Visuals make boring text and lengthy books more digestible. Print designers work their magic in the physical publication department, whereas in the digital realm, it’s web designers who create the websites we encounter on the internet.

Although the two jobs may seem similar on the outside, they work differently and have different goals.

Print designers and web designers have different skills, expertise, and tools. They both create designs that are functional and visually appealing, but the delivery of these designs is what separates the two.

Want to find out more about how print designers and web designers differ? Whether you’re thinking about a future career or are just curious, you’ll learn the main differences in this article.

What is Print Design?

Print designs are the images and designs you see on brochures, flyers, posters, advertisements, and magazines.

Creating high-quality and visually engaging content, print designers know all the processes and requirements necessary for high quality printing. Adapting the functionality of a design for a more appealing and pleasing result is just one of their skills.

Role of Print Designer

A print designer’s role is to design visuals that will then be printed alongside text. They customise designs based on the client’s branding, the style of the article and topic at hand. Sometimes they’re also asked to decide what fonts, colour schemes, and typographies would best suit the layout of the design.

Print designers must make sure that the final design is printed with a clear resolution and on the right paper type, to avoid the ink bleeding. Designers with print experience typically use Adobe InDesign, Illustrator, and Photoshop to create their designs.

What is Web Design?

Web designers are in charge of the user interface of websites and applications.

The role of a web designer is to create a user-friendly and fast website that’s easy to navigate and looks appealing to the user. Web designers must ensure their designs are accessible and adaptable on all devices and screens.

Role of Web Designer

A web designer creates the layout and looks at the UX (user experience) of a website. They don’t just work with aesthetics alone; they take responsibility for ensuring the design is responsive and compatible with multiple browsers, often collaborating with web developers to implement the design.

Web designers normally use tools like Adobe XD, Sketch, Figma, and sometimes HTML/CSS to create the designs themselves.

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Differences Between a Print Designer and a Web Designer

The key differences between a print designer and a web designer are:

Qualifications

Print designers are masters of traditional graphic design, with a stronghold on the print processes. Web designers usually have a broader understanding of digital media, understanding coding, user interface (UI), and user experience (UX) principles to some degree.

Print designers might heavily concentrate on the artistic aspect of design, while web designers need to have a keen eye for design along with technical knowledge to build easy and impactful websites.

Roles and Responsibilities

Print designers create product designs that have a visual impact on physical products. For them, it's all about layout, typography, colour, and making designs that are print-ready.

Web designers work with web interfaces and aim to create a responsive design that provides an optimal user experience across devices. Typically, they help to make sure the site is interactive and that it works, while also optimising the site's performance.

Technical Skills

Print designers need to know how to use digital tools and software for print and production. Web designers require a more enhanced understanding of specific web development tools and software like HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, particularly in responsive website design practice.

While print designers may need to learn how to use digital tools to produce print files for production, they’re primarily visual designers.

Design Process

Printing is a design process, so it deals with printers and other suppliers to create a final high-quality, visually appealing product.

The process is more interactive for web designers as they’ll iterate testing to make sure the website displays properly on many different browsers and devices.

Which One Should You Pick?

The skills and qualifications required for print and web design are similar, but the roles have different approaches and require different technical understanding.

Print designers create a visually impactful design that’s produced physically, while web design strives to achieve maximum UX and UI functions of digital interfaces. The role that’s right for you depends on your skills and interests.

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