Mid-Level

E-Learning Designer

Designing online learning experiences that work without an instructor in the room, you structure content, build interactivity, and produce the media that lets people learn at their own pace. The craft of teaching translated into pixels and audio.

Career Level
Junior
Mid
Senior
Director
VP
Executive
Work Personality
S
C
I
E
A
R
Socialhelping, teaching
Conventionalorganizing, detail-oriented
Based on Holland Code framework
Job markets for E-Learning Designers
Employment concentration · ~388 areas
Based on employment in related occupations
Mapped SOC categories:
BLS Occupational Employment Statistics
What it's like

What it's like to be a E-Learning Designer

A typical week often involves storyboarding, building in an authoring tool, and producing media — drafting outlines in Word, building modules in Articulate Storyline or Rise, recording voiceover, editing video. You're often balancing instructional design rigor with the production speed your stakeholders expect. Course launches and completion metrics are the visible outputs.

The harder part is often the volume of small craft decisions — pacing, button placement, when to use a knowledge check, how to script narration that doesn't sound robotic. Variance across employers is wide: corporate L&D shops favor compliance modules and LMS-friendly SCORM; ed-tech and higher-ed favor richer, longer learning arcs.

People who tend to thrive here are part teacher, part producer, part developer — comfortable in tools but grounded in learning theory. Certifications (ATD CPTD, Articulate communities) anchor credibility. The trade-off is the isolation of production work and the constant push to produce courses faster than the craft would prefer.

RelationshipsHigh
AchievementAbove avg
IndependenceAbove avg
Working ConditionsModerate
RecognitionModerate
SupportModerate
O*NET Work Values survey
✦ Editorial — written by Truest from industry research and career patterns
Career Paths

Where this role sits in the broader career landscape — and where it can take you.

$239K$179K$119K$60K$0KLower paying387 metro areas, sorted by salary level
All experience levels1
This level's estimated range
INDUSTRIES PAYING ABOVE AVERAGE
1 BLS OEWS May 2024 covers all E-Learning Designers (SOC 13-1151.00), not just this title · BEA RPP 2023
* Top salaries exceed this figure. BLS caps reported wages at ~$240K to protect individual privacy in high-earning roles.
Exploring the E-Learning Designer career path? Truest helps you figure out if it's the right fit — and plan your path forward.
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✦ Editorial — career progression and interview guidance based on industry patterns
The Broader Landscape

Roles like this one sit within a broader occupational category. The numbers below reflect that full landscape — helpful for context, but your specific experience will depend on level, specialty, and where you work.

$38K–$120K
Salary Range
10th – 90th percentile
437K
U.S. Employment
+10.8%
10yr Growth
44K
Annual Openings

How this category is changing

$74K$71K$68K$65K$62K201920202021202220232024$62K$74K
BLS OEWS May 2024 · BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034

Skills & Requirements

SpeakingInstructingLearning StrategiesActive ListeningSocial PerceptivenessCritical ThinkingJudgment and Decision MakingReading ComprehensionWritingActive Learning
O*NET OnLine · Bureau of Labor Statistics
13-1151.00

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Federal data: BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics (May 2024) · BLS Employment Projections · O*NET OnLine
Truest editorial: Fit check, role profile, things that vary, advancement analysis, lateral moves, interview questions.