Choosing the right design partner these days can really leave you in a pickle.
With so many options, including freelancers, in-house teams, agencies, and now creative subscription services, it’s hard to know which one will actually deliver what you need.
If you’ve been looking into design services, you’ve probably seen Design Pickle and Designity pop up more than once.
They might seem similar at first glance, but they’re actually pretty different once you dig in.
So, how thorough are their vetting processes for creatives?
Which one offers better value for your money?
And most importantly, which platform delivers higher-quality services?
Let’s break it all down so you can find the right creative partner for your brand.
What Is Design Pickle?
Design Pickle started in 2015 in Scottsdale, Arizona, with a simple idea: make great design easy and affordable for everyone.
Instead of dealing with freelancers or hiring in-house, you pay a flat monthly fee for a set number of daily creative hours.
From graphic design to illustrations, their team handles it all through an easy platform that keeps things moving pretty quickly.
They’ve worked with top brands like Amazon, Sprout Social, Yahoo, and more.
What Is Designity?
Designity, based in New York, is a Creative-as-a-Service platform that offers brands a smarter, more flexible alternative to traditional agencies.
With Designity, you get on-demand access to the top 3% of US-based creatives specializing in branding, web design, UX/UI, development, and more.
We offer transparent month-to-month plans that you can scale and customize based on exactly what you need, when you need it.
Every project is guided by a seasoned Creative Director, your main point of contact, who brings over a decade of experience to ensure consistency and smooth execution.
Trusted by leading brands like Marriott, Calendly, and Kung Fu Tea, Designity helps teams of all sizes scale their creative output effortlessly.
A Comparison at First Glance: Design Pickle vs Designity
Although these two companies might seem alike at first glance, they differ in what they provide, how they work, and how they collaborate with clients.
Here’s a quick side-by-side look before we dig into the details:
Now, let’s take a closer look at how these two creative platforms differ in terms of:
- Quality of Service
- Range of Services
- Creative Director Supervision
- Location of Creatives
- Creatives Vetting Process
- Level of Communication
- Project Requests and Revisions
- Client Onboarding Process
- Billing Cadence, Pricing, and Trial Period
1. Quality of Service
When you’re evaluating creative service partners, the clearest insight comes from the people who’ve already worked with them.
Here’s how each company stacks up in terms of quality, consistency, and overall client satisfaction:
A. Design Pickle
Design Pickle sits at a 3.9/5 rating on Trustpilot, which lands them in the meh category.
A rating like this suggests clients have had mixed experiences, with some happy results here and there, but also enough issues or inconsistencies to pull the score down.
It’s a bit like picking a 3.9-rated coffee shop: sure, you’ll get a cup of coffee… but there’s a good chance it’ll be lukewarm, bland, and leave you wishing you’d gone somewhere that actually knows what it’s doing.
When you're investing in a creative partner that represents your brand, mixed reviews is definitely a risky bet…
B. Designity
Designity comes in with an astounding 4.9/5 Trustpilot rating, and honestly, that number speaks louder than any marketing copy ever could.
Our clients consistently highlight the caliber of our work, the ease of collaborating with our US based Creative Directors, and the kind of proactive support that makes the whole process feel effortless.
A near-perfect score doesn’t happen by chance!
It’s earned through reliable communication, fast turnarounds, and creative output that not only meets expectations, but regularly surpasses them.
2. Range of Services
Let’s start by looking at what each platform actually offers, and how their services stack up:
A. Design Pickle
Design Pickle handles a wide range of creative work, from logos and social media graphics to illustrations and presentation decks, helping businesses keep their visuals fresh and professional.
Their focus is on execution rather than strategy, meaning you come with the ideas, and their designers bring them to life. (Whole lotta coloring in, not a lotta brainpower).
P.S. For brands looking for deeper creative direction or brand identity development, Design Pickle also runs PCKL, a premium studio that offers more strategic, high-end design support.
B. Designity
With over 100 creative and marketing services included in every plan, we handle everything from social media ads and UX/UI design to web development, SEO, video production, content, and even packaging.
It’s perfect for teams that want both strategy and execution without the headache of managing different vendors.
Your dedicated Creative Director keeps everything on track and on brand, and if you ever need to ramp things up, you can easily add more creatives to your plan.
So if you’re looking for an all-in-one solution that offers built-in strategy and execution… let’s just say there’s a pretty clear winner here.
3. Creative Director Supervision
Creative Director (CD) guidance helps keep projects consistent, on-brand, and heading in the right direction.
Here’s how Design Pickle and Designity approach Creative Director support:
A. Design Pickle
So, Design Pickle does offer Art Directors, but they’re not as hands-on as a dedicated Creative Director. Let’s break it down.
With Design Pickle’s Creative Services plan, you’re matched with a team of regular designers who take care of your everyday creative needs, from social media graphics and presentations to brand assets.
However, this plan is focused entirely on design production, not strategy or creative direction.
If you want an expert to guide and manage the creative process more closely, you’ll need to add Professional Services to whatever plan you are on. This brings on a Production Coordinator and Art Director.
Your Art Director will:
- Provide creative guidance to your design team
- Maintain brand consistency across all design assets
- Improve your creative strategy while staying on brand
But hold your horses.
To get access to these experts, you’ll need to add another $2,399 a month (monthly billing) to the bill. Ouch.
B. Designity
Unlike Design Pickle, every Designity client (regardless of the plan they’re on) gets their own dedicated Creative Director.
And this isn’t just someone ticking boxes or managing timelines.
Your Creative Director acts as your strategic partner. They shape ideas, refine your creative vision, and keep projects running smoothly through weekly check-ins and ongoing collaboration.
Behind the scenes, they handle all the coordination, sourcing, managing, and briefing your creative team so you never have to chase freelancers or juggle tasks yourself.
Each Creative Director brings 10+ years of experience, and our team hand-matches you with the right one in about 72 hours.
Backed by expert specialists and project managers, this setup delivers the leadership and teamwork many Design Pickle competitors simply can’t match.
4. Location of Creatives
The talent behind the work makes all the difference. Here’s how each platform assembles and manages its creative team:
A. Design Pickle
At Design Pickle, the creative work is done by a global team of designers.
Even though their talent is spread out across the world, everyone still works US business hours, which helps keep communication straightforward and turnaround times predictable.
Their creatives follow a pretty structured set of systems and processes. It helps them learn a brand quickly, though the work can sometimes feel a bit standardized because of it.
And on the tech side, they use a fully licensed, commercial-safe setup, so the designs you get are compliant and risk-free.
B. Designity
Designity’s entire creative network, including its Creative Directors, is fully US-based, spanning all major time zones.
That’s by design.
Working with local creatives means you’re working within similar business hours, making feedback cycles faster, weekly video calls simpler, and last-minute changes easier to manage.
A few extra perks:
- No timezone juggling: real-time collaboration with fewer delays.
- Better cultural alignment: teams understand US market trends, seasons, and standards.
- Built-in security: US-based contracts, NDAs, and data compliance.
- Full-day coverage: East to West time zones keep projects moving nonstop.
5. Creatives Vetting Process
Here’s a look at how each platform sources, vets, and selects the creative talent that will bring your projects to life:
A. Design Pickle
Design Pickle keeps its creative hiring process well… pretty quick.
Designers apply based on their location and open roles in that region, then complete a video interview to assess communication skills and culture fit.
Next comes an unpaid test project, which evaluates their design ability, creativity, and attention to detail.
Those who pass are added to Design Pickle’s global creative pool and can begin working on client projects.
B. Designity
Designity’s vetting process is designed to handpick the top 3% of US-based creative talent through a detailed, multi-step evaluation.
Here’s how it works:
- Multi-step screening: Applicants go through an initial review, a Q&A video interview, and a live (paid) creative challenge to test their skills, originality, and communication.
- Selective intake: Out of more than 1,000 applicants each week, only about 3% are accepted.
- Performance ranking: Creatives are categorized as emerging, senior, or pro — and their level can change based on ongoing performance and client feedback.
- Continuous growth: Regular workshops, training, and creative challenges help keep standards high and skills sharp.
So if you don’t just want a creative team and instead want the creative team that beat out 997 other people to earn their spot, Designity’s definitely the right choice.
6. Level of Communication
Clear communication can make or break a creative partnership. Here’s how each platform keeps projects moving smoothly and clients in the loop:
A. Design Pickle
Design Pickle takes a tech-first approach to communication.
Everything runs through their platform or Slack integrations (available on higher-tier plans).
You won’t typically meet with your designers directly; instead, feedback and revisions happen asynchronously… cue the cricket noises.
Once again, you can add Professional Services ($2,399 per month) to your plan to work with a Production Coordinator who will bring a bit more structure to the design process. They will:
- Share regular reports
- Manage your project requests and deadlines
- Handle communication between you and your design team
B. Designity
At Designity, our mic is always on.
Every plan includes weekly video calls with your Creative Director and monthly consultation hours (starting at 4 hours/month) that can be used for strategy sessions, brainstorming, or check-ins.
You’ll also receive video updates via Loom and detailed progress reports, so you always know where things stand.
For extra collaboration, you can add:
- In-Person Meetings ($995 one-time): Bring your Creative Director on-site.
- Meeting Representation ($195 one-time): Have your Creative Director join client or stakeholder calls.
- Extra Consultation Hours ($195 one-time): Add more strategy or creative guidance.
7. Project Requests & Revisions
How easy is it to submit project requests and get revisions without the back-and-forth chaos?
Let’s break it down:
A. Design Pickle
To submit a project, you’ll need to log into their platform, fill out a guided request form, upload your assets, and submit.
Once your project’s in the system, it’s automatically assigned to a designer based on availability and skill match, rather than a handpicked creative team.
Essentially, you’re assigned to the next available designer, which is great for speed… but less great if you were hoping for an actual creative fit.
You can track progress, give feedback, and request unlimited revisions directly through the platform.
But here’s the kicker:
The number of revisions you can request is limited by the set number of daily creative hours included in your plan.
B. Designity
Submitting a project with Designity is simple and structured.
Just hop into the Designity Client Portal, share your goals, references, and any creative direction.
From there, your Creative Director steps in, matching your project with the perfect US-based creatives based on skill, style, and experience.
So, yeah, we don’t just “auto assign” Creatives to your projects; we keep things intentional.
You’ll stay in the loop with Miro boards, Loom video updates, and weekly check-ins, so progress is always transparent.
The best part?
Every plan really includes unlimited project requests and revisions, and thanks to AI-enhanced workflows, revision time is cut by up to 60%.
8. Client Onboarding Process
Let’s talk about first impressions, because how each platform onboards you can set the tone for your entire creative partnership:
A. Design Pickle
Here’s a quick rundown of Design Pickle’s onboarding process:
After a short demo call to walk you through how the platform works, you’ll get access to your dashboard and can start submitting design requests right away.
If you were expecting something a bit more detailed… well, you’re fresh outta luck.
But on the bright side, they do offer some onboarding videos and guides that explain everything from submitting briefs to managing revisions.
So, it’s basically a self-serve setup, which is great for teams who want to get moving quickly or enjoy figuring things out for themselves…
B. Designity
Designity’s onboarding process is way more hands-on and designed to set you up for success from day one.
It starts with a demo call where a sales executive walks you through the platform, explains how projects flow from idea to final delivery, and helps you clarify your goals.
From there, you’ll be matched with a Creative Director within 72 hours, carefully selected based on your industry, project needs, personality, and time zone.
Your creative director then leads onboarding, guiding you through setup and kicking off your first project seamlessly.
9. Billing Cadence, Pricing, and Trial Period
Now, let’s talk numbers and trial periods:
A. Design Pickle
While Design Pickle does offer monthly, quarterly, and annual billing options, its pricing structure can be super confusing to understand.
Let's take a look:
The Base Platform Fee starts at $119/month (monthly billing cycle), giving you access to the creative hub, project request tools, and integrations. (This isn’t optional BTW).
Then, you’ll need to add their Creative Services to your plan, which starts at $1,799/month (monthly billing cycle) and includes:
- A dedicated team of professional designers
- Access to AI tools like Firefly, Midjourney, and OpenAI
- Licensed creative software (Figma, Canva, Adobe Suite, PowerPoint, and more)
- And more
Additionally, Design Pickle pricing scales based on daily creative hours, starting with a minimum of 2 hours/day.
In summary, a setup like this with two daily creative hours comes to around $1,918/month.
And remember:
You DON'T get any experts to bring structure, clarity, or creative oversight to your projects under this basic structure.
Also, Design Pickle currently doesn’t offer any sort of free trial.
On the other hand, EVERY Designity plan gives you a minimum of 120 creative hours every month, dedicated creative director supervision, and unlimited project requests and revisions. (more on our pricing below).
B. Designity
Before we dive into our pricing, you should know that you can actually try us out for two weeks before making any decisions.
Test all 100+ of our creative and marketing services, see how fast we work, and get a feel for our communication.
And if we’re not your vibe, just cancel within 14 days with no payment.
Now, back to pricing.
At Designity, we keep things simple with flexible month-to-month plans that are super clear on our pricing page.
Our entry tier (Plus plan) starts at $5,995/month (monthly billing cycle). Under this plan you get a ton of awesome stuff, including:
- A dedicated creative director
- 120 creative hours/month
- 24-hour turnaround on minor tasks
- Unlimited requests, revisions, and storage
- Access to 100+ creative and marketing services
- And lots more
We also offer a Premium plan starting at $8,995/month, which gives you everything in the Plus plan, just with more bandwidth and bigger capabilities.
And if you need something more tailored, our Custom plan lets you build your own setup. Pick what you need, skip what you don’t, and scale up whenever your workload grows!
Not into monthly billing? No problem. You can switch to quarterly or annual anytime. Quarterly saves you $1,500 every three months, and annual knocks $10,800 off your yearly total.
Now, you may be wondering:
How do the final numbers stack up against Design Pickle?
We did the math, and to match our 120 monthly creative hours using Design Pickle (that’s 6 hours a day) plus add an art director, you’d be looking at roughly $6,417/month.
Design Pickle vs. Designity: Two Design Models, One Clear Winner
Both platforms promise high-quality design on demand, but how they deliver it makes all the difference.
Design Pickle offers a streamlined, tech-first setup built for efficiency. You’ll work through a global talent pool, use AI-enhanced briefing tools, and enjoy quick turnaround times.
This is ideal for teams that want a self-managed, production-focused workflow.
Designity, by contrast, focuses on strategy, collaboration, and creative leadership.
Every client is matched with a US-based Creative Director who manages vetted US creatives, ensures brand consistency, and drives each project to success.
If you value:
- A dedicated Creative Director
- 100+ creative and marketing services
- Top 3% US-based talent
- And a 2-week free trial (no upfront payment)
Then Designity offers a more personal, strategic, and scalable creative partnership.
Book a demo today and see why more brands are switching from Design Pickle to Designity.
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