
12K cabinets
3-4K stone tops
6K appliances

Designer/sales get 7-12% on the contract price. Sell 1M in kitchen and baths in NYC and have salary of 100K. after taxes it's 65K in hand. The cost of a cup of coffee is 3 dollars, I'm sure you know where I'm going with this.

Who works freelance as a kitchen designer? If you do what hourly payment (UK would be most useful, but if not is OK) do you receive? Do you get a percentage on the contract price?

What would be a good starting rate? And for more experience?
I look forward to your replies.

I don't know about other locations though I would assume it's the same everywhere. It's very difficult to be a free lance designer due to contacts and most remodelers have their own in house designers.

Unless your very well known ar have your own leads from professional agencies you have no way of knowing who's out there that needs your service. If I were to have my kitchen remodeled I want a brick and mortar place to visit especially when selecting materials.

Align yourself with a dealership as a freelance designer. That's what I've done. They give you leads to follow up and your commission us 10% of everything you sell. 1M in sales a year is 100K salary/commission. Not bad for a work at home 90% of the time deal.

Thanks for your reply. It is a dealership that is thinking of using me as a freelance designer. I would be trained to use their in-house software. I think also from what was untechnically put, a fibre optic network is needed to use the software which makes using the software at home a no brainer.

fiber optic network? There are 2 prominent kitchen design software programs that I know of. Planit and 20-20. There are other autocad programs but Planit and 20-20 are the most used in the states.

A security key (dongle)is required to save designs for 20-20. It hooks up to the printer port on your computer. The software is about 5K and dongles cost about 1K each depending on how many you purchase.

I know of no program that uses "fiber optics" as a prerequisite to use its software. When you learn the name of it please let us know.

I will let you know when I know more. The firm is going to be in touch with me early next month when I will find out more. Thanks for your interest. Sue

I live in Alberta Canada. I have been designing kitchens for about 4 years now. I am a member of the NKBA and recently passed my AKBD exam.
I am now looking for salary information for south western canada.
Does anyone have any info for this region and for a designer who has some credentials.
Thanks
Deidra

You might want to check with NKBA about salaries for your part of the world. I know in the states it's regional. New York, NY has a higher salary rate then Aspen, Colorado.

Do the research and go with a company that has a good track record with clients and their staff. I just left a company (even in this economy) that mistreated their people so disrespectfully (yelling and screaming) that I had enough. The company I worked for before that went out of business and did not tell anybody. My client called me and told me the showroom was cleared out and all the displays were gone. This is a crazy business and it's getting worse. Check out the people you want to work for...ask around, NKBA can help you. They know the stable, respected and financially viable organizations out there.

One more thing...having bathroom design experience is extremely important. Bathroom design has a completely different and more complex and detailed set of parameters. Plumbing (specifically) is very important.

Best of luck to you.

Hello,

I have checked out the salary info from NKBA and it fairly old, I'm looking for some up to date info. As well as something that pertains to the canadian market, I'm thinking the NKBA info focuses on the USA Market.

I am currently employed with a great company, but i'm looking for info reagarding salary to see if i'm in the correct pay scale, and if not I would like some info to take to my manager when it comes time to talk about wage.

I do have experience in Bathroom Design, I've been doing both Kitchen and Bath for a few years now.

Thank-you

Hi Deidra,
In NYC the salary varies widely from place to place. Just to give you an idea. Some companies offer a base salary about 35K (USD) PLUS a commission based on sales above a certain selling point.

Be careful of companies who offer a commission based on "their" profit. Profit numbers can be manipulated in the companies favor and usually are. If you have the ability to know what company costs are you will have a better understanding of the real profit the company sees at the end of the job.

In NYC a kitchen or bath based on a contract that includes labor, commissions are usually 7-10% on the total contract.

Some companies offer a commission base as low as 5%.
IE: if you sell a million dollars in yearly sales with the proper mark up on materials and labor your net is only 50K before taxes. Yet the company usually has a real "profit" of 400-500K if they do there work correctly. Their "profit" vs your commission is disproportionate.

Other factors include your talent as a designer and your ability to sell, make the desired profit and follow up with the details making the job run smooth. If you have little or no problems with any of the projects your working on, your employer should acknowledge that and compensate you accordingly.

If your with a good company by all means stay with them. I'm sure they will work with you. Also take into consideration the economy. Hopefully Canada's economy is fairing better then ours.

Best of the day

Lowes pay about $36K / yr here plus another $10k in commissions. That's with a couple of years exp.. However, working there sucks. you are scheduled closes and openings from 6 am to 10pm and it changes every day. Your days off change every week and you have split days off. You are not provided with the tools you need to do your job. Your customers have no clue when you work.

deidra_wagner@hotmail.com in Medicine Hat, Alberta said: I live in Alberta Canada. I have been designing kitchens for about 4 years now. I am a member of the NKBA and recently passed my AKBD exam.
I am now looking for salary information for south western canada.
Does anyone have any info for this region and for a designer who has some credentials.
Thanks
Deidra

Hi Deidra:
If your at a good firm and you are as good of a designer as you are a salesperson, you can expect to earn 1st year 36-50K, second year 45-60k and third year 60+.. Those with large builder accounts, a solid reputation or a booming economy will earn over 100k per year, but after 80K there are extra hours required to maintain current installations and new designs.
Good luck.

also, commission should be no less than 30% of profit if you are handling the entire job, 25% with support. You should earn more than what the government takes in, in sales takes in my opinion.

Thank-you for your comments they definitly help give me an idea of what to expect.

GMA in Austin, Texas said: Hi Deidra:
If your at a good firm and you are as good of a designer as you are a salesperson, you can expect to earn 1st year 36-50K, second year 45-60k and third year 60+.. Those with large builder accounts, a solid reputation or a booming economy will earn over 100k per year, but after 80K there are extra hours required to maintain current installations and new designs.
Good luck.

Thank-you
The company I am with is not very good,they were just bought out and the new owners are making things up as they go. For my own personal growth and benefit I can't stay here, there is no advancement, they also lowered our wages, I'm now making $15 an hour.(not happy) I recently had numerous interviews with this other company that is a 40 min drive out of medicine hat, I'm just waiting to sign the paper work and I'll have a new job. His salary offer is very resonable for starting position with commission and bonuses to come in the future. I'll have lots of opportunity to advance and grow. I'm looking forward to hearing back from them.

Thank-you for your information, it helps me see that I am being compensated appropriatly, even if its a Canandian Market.

Anyone knows where I can get a online job on kitchen design using 20 20?

Hello there I am a contractor looking for designers on a per project basis. what i am really looking for are renderings so the kitchens are pretty much laid out. Do you know of any resources I could access for design professionals seeking work?

I don't know about other locations though I would assume it's the same everywhere. It's very difficult to be a free lance designer due to contacts and most remodelers have their own in house designers.

dillard@constructionforlivingwell.com

Unless your very well known ar have your own leads from professional agencies you have no way of knowing who's out there that needs your service. If I were to have my kitchen remodeled I want a brick and mortar place to visit especially when selecting materials.

Align yourself with a dealership as a freelance designer. That's what I've done. They give you leads to follow up and your commission us 10% of everything you sell. 1M in sales a year is 100K salary/commission. Not bad for a work at home 90% of the time deal.