Design Lead Jobs in New York
Design Lead jobs in New York are among the most active in the country, with strong demand concentrated in technology, consumer products, financial services, and media, at levels from mid-career individual contributor through senior director. The heaviest hiring is in New York City, with additional openings in Brooklyn's tech corridor and White Plains. Employers with a lasting presence here include Google, Verizon, and Estée Lauder Companies. The most sought-after specialties are product design leadership, brand and visual systems, and UX strategy. Find a role that fits below and apply directly.
Find Design Lead JobsOverview
Showing 5 of 35+ Design Lead jobs









Capital One’s Experience Design (XD) organization is focused on co-creating memorable, meaningful customer and associate experiences that build our brand with humanity and drive business advantage. As the User Intelligence Research Lead for your product areas, you will be responsible for accelerating learning velocity by supporting a structured, systems-oriented human intelligence system.
You will execute the Research organization’s vision: shifting from discrete, episodic UX studies to structured, connected research efforts to build cumulative user intelligence. You will plan and conduct research studies, utilize AI agents/skills, and enable human access platforms to support discovery, rapid testing, and assessment of user experiences. This is a high-level individual contributor role that requires a mastery of project leadership, technical fluency, business acumen, and the ability to produce actionable insights and encourage activation to ensure the development of useful and usable experiences.
Responsibilities:
Build Cumulative User Intelligence: Plan and conduct connected studies and establish data acquisition mechanisms that contribute to a collective body of user intelligence that fuels product teams’ ongoing planning and decision-making.
Provide rapid testing within the product development lifecycle: Utilize and evolve research agents and research platforms to accelerate learning velocity: extracting insights from existing intelligence repositories, conducting rapid discovery, concept, content, and usability testing.
Support Continuous Discovery: Partner with research ops to enable product teams to access their users to maximize empathy and understanding.
Support UX Measurement: Partner with CX, data scientists, analysts, and designers to identify domain-specific UX metrics. Assist in developing mechanisms to collect/measure UX metrics, conduct analysis using UX and other metrics to identify critical correlations between user behavior and business success.
Conduct Data Triangulation & Synthesis: Utilize behavioral analytics, quantitative data, and qualitative insights to produce actionable insights.
Leadership Competencies
Results Focus: Works independently to achieve business-critical outcomes; takes full ownership of the intelligence research learning agenda and decision-making.
Influence: Acts as a subject matter expert to inspire teams to adopt research methodologies and activate insights.
Collaboration: Builds productive partnerships with Analysts, Design, Product, and Engineering; seeks out diverse data sources to ensure a holistic view of the customer.
Communication: Translates complex data and behavioral findings into compelling narratives for senior stakeholders; ensures clarity in two-way dialogue across functions.
Basic Qualifications:
At least 3 years of professional experience in User Experience Research, Data Science, or Customer Experience Research
At least 3 years of experience aggregating, collecting, and analyzing quantitative and qualitative data
At least 2 years of experience leading complex, multi-stakeholder projects or research programs
Preferred Qualifications:
4+ years of experience in User Intelligence, Human Factors, or behavioral data analysis.
Experience conducting structured, quantitative jobs to be done studies
Experience building automated research workflows
Proven track record of triangulating multiple data sources (behavioral analytics, survey data, and primary research) to inform product roadmaps.
Advanced degree in Human Factors, HCI, Statistics, Data Science, and/or Behavioral Economics.
At this time, Capital One will not sponsor a new applicant for employment authorization for this position.
The minimum and maximum full-time annual salaries for this role are listed below, by location. Please note that this salary information is solely for candidates hired to perform work within one of these locations, and refers to the amount Capital One is willing to pay at the time of this posting. Salaries for part-time roles will be prorated based upon the agreed upon number of hours to be regularly worked.
McLean, VA: $164,800 - $188,100 for Manager, DesignNew York, NY: $179,700 - $205,100 for Manager, Design
Richmond, VA: $149,800 - $171,000 for Manager, Design
Candidates hired to work in other locations will be subject to the pay range associated with that location, and the actual annualized salary amount offered to any candidate at the time of hire will be reflected solely in the candidate’s offer letter.
Capital One offers a comprehensive, competitive, and inclusive set of health, financial and other benefits that support your total well-being. Learn more at the Capital One Careers website. Eligibility varies based on full or part-time status, exempt or non-exempt status, and management level.
This role is expected to accept applications for a minimum of 5 business days. No agencies please. Capital One is an equal opportunity employer (EOE, including disability/vet) committed to non-discrimination in compliance with applicable federal, state, and local laws. Capital One promotes a drug-free workplace. Capital One will consider for employment qualified applicants with a criminal history in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable laws regarding criminal background inquiries, including, to the extent applicable, Article 23-A of the New York Correction Law; San Francisco, California Police Code Article 49, Sections 4901-4920; New York City’s Fair Chance Act; Philadelphia’s Fair Criminal Records Screening Act; and other applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations regarding criminal background inquiries.If you have visited our website in search of information on employment opportunities or to apply for a position, and you require an accommodation, please contact Capital One Recruiting at 1-800-304-9102 or via email at RecruitingAccommodation@capitalone.com. All information you provide will be kept confidential and will be used only to the extent required to provide needed reasonable accommodations.
For technical support or questions about Capital One's recruiting process, please send an email to Careers@capitalone.com
Capital One does not provide, endorse nor guarantee and is not liable for third-party products, services, educational tools or other information available through this site.
Capital One Financial is made up of several different entities. Please note that any position posted in Canada is for Capital One Canada, any position posted in the United Kingdom is for Capital One Europe and any position posted in the Philippines is for Capital One Philippines Service Corp. (COPSSC).
See All 35 Design Lead Jobs in New York
Find roles in New York that match your experience and apply in just a few clicks.
Find Design Lead JobsDesign Lead Jobs by City in New York
Where New York roles are concentrated, by current openings.
Design Lead Job Market in New York
A snapshot from current New York openings, updated as new roles post.
Who's Hiring



Top Industries Hiring
- Consulting & Professional Services
- Technology & Software
- Energy
- Manufacturing
- Science & Research
What New York Employers Look For
The qualifications that appear most often in design lead jobs across New York.
- Bachelor's or master's degree in design, human-computer interaction, or a related field
- Five or more years of design experience with at least two years leading a team
- Strong portfolio demonstrating shipped products or brand systems at scale
- Proficiency in Figma, Sketch, or equivalent design and prototyping tools
- Experience collaborating cross-functionally with product, engineering, and marketing teams
- Excellent communication skills for presenting design rationale to senior stakeholders
Design Lead Jobs in New York: Frequently Asked Questions
How do you become a design lead in New York?
Design lead is not a licensed or state-regulated role in New York, so the path runs through experience and portfolio rather than a credentialing board. Most employers in New York expect a degree in a design discipline, several years of hands-on design work, and a demonstrable record of mentoring designers or owning a product area end to end. Building experience at New York agencies, in-house teams, or startups is the most common route to a leadership title.
How much do design leads make in New York?
Design leads in New York earn a median of about $137,320 a year, based on May 2025 Bureau of Labor Statistics wage data, ranging from around $80,060 for the lowest 10% to over $280,320 for the top 10%. Pay rises with experience, specialty, and employer.
Which companies hire design leads in New York?
Employers hiring design leads in New York right now include WSP, BNY, and Ryder System, based on current listings on Migrate Mate as of August 2026. New York's concentration of technology firms, financial institutions, and consumer brands means design lead roles appear across a wide range of industries and company sizes.
Which New York cities have the most design lead jobs?
New York, Albany, and Buffalo have the most design lead openings in New York. Manhattan dominates because of its dense cluster of technology companies, media groups, and corporate headquarters, while Brooklyn and any suburban markets on the list reflect employer campuses or remote-tolerant postings from companies headquartered in the city.
Are there remote design lead jobs in New York?
Yes, and more than most fields. About 62% of design lead openings tied to New York are remote or hybrid as of August 2026, reflecting the screen-based and collaborative-tools nature of the work. Strategic and systems-focused design lead roles tend to be the most remote-friendly, while positions that require close collaboration with physical product or retail teams are more likely to require in-office presence.
How can I get hired as a design lead in New York with little or no experience?
The most realistic entry path is moving into a lead role from a senior individual contributor position at a New York company, rather than applying for lead titles directly. Large New York employers in tech and consumer goods often post associate product designer or senior designer roles that include informal mentorship responsibilities, which builds the credentials needed to step into a lead title. A strong portfolio focused on systems thinking, user research, and cross-functional projects gives candidates the clearest edge in this market.
Where can I find and apply to design lead jobs in New York?
You can find and apply to design lead jobs in New York on Migrate Mate, which lists current openings from employers hiring in the state right now. Find roles that fit your experience and specialty, then apply directly through each listing.
See All 35 Design Lead Jobs in New York
Find roles in New York that match your experience and apply in just a few clicks.
Find Design Lead Jobs