Graphic Designer Jobs in Chicago, IL
Most graphic designer openings in Chicago right now sit on in-house creative teams, from Northern Trust on LaSalle Street to Levy's sports and hospitality marketing group. The metro median is about $66,500 a year. Here are the current openings, followed by who is hiring and what it pays.
Current graphic designer Openings in Chicago, IL
Listings marked External are sponsored openings provided by the Jobs2Careers network.
Graphic Designer Work in Chicago
Chicago still has its famous agency row in the Loop and River North, but the design jobs posted this fall lean heavily toward in-house teams at banks, hospitality companies, retailers and professional services firms. Northern Trust wants senior designers for web, social and event graphics; Levy needs sales and marketing decks for stadium and arena clients; Allwyn North America runs an in-house creative agency that builds bid proposals and trade show booths; and Crate and Barrel shoots and designs paid social out of its Chicago photo studio.
That mix shapes the work. Presentation and proposal design, the PowerPoint and InDesign decks that win contracts, is a bigger share of Chicago design jobs than many newcomers expect, alongside the usual print, packaging and social assets. Most postings are hybrid, with two or three office days downtown, so a commute on the L or Metra into the Loop is part of the job for many designers.
Top Chicago Employers Hiring Graphic Designers
These employers have posted graphic design roles in Chicago on their own careers sites:
- Northern Trust - the LaSalle Street bank is hiring a Creative Sr. Designer for web, display, social and event graphics at $83,100 to $141,300.
- Levy - the Chicago-based sports and entertainment hospitality company posts a Sr. Graphic Designer role, hybrid Tuesday to Thursday, at $70,000 to $75,000.
- Allwyn North America - the lottery operator's in-house creative team hires communications designers for proposals, presentations and trade show work.
- Crate and Barrel - the home furnishings retailer staffs digital and paid media designers at its Chicago photo studio.
- Moody Bible Institute - Moody Publishers on the Near North Side hires part-time publishing designers for book covers and marketing pieces at $25 to $30 an hour.
Graphic Designer Salaries in Chicago
- Entry level: about $44,000 to $52,000 a year, or $21 to $25 an hour.
- Experienced: roughly $52,000 to $84,000 a year, with the metro median near $66,500.
- Senior: $84,000 to $100,000 or more, and up to about $141,000 at the top of senior in-house ranges at large banks.
These are estimates built from federal wage data for the Chicago metro (May 2025) and pay ranges posted by Chicago employers, which Illinois law requires on most job ads. Pay moves with seniority, with employer type (banks and large corporate teams pay more than small studios), with motion and paid social skills, and with whether the role is full time or freelance.
How to Become a Graphic Designer in Chicago
Illinois has no license for graphic designers, so employers judge you on your portfolio and experience. Most full-time postings ask for a bachelor's degree in graphic design or a related field and three to seven years of work. Columbia College Chicago in the South Loop offers BA and BFA degrees in graphic design. City Colleges of Chicago offers a Communication Design associate degree and certificates in print and web page design at Kennedy-King College in Englewood, and Digital Multimedia Design at Harold Washington College in the Loop, both lower-cost routes into a first studio or production artist job.
What the Job Involves
Graphic designers turn a brief into finished visuals: social posts and display ads, brochures and sales sheets, presentation decks, packaging, signage and event graphics. A typical week includes concept sketches, building layouts in InDesign or Figma, retouching images in Photoshop, presenting options to a marketing manager, working through rounds of revisions, and preparing print-ready or platform-ready files that follow the brand guidelines.
Skills Employers Look For
- Adobe Creative Cloud, especially InDesign, Illustrator and Photoshop
- Figma for digital and web assets
- Advanced PowerPoint or Google Slides for presentation design
- Typography, layout and brand consistency
- Print production and file preparation
- Motion graphics for paid and organic social
- A portfolio that shows campaigns across print and digital
Career Path and Advancement
Many Chicago designers start as production artists or junior designers at a studio, printer or nonprofit, move to a mid-level designer role in-house or at an agency, and reach senior designer within five to seven years. From there the ladder runs to art director, design manager and creative director, with UX, motion and presentation design as well-paid side roads at the banks, consultancies and hospitality companies downtown.
Related Careers in Chicago
If graphic design interests you, these related Chicago roles are close matches:
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you need a license to be a graphic designer in Illinois?
No. Illinois does not license graphic designers. Employers look at your portfolio, your software skills and your work history, and most full-time Chicago postings ask for a bachelor's degree or equivalent experience.
How much do graphic designers make in Chicago?
Federal wage data puts the Chicago metro median at about $66,500 a year, with entry-level designers near $44,000 to $52,000 and senior designers above $84,000. Senior in-house roles at large employers such as Northern Trust post ranges up to about $141,000.
Are Chicago graphic design jobs remote?
Most are hybrid. Current Chicago postings commonly ask for two or three days a week in the office, and some photo studio and production roles are fully on-site because the work happens with the camera and print teams.
Where can I study graphic design in Chicago?
Columbia College Chicago offers BA and BFA degrees in graphic design. City Colleges of Chicago offers Communication Design at Kennedy-King College and Digital Multimedia Design at Harold Washington College, including short certificates for people who want to get working quickly.
What should a Chicago graphic design portfolio include?
Show 10 to 15 finished projects that match the jobs you want: brand work, print pieces, social and digital ads, and at least one presentation or proposal deck, since many in-house Chicago teams design those every week. Explain the brief and your role for each piece.
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