Web Developer or Digital Designer
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Salary Range: $60,000 and more
Average Hourly: $37.12
Education: Bachelor's degree
Number of Jobs: 199,400
Jobs Added to 2029: 25,500
Growth: Faster than average
Go here to see salary and job data specific to the United Kingdom.
What Web Developers and Digital Designers Do
Web developers create and maintain websites. They are also responsible for the site’s technical aspects, such as its performance and capacity, which are measures of a website’s speed and how much traffic the site can handle. In addition, web developers may create content for the site. Digital designers develop, create, and test website or interface layout, functions, and navigation for usability. They are responsible for the look and functionality of the website or interface.
Duties
Web developers and digital designers typically do the following:
- Meet with clients or management to discuss the needs, design, and functionality of a website or interface
- Create and test applications, interfaces, and navigation menus for a website
- Write code for the website, using programming languages such as HTML or XML
- Work with other team members to determine what information the site will contain
- Work with graphics and other designers to determine the website’s layout
- Integrate graphics, audio, and video into the website
- Monitor website traffic
- Create prototypes and mockups of websites or applications
- Design and develop graphics
When creating a website, developers and designers have to make their client’s vision a reality. They build particular types of websites, such as ecommerce, news, or gaming sites, to fit clients’ needs. Different types of websites require different applications. For example, a gaming site should be able to handle advanced graphics, whereas an ecommerce site would need a payment-processing application. The developer decides which applications and designs will best fit the site, and the designer focuses on the look and usability of these elements across browsers or devices.
Some developers and designers handle all aspects of a website’s construction, and others specialize in a certain aspect of it. The following are examples of types of specialized web developers or digital designers:
Back-end web developers are responsible for the overall technical construction of the website. They create the basic framework of the site and ensure that it functions as expected. Back-end web developers also establish procedures for allowing others to add new pages to the website and meet with management to discuss major changes to the site.
Front-end web developers create the technical features for a website’s look. They develop the site’s layout and integrate graphics, applications (such as a retail checkout tool), and other content. They also write webdesign programs in a variety of computer languages, such as HTML or JavaScript.
Web and digital interface designers are responsible for creating the look and feel of a website or interface with regard to photos, color, font type and size, graphics, and layout. They also are responsible for the functionality, usability, and compatibility of the website or interface.
Webmasters maintain and update websites. They ensure that websites operate correctly, and they test for errors such as broken links. Many webmasters respond to user comments as well.
Work Environment
Web developers and digital designers held about 199,400 jobs in 2020. The largest employers of web developers and digital designers were as follows:
| Self-employed workers | 18% |
| Computer systems design and related services | 15 |
| Publishing industries (except Internet) | 9 |
| Management, scientific, and technical consulting services | 5 |
| Advertising, public relations, and related services | 4 |
Work Schedules
Most web developers and digital designers work full time.
Job Outlook
Job Outlook
Employment of web developers and digital designers is projected to grow 13 percent from 2020 to 2030, faster than the average for all occupations.
About 17,900 openings for web developers and digital designers are projected each year, on average, over the decade. Many of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.
How to Become a Web Developer or Digital Designer
Educational requirements vary for web developers and digital designers, based on work setting and other factors.
Education
Educational requirements for web developers and digital designers range from a high school diploma to a bachelor’s degree.
Some employers prefer to hire web developer candidates who have a bachelor’s degree in a specific field, such as computer science or programming.
Web developers need to have a thorough understanding of HTML programming. Many employers also want developers to understand other programming languages, such as JavaScript or SQL, and have knowledge of multimedia publishing tools, such as Flash. Throughout their career, web developers must keep up to date on new tools and computer languages.
Employers of digital designers may prefer to hire candidates who have a bachelor’s degree in a field such as web design, digital design, or graphic arts.
Web developers and digital designers may not need specific education credentials if they can demonstrate their abilities through prior work experience or projects.
Advancement
Web developers and digital designers who have a bachelor’s degree may advance to become project managers. For more information, see the profile on computer and information systems managers.
Important Qualities
Communication skills. Web developers and digital designers need to communicate effectively with coworkers to coordinate work on projects.
Creativity. Web developers and digital designers often are involved in creating the appearance of a website and must make sure that it is appealing as well as functional.
Customer-service skills. Webmasters have to respond politely to user questions and requests.
Detail oriented. Web developers and digital designers must focus for long periods and write code precisely, because a minor error could cause an entire webpage to stop working.
Problem-solving skills. Web developers and digital designers must check for coding errors and fix any that they find.