# Commercial and Industrial Designers

US SOC code 27-1021. Markdown version of https://futurehistory.earth/timeline/27-1021

Also called: Industrial designer, Product designer (industrial), Commercial designer, Consumer product designer, Furniture designer.

## In brief

In May 2025, [BLS](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip) counted **33,490** US commercial and industrial designers, with median pay of **$83,910** a year. Of the BLS counts since 2003, the highest was **34,800**, in May 2007, close to the May 2025 count. The earliest figure here is [an estimate](https://encyclopedia.design/2023/05/24/idsa-professional-organisation-of-american-industrial-designers/) of **600** from 1965, not measured the same way as today's count. The last full technology era for commercial and industrial designers: SolidWorks, Alias, and KeyShot, 2000 to 2018.

## What the sources say

### Official outlook

BLS projects employment to grow 2.4% from 2025 to 2035. Source: [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=27-1021&ioType=o).

### AI exposure studies

- **41.4%** of this job's tasks are exposed to large language models. Not a forecast of job losses. [Eloundou and others, 2023](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv)
- **26%** of work tasks in arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media occupations, this job's group, are exposed to automation by AI. Not a forecast of job losses. [Goldman Sachs, 2023](https://www.gspublishing.com/content/research/en/reports/2023/03/27/d64e052b-0f6e-45d7-967b-d7be35fabd16.pdf)

Data as of BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025-35. BLS publishes these counts as yearly survey snapshots and cautions against reading them as a precise trend. In May 2021 BLS changed how it estimates these counts (a model-based method using three years of survey data) and moved fully to the 2018 occupation codes, so part of a change across 2021 can come from the method rather than the work.

## Commercial and Industrial Designers employment and pay by year

- On record since: 1927
- Latest US employment: 33,490 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [3]
- Latest US median pay: $83,910 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [9]
- Outlook: +2.4% by 2035. Source: BLS Employment Projections 2025-35 [26]

### In other countries

The latest figure each country's statistics agency publishes for this job. Each uses its own occupation definition, survey basis and currency, so the numbers are not directly comparable with each other or with the US figures.

- **Canada** (NOC 22211)
  - Employment, 2020: 10,225. Source: Statistics Canada Census 2021 [6]. Statistics Canada Census of Population 2021: number of persons with employment income in NOC 22211 Industrial designers, Canada, reference year 2020. A recipients basis (anyone with employment income during the year), slightly broader than a point-in-time employed count. Statistics Canada Open Licence.
  - Median pay, 2020: C$67,000. Source: Statistics Canada Census 2021 [13]. Statistics Canada Census of Population 2021 (Table 98-10-0586): median employment income for NOC 22211 Industrial designers, Canada, reference year 2020, full-year full-time workers (the basis comparable to the US OEWS full-time median). Statistics Canada Open Licence.

### All 26 years of cited US data

| Year | US employment | Annual pay (median unless marked) | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1956 | n/a | $5,500 (estimate) | Est., University of Missouri Libraries [7] |
| 1965 | 600 (estimate) | n/a | Est., Encyclopedia of Design [1] |
| 2000 | 33,910 | $48,780 | BLS OEWS 2000 [2] |
| 2003 | 33,390 | $52,320 | BLS OEWS May 2003 [3] |
| 2004 | 33,050 | $52,310 | BLS OEWS May 2004 [3] |
| 2005 | 31,650 | $52,200 | BLS OEWS May 2005 [3] |
| 2006 | 33,540 | $54,560 | BLS OEWS May 2006 [3] |
| 2007 | 34,800 | $56,550 | BLS OEWS May 2007 [3] |
| 2008 | 32,940 | $57,350 | BLS OEWS May 2008 [3] |
| 2009 | 29,170 | $58,060 | BLS OEWS May 2009 [3] |
| 2010 | 28,670 | $58,230 | BLS OEWS May 2010 [3] |
| 2011 | 28,710 | $60,760 | BLS OEWS May 2011 [3] |
| 2012 | 29,030 | $59,610 | BLS OEWS May 2012 [3] |
| 2013 | 28,540 | $62,370 | BLS OEWS May 2013 [3] |
| 2014 | 29,410 | $64,620 | BLS OEWS May 2014 [3] |
| 2015 | 31,330 | $67,130 | BLS OEWS May 2015 [3] |
| 2016 | 31,860 | $67,790 | BLS OEWS May 2016 [3] |
| 2017 | 31,250 | $65,970 | BLS OEWS May 2017 [3] |
| 2018 | 33,200 | $66,590 | BLS OEWS May 2018 [3] |
| 2019 | 32,770 | $68,890 | BLS OEWS May 2019 [3] |
| 2020 | 30,100 | $71,640 | BLS OEWS May 2020 [3] |
| 2021 | 27,940 | $77,030 | BLS OEWS May 2021 [3] |
| 2022 | 30,450 | $75,910 | BLS OEWS May 2022 [3] |
| 2023 | 30,810 | $76,250 | BLS OEWS May 2023 [3] |
| 2024 | 30,250 | $79,450 | BLS OEWS May 2024 [3] |
| 2025 | 33,490 | $83,910 | BLS OEWS May 2025 [3] |

## Sources (89)

### Employment series

1. [Encyclopedia of Design — IDSA Professional Organisation of American Industrial Designers (founding membership c.600, 1965)](https://encyclopedia.design/2023/05/24/idsa-professional-organisation-of-american-industrial-designers/), Encyclopedia of Design
2. [BLS OES 2000 national estimates (flat file)](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oes00nat.zip), Bureau of Labor Statistics
3. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2024](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)
4. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2006, Table 97-563-XCB2006069 (Wage and salary statistics by occupation, NOC-S 2006), income reference year 2005](https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/tbt/Rp-eng.cfm?LANG=E&PID=96285), Statistics Canada
5. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2016, Table 98-400-X2016356 (Occupation by employment income statistics, NOC 2016), income reference year 2015](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/en/catalogue/98-400-X2016356), Statistics Canada
6. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2021, Table 98-10-0586 (Employment income statistics by occupation unit group, NOC 2021), income reference year 2020](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=9810058601), Statistics Canada

### Wage series

7. [University of Missouri Libraries — Prices and Wages by Decade: 1950-1959 (BLS historical wage context)](https://libraryguides.missouri.edu/pricesandwages/1950-1959), University of Missouri Libraries / BLS historical sources
8. [BLS OES 2000 national estimates (flat file)](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oes00nat.zip), Bureau of Labor Statistics
9. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)
10. [BLS OEWS May 2024, national cross-industry estimates (flat file)](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
11. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2006, Table 97-563-XCB2006069 (Wage and salary statistics by occupation, NOC-S 2006), income reference year 2005](https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/tbt/Rp-eng.cfm?LANG=E&PID=96285), Statistics Canada
12. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2016, Table 98-400-X2016356 (Occupation by employment income statistics, NOC 2016), income reference year 2015](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/en/catalogue/98-400-X2016356), Statistics Canada
13. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2021, Table 98-10-0586 (Employment income statistics by occupation unit group, NOC 2021), income reference year 2020](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=9810058601), Statistics Canada

### Tool eras

14. [EBSCO Research Starters — "Loewy Pioneers American Industrial Design" (1929 Gestetner commission: clay-shell approach)](https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/history/loewy-pioneers-american-industrial-design), EBSCO / Great Neck Publishing
15. [IDSA — Our Story (Society of Industrial Designers founding 1944, profession history)](https://www.idsa.org/about-idsa/our-story/), Industrial Designers Society of America
16. [Britannica — Henry Dreyfuss: "Designing for People" (1955) and human factors engineering](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Henry-Dreyfuss), Encyclopaedia Britannica
17. [Encyclopedia of Design — Henry Dreyfuss: Pioneering Industrial Design for People and Function](https://encyclopedia.design/2023/06/19/henry-dreyfuss-pioneering-industrial-design-for-people-and-function/), Encyclopedia of Design
18. [Scan2CAD — "How CAD Has Evolved Since 1982: Past, Present and Future" (AutoCAD history, draftsmen displacement)](https://www.scan2cad.com/blog/cad/cad-evolved-since-1982/), Scan2CAD
19. [Shapr3D — "Autodesk and AutoCAD: History of CAD" (1982 launch, minicomputer-to-PC transition)](https://www.shapr3d.com/history-of-cad/autodesk-and-autocad), Shapr3D
20. [Wikipedia — IDEO (founding 1991: merger of David Kelley Design, Moggridge Associates, Matrix Product Design)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IDEO), Wikipedia
21. [Encyclopedia of Design — IDSA Professional Organisation of American Industrial Designers (membership growth to 3,300 by 2000)](https://encyclopedia.design/2023/05/24/idsa-professional-organisation-of-american-industrial-designers/), Encyclopedia of Design
22. [Autodesk — Alias: Class-A surface modeling for industrial design (product overview)](https://www.autodesk.com/products/alias-products/overview), Autodesk
23. [KeyShot Studio — real-time 3D rendering for product design and AI visualization (industrial design, engineering, automotive)](https://www.keyshot.com/keyshot-studio/), Luxion / KeyShot
24. [Autodesk — What is Generative Design? AI-powered topology optimization (load cases, manufacturing constraints, form candidates)](https://www.autodesk.com/solutions/generative-design), Autodesk
25. [Vizcom — AI product design rendering: sketch to photorealistic concept in minutes (Sony and Mercedes-Benz studio adoption)](https://vizcom.com/), Vizcom

### Forecasts and exposure studies

26. [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35, National Employment Matrix: 27-1021 Commercial and industrial designers (2025: 35.4 thousand; 2035: 36.3 thousand; +2.4%)](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=27-1021&ioType=o), Bureau of Labor Statistics
27. [Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), "GPTs are GPTs", occupation-level exposure data occ\_level.csv (O\*NET-SOC 27-1021.00, human-rated β 0.414)](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv), OpenAI
28. [Briggs & Kodnani, "The Potentially Large Effects of Artificial Intelligence on Economic Growth", Goldman Sachs Global Economics Analyst (26 March 2023), Exhibit 5 (US): arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media 26%](https://www.gspublishing.com/content/research/en/reports/2023/03/27/d64e052b-0f6e-45d7-967b-d7be35fabd16.pdf), Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research

### Historical notes

29. [EBSCO Research Starters — "Loewy Pioneers American Industrial Design" (1929 firm founding and Depression-era design commissions)](https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/history/loewy-pioneers-american-industrial-design), EBSCO / Great Neck Publishing
30. [IDSA — Henry Dreyfuss profile (Society of Industrial Designers founding 1944, Dreyfuss as first VP)](https://www.idsa.org/profile/henry-dreyfuss/), Industrial Designers Society of America
31. [Britannica — Henry Dreyfuss: "Designing for People" (1955) and human factors methodology](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Henry-Dreyfuss), Encyclopaedia Britannica
32. [Encyclopedia of Design — IDSA Professional Organisation of American Industrial Designers (1965 founding, membership history)](https://encyclopedia.design/2023/05/24/idsa-professional-organisation-of-american-industrial-designers/), Encyclopedia of Design
33. [Scan2CAD — "How CAD Has Evolved Since 1982" (AutoCAD PC launch, draftsmen displacement in design firms)](https://www.scan2cad.com/blog/cad/cad-evolved-since-1982/), Scan2CAD
34. [Wikipedia — IDEO (founding 1991: merger of David Kelley Design, Moggridge Associates, Matrix Product Design; Apple, Samsung clients)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IDEO), Wikipedia

### Predecessors & successors

35. [EBSCO Research Starters — "Loewy Pioneers American Industrial Design" (Loewy as fashion illustrator, Teague as advertising illustrator)](https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/history/loewy-pioneers-american-industrial-design), EBSCO / Great Neck Publishing
36. [PBS American Experience — "Industrial Designers and Streamliners" (Dreyfuss and Bel Geddes as theater designers)](https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/streamliners-designers/), PBS

### Present-day analysis

- [O\*NET 30.3 — Commercial and Industrial Designers (27-1021.00)](https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/27-1021.00), accessed 2026-05-24
- [BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook — Industrial Designers (2024-25)](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/arts-and-design/industrial-designers.htm), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Core77 — Hardware is the New Salt: AI's Emerging Role in Design and the Creative Process (2025)](https://www.core77.com/posts/139698/Hardware-is-the-New-Salt-AIs-Emerging-Role-in-Design-and-the-Creative-Process), accessed 2026-06-21
- [Dezeen — How AI is Changing Industrial Design (2025)](https://www.dezeen.com/2025/01/how-ai-changing-industrial-design/), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Eloundou et al. 2024 — GPTs are GPTs (Science)](https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.10130), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Goldman Sachs — Generative AI Could Raise Global GDP by 7% (2023)](https://www.goldmansachs.com/insights/articles/generative-ai-could-raise-global-gdp-by-7-percent.html), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Vizcom — AI product design rendering: from sketch to photorealistic concept in minutes (2025)](https://vizcom.com/), accessed 2026-05-24
- [KeyShot Studio — AI denoising and GPU rendering for product design visualization](https://www.keyshot.com/keyshot-studio/), accessed 2026-06-21
- [Autodesk — What Is Generative Design? (2025)](https://www.autodesk.com/solutions/generative-design), accessed 2026-06-21
- [nTopology (nTop) — Generative design for advanced manufacturing (2025)](https://www.ntop.com/), accessed 2026-05-24

How to read these figures: https://futurehistory.earth/methodology. Every figure links to its own source; gaps stay gaps.