Interior Designers
Plan, design, and furnish the internal space of rooms or buildings. Design interior environments or create physical layouts that are practical, aesthetic, and conducive to the intended purposes.
Interior Designers plan, design, and furnish the internal space of rooms or buildings. Design interior environments or create physical layouts that are practical, aesthetic, and conducive to the intended purposes. The role reports a median annual salary of $63,490 in the US with the middle 80% earning between $35,830 and $104,850 and is projected to grow 3% over the next decade (about as fast as average). Entry typically requires a Bachelor's degree, and shows moderate AI exposure (0.50 on a 0-1 scale) — some tasks are being automated but the role adapts. The most in-demand skills for the role include Active Listening, Speaking, Critical Thinking, Coordination, Complex Problem Solving.
Salary distribution (US)
Real salary data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The p10–p90 spread tells you more than the median alone.
Pay in the UK
UK: median £36,485 a year for Interior designers (ONS ASHE 2025, full-time)
UK jobs are grouped differently; this is the closest UK occupation group (ONS SOC 2020 3421). ONS rates this estimate precise. 2025 provisional figures; ONS revises them a year later. Source: ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (Open Government Licence)
Pay in India (occupation group)
Average monthly earnings of salaried employees in the occupation group “Technicians and associate professionals” in India, from the Government of India's Periodic Labour Force Survey (January–December 2025). It covers everyone in this group, not only Interior Designers, and it is not US pay converted to rupees.
Source: MoSPI (Government of India), Periodic Labour Force Survey Annual Report 2025, Table 51 — average wage/salary earnings of regular wage/salaried employees, NCO-2015 division 3. Official India data gives one average per occupation group: there are no official India figures for single careers, experience levels or cities. Read the report
How to get here in India
The usual route into this career in India. Each step links to the official page it comes from.
- 1 · Qualification 4-year B.Des in Furniture and Interior Design at NID Ahmedabad[1]
- 2 · Entrance exam NID Design Aptitude Test (DAT), in two stages[1]
Rules change: check the exam body's and regulator's current notice before you apply.
- NID — Bachelor of Design (B.Des.) programme (read on 2026-09-27)
Entrance exams on this route — Dates, eligibility and cut-offs for the exams on the way to this career:
Top skills
Knowledge you'll build
- Design
- Fine Arts
- Customer and Personal Service
- English Language
- Building and Construction
- Administration and Management
- Sales and Marketing
- Computers and Electronics
A day in the life
Your morning might begin at a client's half-renovated brownstone, measuring rooms and photographing architectural details before heading back to the studio to create mood boards and 3D renderings. You spend part of the day sourcing fabric swatches, light fixtures, and custom furniture from vendors and showrooms, constantly balancing the client's wish list against their budget. Afternoons often involve coordinating with contractors, reviewing floor plans in AutoCAD, and presenting design concepts to clients who are anxious to see their space come together. The best part is the reveal day, when you watch someone walk into a room you transformed and see their face light up.
Illustrative: one typical day. Real days vary by employer and seniority.
What you'd actually do
- Design plans to be safe and to be compliant with the American Disabilities Act (ADA).
- Use computer-aided drafting (CAD) and related software to produce construction documents.
- Research health and safety code requirements to inform design.
- Confer with client to determine factors affecting planning of interior environments, such as budget, architectural preferences, purpose, and function.
- Advise client on interior design factors, such as space planning, layout and use of furnishings or equipment, and color coordination.
- Coordinate with other professionals, such as contractors, architects, engineers, and plumbers, to ensure job success.
Tools & technology you'd use
Frequently asked questions
What does Interior Designers do?
Plan, design, and furnish the internal space of rooms or buildings. Design interior environments or create physical layouts that are practical, aesthetic, and conducive to the intended purposes.
What does a typical day look like in Interior Designers?
Your morning might begin at a client's half-renovated brownstone, measuring rooms and photographing architectural details before heading back to the studio to create mood boards and 3D renderings. You spend part of the day sourcing fabric swatches, light fixtures, and custom furniture from vendors and showrooms, constantly balancing the client's wish list against their budget.
How much does Interior Designers earn?
The median annual salary for Interior Designers in the US is $63,490. The middle 80% of workers earn between $35,830 and $104,850 annually. Entry-to-mid-career earners typically fall between $46,630 and $83,400.
What is the job outlook for Interior Designers?
The role is projected to grow 3% over the next decade (about as fast as average). Current US employment is approximately 87,100 workers.
How do I become interior designers?
The typical entry education is a Bachelor's degree. Building a foundation in the top skills below will strengthen your application.
What skills does Interior Designers need?
The most in-demand skills for this role include Active Listening, Speaking, Critical Thinking, Coordination, Complex Problem Solving, Judgment and Decision Making. These are the skills O*NET identifies as most important for competent performance.
Will AI replace Interior Designers?
Our AI-durability model gives Interior Designers a score of 0.50 on a 0-1 scale (higher = more exposure). That places it at moderate AI exposure — some tasks are being automated but the role adapts. Learning to work with AI tools rather than against them is the path forward.
How hard is it to enter this field?
Interior Designers has moderate barrier to entry — moderately gated — a bachelor's degree or equivalent training is typically required.