How to Design Eye-Catching Music Album Artwork

Although we all know that a first impression only tells us so much about a person or art project, it would be hypocritical to deny its impact entirely. Sayings like “don’t judge a book by its cover” may be valid, but let’s be honest: how often do we pick up a book because its artwork catches our eye?

Whether it’s pretty, interesting, or unusual, if the cover grabs our attention while giving us a hint about the content, we’re more likely to read the text on the back. Meanwhile, a book with a bland cover that doesn't convince potential readers to pick it up tends to get overlooked, unless they already know something about the content or author beforehand.

The not-so-secret secret lies in graphic design, an incredibly wide, multifaceted creative field that blends art with communication and consumer psychology. Experts, students, and enthusiasts know that thoughtful, intentional design can influence people and their decision-making, from following directions to making purchases.

For example, in the case of an art gallery poster placed at a train station, the goals could be grabbing the attention of a passerby, informing them about the event, and ultimately convincing them to seek more info or, best-case scenario, decide to visit the gallery.

In the case of music album artwork, the goal is usually to grab the attention of a potential listener, make them curious about the artist and their release, and ideally get them interested enough to listen to the project or look them up on social media. But how can you design a solid, memorable, recognizable album artwork that convinces your (potential) fans to give it a listen?

Before we begin looking into the most important steps, we want to emphasize that designing music album artwork allows for more creative freedom than, say, corporate design, which often follows stricter guidelines and adapts to broader industry trends and standards. Minimalism, for example, remains a common approach in corporate design due to factors like web adaptability, time-effectiveness, and lower costs. However, album artwork doesn’t have to follow these conventions—you decide which aesthetic best represents your music and identity as an artist. So, if you love maximalism, detail, and richness, you can absolutely incorporate those elements into your covers.

Design follows five key principles that help create visuals that are clear, engaging, and effective in communicating a message. They guide designers in structuring their work to capture attention, convey meaning, and evoke emotions.

Hierarchy in design revolves around making sure that the most important element(s) stands out and naturally draws a viewer’s focus first. In the context of album artwork, this is typically (though not always) the release title or the artist/band name. With hierarchy, designers can emphasize the most important information while keeping the additional info in the background for those who want to find out more.

The next key principle is contrast, which helps different elements stand out against each other and become distinguishable. Contrast can be created in various ways—think of a black circle on a white background, bold text above thin text, or a large heading above a smaller subheading containing additional info.

Composition revolves around strategically placing design elements on an artboard to ensure order, distinguishability, and that all related elements are grouped logically. A well-thought-out arrangement makes your design feel structured, visually pleasing, and helps communicate the intended message.

While composition focuses on the placement of elements, balance makes sure no part of the design feels too heavy or chaotic compared to the rest. A well-balanced album cover feels intentional, whether it's symmetrical, asymmetrical, or deliberately skewed yet proportionate.

Choosing the right colors is crucial, as they set the mood, create associations, and can influence how people feel about the design (and in this case, your release). Colors can give clues about what listeners can expect from your album, whether it’s the genre, sound, or emotions your album evokes.

For example, darker tones are often associated with sadness, aggression, or a moody vibe, while vibrant colors tend to represent happiness, energy, and joy. That said, it depends on the context! Red, for instance, can symbolize both aggression and passion or sensuality, depending on how it’s used with other design elements.

And remember, color meanings can vary across cultures. For instance, while wedding dresses may traditionally be white in some places, they are red in others. There’s no universal rule for color use, but there are guidelines that can help communicate emotions and messages effectively.

Next comes typography, which refers to the choice of font, its tone, and its personality. Typography affects readability and helps reinforce a message or a brand’s character. A common example in graphic design: imagine the text "You’re always on my mind" in a cursive, handwritten, romantic font versus the same text in a scribbled, messy font. Which one do you associate with a horror movie?

Type also matters because our eyes tend to gravitate toward text first, unless another element stands out significantly more. Additionally, it is essential for providing information, as text often conveys the majority of it. Thus, when choosing a font, it should align with the broader message, tone, emotions of your release, and, of course, remain readable.

There are a few other principles beyond the big five that can elevate a design from average to good. Those include, but are not limited to:

• Repetition, which can reinforce a message or branding and create consistency (for example, using the same layout for a soda brand but with different colors and images depending on the flavor).

• White space (or negative space), which makes a design feel less cluttered and helps with clarity (e.g., the space between the heading and the key image).

• Proximity, which logically groups related elements together to improve readability or the messaging (e.g., connecting icons with a line and circles around them).

• Alignment, which keeps different elements visually connected while providing a framework through guides and grids (e.g., aligning all text elements on the left to the leftmost point of the heading).

Now that we’ve outlined the most important design principles, let’s look into the step-by-step process for creating your album artwork. Also, keep in mind that designers often go back and forth between these steps, adjusting the concept or different elements based on where the process leads them.

Before diving into the design process, it’s essential to choose the right format to work in. For album artwork, the standard is using a square format (typically 3000 x 3000 pixels), so it looks good on various platforms. The resolution should be 300 dpi (dots per inch) to maintain high-quality visuals, especially for print.

For color profiles, use RGB for digital work. However, if you're planning to print your artwork, switch to CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black), so the colors are accurate in print. Keep in mind that some color shifts may occur when converting from RGB to CMYK, so always double-check your final design. By setting up your workspace properly from the start, you’ll avoid potential issues later when exporting your design or printing.

Before jumping into your software of choice, start with developing a basic idea of what you’re aiming for. In other words, think about what you want to convey with the artwork and how it matches the genre, mood, atmosphere, emotions, and broader theme of your album. Your concept doesn’t have to be fully developed at this stage, as more ideas often emerge during the process.

To get started, it can be helpful to identify a theme, so you have something to work with. This can be the name of your album. For example, a title like “Orange Winter” gives you a concrete motive and color palette that gives you guidance. Or, if your release is a self-titled album, a picture or illustration of yourself might be a good starting point.

Alternatively, you can (and should) draw inspiration from other artists and their covers. This approach is commonly referred to as referencing and intends to help you find a general direction. In design, it is quite common to use multiple references simultaneously. Together, they will help you gather ideas: which type of font to use to match a certain vibe, what imagery or motifs to explore, or what kind of layout to choose.

While referencing is not the same as copying, there is a fine line between the two. So, don’t copy another person’s work 1:1. Not only is it against copyright, but it also reflects poorly on you in both the music and design community.

Finally, remember that you don’t need to follow already established themes and guidelines of, for example, a genre. An artwork that subverts expectations can surprise listeners and make your project more memorable, as long as it is attention-grabbing and convincing rather than false advertising.

Next comes the color palette. While there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to color palettes, the following approaches can help. You can start with choosing one main color, which can be either vibrant or neutral. Then, you can choose a second color that creates contrast with the primary one. Simple examples include black & white, white & red, or black & neon green. Next, choose a third color for accents, like text outlines or underlines.

You can create color palettes using tools like Adobe Color, where you can add your primary color and let it show you suitable combinations. Alternatively, you can use it to search for colors you like or explore other people’s palettes. You can also use an image that resonates (or your key image) and pull colors from it to create a cohesive palette.

While limiting yourself to a few colors can help, there's no strict limit on the number of colors you can use. Even a design with 20 different colors can look good, as long as you maintain balance and pay attention to the composition.

The next step focuses on gathering and preparing all key assets. Let’s say you want your album artwork to include the title, your logo, an image of yourself, and a thin, ornamental frame, with the image being the key element.

Starting with the image, you can either work with a photographer or ask a trusted creative friend for help. Depending on the vibe you're going for, you might choose a high-quality photo or one taken with an older camera to match the aesthetic. Afterwards, you might want to edit the picture, or have someone edit it using tools like Lightroom to bring out its full potential.

For decorative elements, you can use stock image websites like Pixabay, Adobe Stock, or Shutterstock. Free sites typically offer a wide range of assets, but paid ones often provide a broader selection and higher-quality resources. So, it’s worth doing your research. You can, of course, experiment first before committing to any purchases.

When selecting fonts, you want to choose one that aligns with the tone and character of your images, colors, branding, and the sound of your release. If you already have a font you decided on as part of your visual branding, that’s a great start! However, you might not want to use the same one over and over again for titles and other text elements, so take the time to explore your options.

Genres can also provide some guidance for font choices. Think about the “Bling” fonts used in hip hop music, which are closely associated with Pen & Pixel, the firm behind many iconic covers designed throughout the 90s until it closed in 2003. Or metal artists, who often (though not always) use elaborate, complex fonts for their logos, while making the album title legible but expressive enough to match the broader vibe.

There are many free fonts available on websites like Google Fonts, Dafont, or 1001 Fonts. Just be sure to check the licensing agreement to avoid using non-commercial fonts for commercial projects. If you use Adobe tools, Adobe Fonts offers a wide selection of fonts to explore, so definitely look into those if you have an Adobe subscription.

Drawing from your references, the next step is to decide on a layout. Think about how elements like text, images, and graphics can be arranged in a way that is balanced and communicates your message. You can do so by sketching out some versions on paper in a minimalistic way. Instead of drawing the actual elements, use simple blocks. This will help you visualize the composition, hierarchy, alignment, repetition, and proximity.

Once you have a rough layout in mind, start assembling your design elements in your software. At this point, focus on hierarchy and decide on the size of each element to either make it stand out or blend into the background. Be sure to give yourself time to experiment. Shift elements around, change sizes, and see what works best. You can also come up with multiple versions of your design and then decide which one works best.

Finally, keep in mind that your album cover will often be displayed as a small thumbnail, for example on streaming platforms. If your typography is too small or thin, it might be impossible to read. Thus, test your design at smaller sizes to make sure the key details still stand out.

Before continuing, take a break to look at your album artwork with a fresh eye. Then, review each design and adjust those elements that feel off. At this point, you’ll also want to take a closer look at the details, such as alignment, to make sure no element is placed awkwardly (e.g., too far to the left, right, top, or bottom).

At this stage, you can also use layer masks to add more depth to your artwork. For example, if you added a frame and layered it with decorative flowers, you might erase parts of the frame or the flowers to give the design a more three-dimensional feel.

Once you feel confident that the basic design is finalized, take some time to experiment with different effects. One method is layering textures over parts of the design (such as the image) or the entire artwork.

For example, if you’re working with Photoshop, you can place a paper texture over the entire design and use blending modes to merge it with the rest of the design. Or you can export the entire design, bring it back into Photoshop, and apply effects like the plastic wrap filter from the filter gallery, which makes the design look as if it's under a layer of plastic.

While effects and textures can add depth and personality to your design, overdoing them can clutter your artwork and decrease its quality. That said, if your goal is to embrace maximalism and intentionally lower the quality to achieve a vintage vibe, go for it!

Satisfied with the outcome? Now it’s time to export your album artwork. Make sure your final design is saved in the correct dimensions and file formats (JPEG, PNG, or TIFF for digital use; CMYK PDF for print). For digital use, the resolution should be at least 300 dpi to maintain quality across different platforms. If you're designing for streaming services, check their specific requirements (such as square format and size restrictions). Also, consider saving a layered version (like a PSD file) in case you need to make future edits.