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This question is about what a general contractor does, what a construction manager does, and general contractor.
General Contractor vs. Construction Manager
A general contractor is a person in charge of the day-to-day onsite operation of a construction project, while a construction manager is a general contractor with an expanded set of responsibilities and a different financial incentive structure.
A general contractor is responsible for looking at the designs and putting a bid together based on the tasks and how much they think they will cost. They are incentivized to keep the project under budget. They identify what work will need subcontracting, manage bids, and coordinate onsite work.
A construction manager is similar to a general contractor in that they are involved in onsite management, budgets, and suppliers; however, they work much more closely with the owner. They are more involved in the design stages and they work alongside the architect and the project manager to ensure the goals are realistic and workable.
There are many differences between a general contractor and a construction manager including their education.
Here are the key differences between a general contractor and a construction manager:
A general contractor requires more hand-on-training than academic experience.
A construction manager usually requires a Bachelor's degree and several years of on-the-job training
A general contractor averages $82,000 per year
A construction manager averages $92,000 per year
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