Graphic Design Jobs in Melbourne – A Jobseeker’s Quick Guide
For anyone interested in graphic design jobs, Melbourne has a lot to offer. Long considered the cultural capital of Australia, the city has been a popular destination for graphic designers for years. Excellent creative companies, unique galleries, and a vibrant social scene make Melbourne an exciting and inspiring place for artists and designers.
But how can you find and secure a job in Melbourne? This article will give you the lowdown on the city, highlight some of the great companies and agencies where you can find employment, and shine a light on why Melbourne’s graphic design community has such an excellent reputation.
Melbourne – The arts hub of Australia
Melbourne is Australia’s cultural capital. The city is hip, progressive, and full of character. Naturally enough, it is considered a super destination for designers and creatives of every kind.
Melbourne is a treat for anyone who loves art, culture, and design. It has incredible street art, fantastic design hubs, a great music and food scene, and lots of galleries. Whatsmore, the residents are down-to-earth, friendly and relaxed.
Melbourne has lots of great graphic design jobs too. It has everything you need if you want to break into the creative industries and you’re looking for the right city to do it in.
Of course, It’s not just culture, art, and exciting commercial opportunities that keep people around. Melbourne also has wonderful weather, beaches, parks, and great outdoor activities. Overall, it’s a great city to live in and work in.
Why work in the Melbourne design industry?
Melbourne has a longstanding reputation as a city for designers. The local economy is thriving, there are lots of opportunities, and design greatly contributes to the culture, including finding novel solutions to social issues.
One of the most notable elements of Melbourne’s design industry is that it doesn’t have the pretentious attitude that other design cities are known for. Melbourne is a lot more down-to-earth than most places, and design is about being creative and having fun. That’s the sort of atmosphere in which graphic designers can thrive and do their best work.
But that’s not to say that Melbourne doesn’t take design seriously. Because it does. One of Melbourne’s biggest advantages over other cities is the sheer variety of creative design jobs. You can find work in lots of different industries, both corporate and informal, with lots of great and interesting projects happening across the city. There are so many different jobs and sectors that it’s a great place for graphic designers who want to specialise in particular styles of design or get experience in specific sectors.
But great job opportunities and salaries don’t mean much if a city isn’t nice to live in. Thankfully, Melbourne doesn’t have that problem. In fact, it recently came first place in the Economist Intelligence Unit’s Global Liveability Index list of best Australian cities. What’s more, it finished number 10 in all cities worldwide!
The Global Liveability Index looks at various factors when determining why a city is a great place to live. Some of these elements are things like quality universities, infrastructure, culture, healthcare, and more. Finishing so high up the list should give you an idea of what Melbourne is about and why it’s a great place for workers of any kind.
Of course, the cost of living in Melbourne is pretty high. But those costs correlate to the quality of life. Overall, Melbourne has so much to offer. For example, the city’s laneway culture gives it a cosy, creative feel, with excellent shops, food, and music venues.
Additionally, Melbourne is very diverse and progressive. It has one of the world’s best coffee cultures, transport is excellent, and it has incredible outdoors. We could go on listing the benefits, but there’s only so much time.
Finally, the arts community is thriving and vibrant. There is a lot of great work and galleries to inspire designers, lots of like-minded souls to meet and discuss design, and great design-related events.
In short, Melbourne is a great place for graphic designers and other creatives.
Companies to work at in Melbourne
Melbourne’s reputation as a great design city is partly down to the city’s high concentration of great employers. The city is home to some of the most prestigious names in global advertising. MC Saatchi, Ogilvy, and McCann all have Melbourne outlets, and any one of those companies would look incredible on a graphic designer’s CV.
But there are also some incredible design and tech agencies working in the area. Some of the most well-known names are Oracle, Envato, and Sage. But Melbourne also hosts offices for heavy hitters like Google, Meta, Slack, and LinkedIn.
Perhaps the most exciting thing about graphic design jobs in Melbourne is the number of startups the city produces. AirWallex, LinkTree, handdii, and Culture Amp are just a few notable names that have emerged over the last few years. These companies are a testament to Melbourne’s positive DIY attitude, which makes it an excellent place for entrepreneurs.
In many ways, Melbourne’s biggest strength as a design hub is its diversity. The city contains a mix of blue-chip companies with cool boutique agencies. For designers, it means they have a great choice of work if they want to commit to an established name, a plucky startup, or something in between.
How much do graphic designers earn in Melbourne?
The good news for anyone looking for graphic design jobs in Melbourne is that the salaries are very competitive. The average salary for a graphic designer in Melbourne is around $75,000. However, a lot depends on experience and the particular employer.
Entry-level graphic designer
An entry-level graphic designer is looking at a salary of between $40,000 and $55,000. However, this can go higher for some jobs we’ve seen advertised.
Mid-career graphic designer
A mid-level graphic designer’s salary in Melbourne can fetch around $65,000 but can easily be nearer $80,000. We’ve seen jobs advertised for mid-career designers at as much as $100,000.
Senior graphic designer
Senior graphic design jobs in Melbourne can range from around $70,000 to $90,000. However, for the right role with the right experiences, some businesses advertise salaries in excess of $100,000.
Check out this Designer Salary Calculator to find out what you could earn as a designer in Melbourne
Joining Melbourne’s Graphic Design Community
There are so many designers and creatives in Melbourne that the city has lots of different events, groups, and outlets that are perfect for graphic designers. If you go on MeetUp, there are graphic design groups with hundreds of members. These groups are a good way for designers to meet like-minded people, make connections, and even find graphic design jobs in Melbourne.
Take a quick look around social media platforms like Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook, and you can get a sense of Melbourne’s supportive graphic design community. There are many groups that welcome or are built to cater to helping women and minorities in the graphic design industry. These groups offer an excellent chance for people to network, get advice, and find work.
During the year, Melbourne also hosts lots of design events. Melbourne Design Week and The Rebuilt Environment are some of the more notable learning and networking events.
There are also an endless amount of workshops, conferences, lectures and social events that centre around graphic design. Many of these events are hosted by local universities, like Monash and the Melbourne School of Design.
Melbourne recruitment agencies specialising in Graphic Design jobs
As you might imagine, for a city obsessed with digital design, there are a number of recruitment agencies specialising in graphic design jobs. Most of these agencies also cater to other creative design jobs too, like UX and other aspects of digital design.
Here are a few agencies you can check out when you’re looking for Melbourne digital design jobs.
- Oomf Recruit: Oomf is based in Melbourne and helps connect businesses with graphic designers and other creatives across Australia and even overseas.
- Creative Recruiters: Creative is based in Melbourne and has many graphic design positions, alongside UI/UX, advertising and marketing.
- Artisan Recruitment: Artisan partners with several design agencies to connect them with roles in design and tech. They can connect designers with temporary and full-time positions.
- The Creative Store: The Creative Store specialises in recruitment in the design and advertising industries. They have many graphic design posts, plus UI/UX, marketing, and more.
- Big Fish Creative Recruitment: Big Fish has been around for over a decade and helps connect graphic designers with lots of different types of clients
Summary
Melbourne is a great place for graphic design jobs. As Australia’s cultural capital, the city has an active design community, with top companies, galleries, and a population that loves and values good design.
The quality of life in Melbourne is excellent. Throw in first-rate infrastructure, high salaries, and a booming startup culture, and it’s easy to see why so many designers choose to call the city their home.
So if you’re looking for graphic design jobs, Melbourne could be the place for you. There is a huge variety of jobs at companies of every size, plus a supportive community that can help you learn and network.
