Skills
Select one or more knowledge areas or skills to find related occupations.
0 skills selected
Overview
Illustrators create visual material that explains, supports or extends a text, idea, publication, comic, journal or book project.
In job descriptions, look for drawing style, briefs, storyboards, character or scene work, layout cooperation, colour choices, revisions, publication format and whether the work is editorial, medical, children’s book or comic illustration.
Explore this occupation
Search jobsWork context
Illustrators turn text, ideas or briefs into images for books, magazines, comics, journals and other publications. The work often includes sketches, composition, style choices, revisions and close cooperation with authors, editors, designers or art directors.
Skills and specializations
Important skills include drawing, visual storytelling, interpreting a brief, preparing publication-ready artwork and adapting style to audience and format. Specialisations can include children’s books, comic art, editorial illustration, medical illustration, storyboards or courtroom sketching.
Salary context
Salary context depends on assignment type, usage rights, deadline pressure, number of illustrations, revision rounds, specialist subject matter and whether the role is freelance, studio-based or employed by a publisher. Compare briefs by deliverables and rights, not only by title.
Career paths
Career paths may move from junior illustration or design support into specialist illustration, art direction, comics, publishing design, concept art or independent commissions. A strong portfolio and reliable revision process often matter more than one fixed route.
Good to know
Check whether vacancies specify style, subject matter, audience, formats, rights, deadlines and feedback process. Illustration roles vary sharply between quick editorial images, detailed educational visuals and long book or comic projects.
Editorial note
This guide gives editorial career context for illustrator work. It is not official labour-market statistics or salary data.
Where might this occupation occur?
This occupation may occur in several kinds of economic activity. Here are some examples and other occupations that may be found in the same areas.
Publishing of books, newspapers and other publishing activities, except software publishing
This is one example. Another occupation in this activity is desktop publisher.
Explore this activityVisual arts creation activities
This occupation may also occur in this activity. Other occupations there include digital artist, special effects artist and stop-motion animator.
Explore this activityThese examples offer an overview but do not show every economic activity where the occupation may occur.
About this information
The selection is based on how occupations are connected to economic activities in ESCO and NACE. Only a few examples are shown to make the information easier to use. The occupations were selected because they are close in occupation area and important skills. The examples are not a ranking. They do not show where most people work, where demand is highest, or which occupation is best suited to a particular person.
Map overview
Click the map to search for illustrator jobs.
— Jobs total — Countries with jobs
O*NET relationships
See occupations connected to this ESCO occupation in the official O*NET–ESCO mapping. The relationship type comes from the source and is not a ranking or recommendation.
O*NET relationships: 2
Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators
27-1013.00
O*NET occupation is broader
The O*NET occupation covers a broader field of work than this ESCO occupation.
Open in O*NETGraphic Designers
27-1024.00
Close relationship
The occupations are closely related, but the official mapping does not treat them as exact equivalents.
Open in O*NETSource and method
These relationships come from the official European Commission O*NET–ESCO crosswalk.
Relationship direction: O*NET occupation to ESCO occupation.
Several O*NET occupations can point to the same ESCO occupation, and one O*NET occupation can point to several ESCO occupations.
AltoTrail preserves the source relationship type. The order is technical and does not show which occupation is best, most relevant or recommended.
AltoTrail validates and presents the source relationships without adding ranking or recommendation semantics.
NACE Rev. 2.1
Economic activities linked to this occupation.
58.1Publishing of books, newspapers and other publishing activities, except software publishing90.12Visual arts creation activities
Alternative labels
Occupation group
Graphic and multimedia designers (2166)
Source facts
| ESCO URI | http://data.europa.eu/esco/occupation/1b949bae-882f-40ff-9fe7-3c8ede5e38b5 |
|---|---|
| ESCO code | 2166.10 |
| ISCO group | 2166 |
| Concept type | Occupation |