To become a web designer you need design theory, a working understanding of how the web is built, a specialization you can be hired for and a portfolio that proves the work.
If you’re mulling over a career in website design, you’re probably wondering where to start. Wix powers beautiful website design with an intuitive drag and drop editor, no-code design features and innovative AI tools. This guide covers what a web designer does, how to become one and what you can expect to earn.
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TL;DR: How to become a web designer
Becoming a web designer means learning design theory, understanding how the web is built underneath the visuals, choosing a specialization and proving all of it with a portfolio. Most working designers get there through a mix of self-paced courses, practice projects and early client work rather than a single degree, and the job now sits alongside AI tools that handle a growing share of layout production.
What you’ll learn
What a web designer actually does day to day
The nine steps that take you from beginner to working designer
The hard and soft skills clients and employers look for
How to build a portfolio that wins work
What web designers earn in the US and what moves that number
What does a web designer do?
Web designers create and maintain websites. They are responsible for developing websites and testing them to make sure they are attractive, responsive and have intuitive user interfaces.
That being said, a web designer’s days aren’t strictly filled with designing. If you work as a freelancer, your day may look like this:
Morning: Create new client contracts.
Morning until midday: Develop a sitemap and wireframe for a client as part of making a website.
Afternoon: Run cross-platform tests on different clients’ websites.
On the other hand, if you work at an agency or organization, your day will consist of web design-specific tasks. Whether you want to be 100% design-focused or enjoy dealing with the management side, you’ll want to choose which type of web designer you want to be, a freelancer or a full-time employee.
Learn more: What is web design?
How to become a web designer in 9 steps
The web design field has evolved over the past decades. In the mid-1990s web designers gave us the first chatrooms and the ability to order pizza online. By the 2000s and the birth of Web 2.0, web design became about content and search engine optimization. UX design moved to the center after that, and the craft now sits alongside AI tools that can produce a working layout in seconds. What that leaves in human hands is judgment, deciding what a site needs to do and whether what lands on the canvas actually does it.
Ella Joel, Web Designer at Wix, sees that shift continuing: “Designing websites today is an exciting evolution powered by AI. From tools that streamline the design process to real-time personalization that adapts to user preferences, websites will feel more tailored than ever. Interactive experiences with AR, 3D visuals and animations will enhance engagement, while a focus on sustainability will drive faster, leaner and more energy-efficient sites, benefiting both users and the planet.”
In effect, web design is more refined. You’ll need to learn web design theory, understand how the web works today, and find the right design tools to become a successful web designer:
01. Study design theory
A web designer uses design theory to make every one of their decisions. For example, designers use color psychology as a framework to create a mood, influence a user’s emotions or elicit certain actions. Today, you can master web design theory without leaving your home.
You’ll find free courses on YouTube, for instance, doing a site search for “web design theory course” will bring you accessible, in-depth tutorials by well-known course creators and thought leaders. If you want a more comprehensive education, take a course at your local college. Top educational institutions also offer high-quality, self-paced online courses and issue certificates which you can use to bolster your web design portfolio and resume.
You can also purchase books on web design theory. While the basics are evergreen, sites like Smashing Magazine regularly publish books by top designers on the latest topics and technologies. Many designers regularly publish blogs, too, on both evergreen and newsier topics.
Tip: Subscribe to the Wix blog to stay up-to-date on everything related to web design trends, theory, principles, resources and more.
02. Get a basic understanding of how web works
While you don’t need to be a skilled coder to build websites today, understanding the technical structure of the web will ensure your designs can be developed into functional web pages. There are three basic languages you should learn:
HTML, which forms the structure of a web page
CSS, which dictates the styling of the web page and all its components
JavaScript, which manipulates HTML and CSS so you can bring a website to life with interactivity
AI has changed what that baseline looks like. Prompt-driven builders can generate a working layout before you touch a line of code, so reading the output and knowing what to adjust now matters more than writing every line yourself. Wix Harmony takes you from a single prompt to a business-ready site for any industry or creative vision, and you can switch to hands-on editing at any point.
Tip: Get complete design freedom and advanced features like innovative transparent videos, custom animations and vector art without having to know code with Wix. Or make your site even more dynamic with custom interactions and functionality with Velo by Wix, our open development platform.
You’ll find plentiful resources on website coding on the same platforms that cover web design theory. There are also a number of platforms dedicated strictly to coding and often include playgrounds, projects and quizzes.
03. Hone more skills for becoming a web designer
Generally, a web designer’s skill set falls into two types: hard skills and soft skills.
Hard skills are the skills you learn to design websites. For example:
Web design theory
UX research
Visual (UI) design
Responsive design
Wireframing
Prototyping
HTML & CSS
A/B testing
Platform-specific tools, templates, plugins, etc.
Soft skills are professional management skills you learn throughout your career. For example:
Communication
Negotiation
Active listening
Empathy
Sales acumen
Project and time management
Client management
Collaboration
Accounting
Which skills you need depends on the role you’re in. For instance, if you work as a freelance designer, you’ll need client management skills. However, if you work for an employer, you’ll benefit more from active listening and collaboration skills.
You’ll also find that many of the resources you use to study web design also offer training on soft skills with exercises to apply them in your day-to-day work.
Learn more about web design tutorials.
04. Create a design toolkit
Adopt a toolkit that enables you to work as efficiently as possible while creating the best results. To find the right web design tools for you, you need to experiment with what’s available.
Tip: Start creating with Wix Studio's advanced design features to experience a seamless process from concept to production with responsive CSS powered by smooth drag & drop.
Tal Ashtar, Graphic Designer at Wix, puts the selection criteria simply: “As a designer, staying efficient and adaptable is a must. That’s why finding the best website builders for designers can be a total game-changer. Go for platforms that make collaboration easy, provide design tools that feel like an extension of your creativity and make client handoffs smooth and hassle-free.”
In addition to filling your toolkit with web design tools, you’ll also want to add other tools that help you create websites. Consider your workflow and the tools that’ll streamline those tasks.
For instance:
UX research
User personas
Sitemaps
Wireframing
Prototyping
Testing
Start by trying out the best UI and UX design software and add what you like to your day-to-day toolkit. Don’t forget about tools to enhance your soft skills. For example, business software can streamline both your administrative tasks and client interactions.
05. Carve out a specific career path
While you don’t need to set anything in stone right away, it’s much easier to find clients and charge higher rates with a specialization. Here are four common web design career paths:
Graphic designers focus on the branding and marketing side of web design, designing logos, creating marketing materials and developing style guides or design systems with other design teams across an organization.
UX designers use information gleaned from user research and testing to develop user persona profiles, map out user journeys, wireframe optimized layouts, design visual interfaces and create working prototypes for websites and apps.
Interaction designers research and learn how users engage with websites to create helpful and pleasing interactive experiences on a website.
Hybrid front-end engineers tend to work on more complex website projects that require custom design and coding. They’re able to take a concept, translate it into a visual design, usually with design software, and then bring it to life through programming.
The other way to specialize is by choosing a niche. For instance, you can narrow down by:
Industry
B2B vs. B2C
Enterprise vs. small business
Design platform
Website type (e.g., business vs. eCommerce)
This is something that will develop over time and it may even change, too. Usually, web designers find their niche at the crossroads between what they’re good at, what they enjoy and where there’s a lot of demand.
06. Create your portfolio website
When you start applying to jobs, employers and clients want to see your demonstrated capabilities. Because you’re a web designer, your body of work shouldn’t consist of an e-mailed list of links or a third-party where you have to compete for attention. Create a portfolio website to easily allow potential employers to assess your skill level and gauge how well your style and approach aligns with their business needs.
Doreen Weissfelner, Head of Wix Home & Wixel Slides at Wix, frames it as a narrative choice: “Your portfolio is your chance to direct the narrative. Decide what story you want to tell and build everything else around that.” She adds that a portfolio “should answer the question, ‘What can this person do?’ without making anyone dig for the answer.”
Your own portfolio website will help:
Show off your work in the best light (i.e. not using a predetermined format from another platform.)
Include a broad sampling of your website designs and organize them based on type, industry, etc.
Give prospects an introduction to who you are, your design training and qualifications, as well as how you like to work.
Impress visitors with the design of your own website and give them a preview of the kinds of features you can create for them.
Optimize your site and portfolio for search engines so that people looking to hire a web designer can find you.
Learn how to make a website that highlights your unique skills and captivates potential clients today.
07. Apply to web design jobs
Before you start applying, come up with a list of criteria you care about. This will help you choose the right platforms and to narrow down how many gigs or positions you apply to. For example:
Remote or on site
Local company or global
Entry-level, mid-level or senior role
Contract or permanent employment
Agency or in-house
Part-time or full-time
You may also want to narrow down your search based on the type of design software, work hours, job responsibilities and so on.
Tip: If you prefer to go the freelance route, try Wix Marketplace, where you can show off your best work and match with qualified leads looking for a professional designer just like you.
08. Network
You never know what opportunities you’ll discover when you network. You might meet prospective clients to keep your skills razor-sharp, find creative partners to collaborate with, or simply a group of designers to commiserate with. Look within your local community for groups of designers or find and join web design groups online.
Tip: Host a community meetup or workshop with Wix Partners and share your knowledge and expertise with others around the world.
For instance, you might find a Facebook group dedicated to your favorite website design software. Discussions would focus around troubleshooting errors, improving your process and learning new strategies. There are also web design industry groups focused on gathering to share stories, communicate about clients and trade information about open gigs.
If you want to hone your design skills while meeting others, a conference or webinar is another effective way to network. Look for in-person and online events to learn about new design trends, get more from your existing tools and hone your skills.
09. Create content
Last but not least, you’ll need to do some marketing. Aside from your website, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn also offer you a place to:
Comment on the latest web design trends, practices and news.
Build an audience around your web design “brand” and establish yourself as an authority.
Get in front of prospective clients or employers.
Grow your following and expand your network.
Just a few minutes every day sharing content and lightly engaging with others on social media will inevitably pay off. And you can link all your social media accounts on your website.
Web designers working with AI tools or custom code can differentiate their services with Wix Headless. It supports staging previews for client approval before publishing and hands off a clean dashboard clients can use to manage their own content after delivery, with no plugins to manage or servers to patch.
Learn more about Wix Headless:
The average web designer salary
Now that you know how to become a web designer, let’s briefly talk about earnings. Employment of web developers and digital designers is projected to grow 5 percent from 2025 to 2035, faster than the average for all occupations, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. What you actually earn inside that market depends on the same factors that shape your responsibilities and career path.
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported these median annual wages for May 2025.
$104,000 for web and digital interface designers
$92,650 for web developers
$50,980 across all occupations
The spread across a career is wide. The lowest paid 10 percent of web and digital interface designers earned less than $53,750, while the highest paid 10 percent earned more than $201,550. Industry moves the number too. Median pay reached $133,260 in finance and insurance and $130,140 in information, against $87,640 in wholesale trade.
Keep in mind that these are not guarantees of earnings. These are national medians, so the range around them is wide. Some designers build and manage enterprise websites for large companies while others make their living designing small business websites. Your level of expertise, niche, location and employment type will all affect what you earn.
How to become a web designer FAQ
Do you need a degree to become a web designer?
No, a degree is not required to become a web designer. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics puts typical education for web developers and digital designers anywhere from a high school diploma to a bachelor’s degree, and notes that candidates may not need specific credentials if they can demonstrate their abilities through prior work or projects. Some employers still prefer a degree in web design, digital design or graphic arts. In practice a portfolio carries more weight than a diploma.
Do web designers need to know how to code?
Web designers need working knowledge of HTML, CSS and JavaScript, but not a developer’s fluency. HTML gives a page its structure, CSS controls how it looks and JavaScript adds interactivity. Understanding all three is what makes a design buildable. Many designers work on platforms that handle the code and reach for custom code only when a project calls for it.
What is the difference between a web designer and a web developer?
A web developer builds the technical side of a website while a web designer shapes how it looks and how visitors move through it. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics tracks them as separate occupations. Web developers are responsible for a site’s construction, performance and traffic capacity. Web and digital interface designers are responsible for photos, color, typography and layout, along with usability and compatibility. Many professionals do both.
Is web design still a good career now that AI can build sites?
Web design is still a growing occupation, with employment of web developers and digital designers projected to grow 5 percent from 2025 to 2035, faster than the 3 percent average across all occupations, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. That works out to about 13,600 openings a year. BLS also expects better tools and wider AI use to soften that growth, which pushes the value of the role toward research, judgment and client work rather than layout production.
How do you get your first web design client with no experience?
You get a first web design client by building a portfolio before you have paid work, then putting it where clients are already looking. Practice projects, redesigns of sites you use and discounted work for a local business all count as samples. Wix makes portfolio website creation easy, so the portfolio site itself doubles as proof of what you can build. Most first clients arrive through a referral rather than a cold application.
