Press release: Uncertainty in the working life is now affecting designers in the early stages of their careers, says survey

The diversity of the design sector is evident in the salaries, future expectations and even job satisfaction of professionals. The general economic uncertainty is now being reflected in the design field, especially among unemployed and young designers at an early stage of their careers. This is the result of a recent Design survey of 525 design professionals earlier this year. On the other hand, the survey also shows that the use of design is strong in many companies in different sectors.

Ornamo Pulse 2025 Summary

13.06.2025

2 MB

The median monthly salary of design employees who responded to Ornamo’s survey was €4,260 in early 2025, including interior designers, service designers, digital designers, industrial designers and design managers, teachers, strategic designers and textile designers. The survey and report were carried out by researcher Pekka Lith.

Design professionals work mainly in large companies in different industries. Up to 70% of the respondents worked in companies with 50 or more employees.

The pay gap in the sector is wide, with just over a third earning at least €5 000 per month, but a tenth earning less than €3 000 per month.

Wages are also higher in large companies in different sectors, with higher wages in sectors such as finance, technology, digital and public administration. The lowest wages are paid in engineering firms and in real estate and construction.

In addition to the employer’s industry, the wage development of designers is also influenced by work experience, which is particularly important for men and those with a lower university degree. Age and educational level also play a role.

– In larger companies, better career development opportunities also support better wage development. In small design firms, the business cycle has a direct impact on how much and how often salaries can be increased,” says Emmi Putkonen, Research and Development Manager at Ornamo.

The most satisfied with their salaries are service designers in the public sector with an advanced university degree. The most dissatisfied with their salaries are interior designers in private companies with a lower university degree.

Design is already widely used in different industries

Respondents to the Pulse survey also rated their employers’ maturity, or design maturity, which measures the extent to which organisations use design. Responses indicate that in manufacturing, financial and service sectors, the use of design is fairly well established. This means that designers in these industries are more often involved in service design, customer experience development and strategic planning, in addition to product development.

In contrast, respondents in the real estate, construction and public administration sectors indicated that there is still room for improvement in the integration of design in their organisations.

– In the real estate, construction and public administration sectors, the use of design is selective and results are also focused on specific areas. In more mature organisations, designers are more often involved in overall development work or in solving systemic challenges,” says Putkonen.

Unemployment of young designers on the rise, future uncertain

The design sector is feeling the effects of economic uncertainty more strongly than last year. Ten percent of the respondents to the Pulse survey were unemployed jobseekers. The unemployed are younger than average, with over 60% of them aged under 40. The length of their careers is also shorter than average, with over 50% having been in work for less than six years. Among the unemployed, just over a quarter were long-term unemployed who had been looking for work for more than a year.

Putkonen is concerned about young professionals, who are particularly in need of work experience.

– The first few years after graduation are critical for developing a professional identity. If they cannot find a job in their own field, many may have to change career. The current situation is unsustainable for the future of the sector as a whole, as today’s juniors are tomorrow’s seniors and new talent will be needed in the future,” says Putkonen.

The increased uncertainty of recent years is now also widely reflected in the workplace. In 2022, 14% of respondents still considered their jobs to be somewhat or very insecure, compared to 33% today. Similarly, the number of people who rate their job as very very or fairly stable has fallen since 2022, from 86% to 67%.

Respondents to this year’s survey said that job changes, redundancies and layoffs have occurred in one sixth of jobs. This year, an increasing number of respondents thought that layoffs and redundancies were likely, compared to last year’s estimates of the likelihood of adjustment measures. A third of designers felt uncertain about their job security.