Discover how much video game designers make, gain insight into your 2025 career prospects, and confidently pursue salary goals.
Video game designers work in a creative role, typically as part of a larger team that usually includes animators, programmers, and developers. In this competitive position, you'll generate ideas for game stories and characters, requiring a mix of creativity and technical know-how to help bring those ideas to life.
If you’re in the video game industry or looking to become a video game designer, you may wonder how much you can earn. To provide some context, consider some industry trends. Predictions in Grand View Research's Market Analysis Report indicate that the global video game industry will grow 13.4 percent year over year by 2030. In 2022, the market value was over 220 billion USD and may exceed 583 billion USD in revenue by 2030 [1].
These projections could signal higher salaries for video game designers in the future.
Explore your earning potential and the factors that affect your salary to decide if this career is right for you.
Glassdoor’s February 2025 salary data shows that video game designers make a median annual salary of £40,541 in the UK. Additionally, they may earn a higher total salary when you factor in additional forms of compensation, such as cash bonuses, commissions, tips, and profit sharing [2].
The table below compares Glassdoor’s salary averages for game designers at different experience levels. See how your earning potential might increase or change as your career evolves.
Years of experience | Average UK salary |
---|---|
0–1 years | £26,441 |
1–3 years | £40,541 |
4–6 years | £44,721 |
7–9 years | £47,499 |
10–14 years | £53,716 |
A video game designer creates games for computers and game consoles by designing storylines, characters, game objectives, methods of winning and losing, and user interfaces. A video game developer brings a game to life by focusing on coding, software programming, and engineering. They create the game’s mechanics, player experience, and aesthetics.
Your experience level is only one of the considerations that may impact your salary. Other factors that can affect your earning potential as a video game designer include:
Education
Skills
The company you work for
Industry
Location
Though degrees are only sometimes required to work as a video game designer, you will likely earn more if you hold a formal degree. Game designers with a master’s degree earn more than those with a bachelor’s degree, who earn more than those with a certificate or diploma. As of 2024, the breakdown is as follows [3]:
Certificate or diploma: £43,100 per year
Bachelor’s degree: £60,100 per year
Master’s degree: £93.800 per year
The range of skills you possess, including any specialised skills, may impact which job you land and what salary you earn. Some of the top skills for video game designers include:
Motion graphics
Video content
Adobe Photoshop
Video production
Animation
For instance, if you’re interested in designing VR games for the metaverse, learning a skill such as Unity 3D or similar could help you specialise and unlock related career and salary opportunities.
Who you work for is another consideration. Larger companies with bigger budgets typically pay more when compared to smaller companies. Additionally, the type of company you work for matters. Niche, speciality, or non-traditional game studios might pay game designers more. Some of the companies offering the highest salaries, according to Glassdoor’s February 2025 data, include [2]:
Creative Assembly: £55,000 per year
Client Server: £55,000 per year
Space Ape Games: £55,000 per year
Royal Holloway University of London: £48,000 per year
Epic Games: £48,000 per year
Electronic Arts: £46,000 per year
Dark Pyre Interactive: £45,000 per year
Where you live and work may factor into your earnings as a video game designer. For example, as of October 2024, Payscale reports that video game designers working in London earn an average of 17.9 percent above the national average. Conversely, the lowest salaries reported are in cities such as Sheffield, England: South Yorkshire, Dundee; Scotland: Dundee; and Nottingham, England: Nottinghamshire [4].
In a report released by TIGA, a games industry trade association, national surveys reveal that job growth for the UK’s video game development sector increased by 11.4 percent between 2021 and 2023 [5]. The report also cites increased jobs throughout the video game sector as the industry experiences growth. As of 2024, employment for video game development is on the rise as game studios continue to hire at near-record rates.
Considering gaming industry revenue growth predictions and technological evolution, the industry will continue its trajectory.
To ensure you earn the best salary for your skills and qualifications, research and build key technical skills in game design. Engage in networking events and groups and learn about new and emerging trends in game design to keep your skills up to date.
As you continue your job search and develop your career, use these best practices to increase your potential for higher earnings.
Stay up-to-date on the skills, experience, education, and other qualifications employers desire in a video game designer. Start by creating accounts on job sites like Glassdoor, ZipRecruiter, LinkedIn, Paypal, and Indeed. Then, analyse each site’s data about average salaries, career trajectories, career advice, company reviews, and more.
Study job descriptions and sign up to receive notifications when positions open up at different companies.
Continuing your education can help expedite career advancement. Use insights from your research to prioritise the skills you learn and opportunities to apply them. For example, you may find that the positions you are most interested in require a degree or Professional Certificate in game design. You may satisfy employers’ requirements by taking courses on specific topics in game design. Consider taking on freelance projects to diversify your experience and build a portfolio if possible.
Having a strong network of contacts in the gaming industry can position you to learn about job openings and career-building opportunities. To build your network, you can:
Attend professional conferences and networking events.
Join online communities.
Follow other video game designers on social media and engage with their content.
When you monitor industry trends, such as the prevalence of new technologies and year-over-year revenue growth, you can more easily deduce your salary. To monitor these trends, you can:
Check National Career Services each year for the latest career data.
Read industry surveys and reports like those published by Grand View Research.
Online courses can be a great way to boost your video game designer job performance, enable more career opportunities, and increase your earning potential. If you’re a beginner looking to learn more about video game design, consider enrolling in CalArt’s Introduction to Game Design, available on Coursera. Are you looking to build up key technical skills in the game design world? Try Game Design: Art and Concepts Specialisation on Coursera through CalArt.
Grand View Research. “Video Game Market Size, Share, & Trends Analysis Report, https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/video-game-market.” Accessed 31 October 2024.
Glassdoor UK. “Game Designer Salaries in United Kingdom, https://www.glassdoor.co.uk/Salaries/uk-game-designer-salary-SRCH_IL.0,2_IN2_KO3,16.htm.” Accessed 13 February 2025.
Leverage Edu. “A Brief Comparison of Game Designer Salary in UK, https://leverageedu.com/learn/game-designer-salary-in-uk/.” Accessed 13 February 2025.
Payscale. “Average Video Game Designer Salary in United Kingdom, https://www.payscale.com/research/UK/Job=Video_Game_Designer/Salary.” Accessed 13 February 2025.
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