Graphic Designer Resume Skills and Keywords

What skills should I put on a graphic designer resume?

The top skills to put on a graphic designer resume are Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Creative Cloud and Microsoft Office (Excel and PowerPoint), along with fine arts, design, and communications and media. Employers also look for attention to detail and innovation, which are best shown through results in your bullet points rather than listed.

• Adobe Photoshop
• Adobe Creative Cloud
• Adobe Illustrator
• Microsoft Excel
• Microsoft PowerPoint
• Fine Arts knowledge
• Design knowledge
• Communications and Media knowledge
• Attention to Detail
• Innovation

What software should graphic designers know?

Graphic designer job postings most often ask for Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Creative Cloud, Adobe Illustrator, HTML and Microsoft Office (Excel and PowerPoint). Many graphic designers also use web platform development, video creation and editing, and CAD software; which products matter depends on the employer, so list the specific products a posting names and you have used.

• Adobe Photoshop
• Adobe Creative Cloud
• Adobe Illustrator
• Hypertext markup language (HTML)
• Cascading style sheets (CSS)
• Adobe InDesign
• Adobe After Effects
• Adobe Premiere Pro
• Canva
• Figma
• Microsoft Excel
• Microsoft PowerPoint
• Microsoft Office

What hard skills do employers want in graphic designers?

Graphic designers need fine arts, design, communications and media, and sales and marketing far more than most workers. Name these in your resume summary and prove each one with a bullet that shows you using it.

• Fine Arts · Needed far more than in most jobs
  Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
• Design · Needed far more than in most jobs
  Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
• Communications and Media · Needed far more than in most jobs
  Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
• Sales and Marketing · Needed far more than in most jobs
  Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
• Computers and Electronics · Needed far more than in most jobs
  Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• Production and Processing · Needed more than in most jobs
  Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.

Compared with the average rating across all jobs in Department of Labor data.

What soft skills do graphic designers need?

The most important soft skills for graphic designers are attention to detail and innovation. Show them through results in your bullet points rather than listing them as single words.

1. Attention to Detail: A tendency to be detail-oriented, organized, and thorough in completing work.
2. Innovation: A tendency to be inventive, to be imaginative, and to adopt new perspectives on ways to accomplish work.

What keywords should a graphic designer resume include?

A graphic designer resume should include the exact tool names, skills and job title from the posting. For graphic designers, common keywords include Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Creative Cloud, Microsoft Office (Excel and PowerPoint), Artist and Brand Designer. Applicant tracking systems and recruiters scan for these words, so use them wherever they truthfully describe your experience.

How do I write graphic designer resume bullet points?

Start each graphic designer bullet point with a past-tense verb and a core task, such as “Reviewed final layouts and suggested improvements, as needed,” then end it with a measurable result: what changed, by how much, and for whom. These starters come from the job’s most important tasks.

What are other job titles for a graphic designer?

Other job titles for a graphic designer include Artist, Brand Designer, Designer, Graphic Artist and Graphic Design Coordinator. Government job data groups them as “Graphic Designers.” Search for these titles too, and use the posting’s exact title on your resume when it fits your experience.

• Artist
• Brand Designer
• Designer
• Graphic Artist
• Graphic Design Coordinator
• Online Producer
• Production Artist
• Publications Designer
• Technical Illustrator
• Ad Designer (Advertising Designer)
• Ad Layout Worker (Advertising Layout Worker)
• Apparel Graphic Designer
• Catalogue Illustrator
• Commercial Artist
• Concept Artist
• Creative Designer
• Design Consultant
• Digital Artist
• Forms Designer
• Graphic Art Designer

What education do graphic designers need?

Most graphic designers need a bachelor's degree to get hired. No prior work experience is usually required. On your resume, list coursework or certifications in fine arts, design, and communications and media. In a federal survey, 65% of graphic designers said the job requires a bachelor's degree and 15% a high school diploma.

How much do graphic designers make?

Graphic designers earn a median salary of $62,960 a year, according to May 2025 federal wage data. The lowest-paid 10% earn less than $39,520, and the highest-paid 10% earn more than $104,910. Employment is projected to shrink 1.7% from 2025 to 2035, slower than the 3.5% average for all jobs, with about 16,000 openings a year.

Openings still come up as people retire or move on, but in a shrinking field, skills that carry over to other jobs matter more on your resume.

What’s changing in this field

The Bureau of Labor Statistics expects these trends to shape hiring. If your experience touches any of them, say so.

• Productivity change, capital/labor substitution - share decreases as new technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), replace some workers and make other workers more efficient.

What other jobs can graphic designers do?

Graphic designers’ skills carry over best to jobs as special effects artists and animators, art directors, and web and digital interface designers, which use the most similar skills and day-to-day work.