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The differences between application leads and application managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become an application lead, becoming an application manager takes usually requires 6-8 years. Additionally, an application manager has an average salary of $122,748, which is higher than the $112,992 average annual salary of an application lead.
The top three skills for an application lead include java, architecture and emerging technologies. The most important skills for an application manager are customer service, project management, and application development.
| Application Lead | Application Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $112,992 | $122,748 |
| Hourly rate | $54.32 | $59.01 |
| Growth rate | 9% | 16% |
| Number of jobs | 163,233 | 125,760 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 64% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Average age | 43 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 8 |
A lead applications developer is in charge of directing the development department in applications design, creation, coding, debugging, and testing. Lead applications developers serve as mentors for lower-level or new software programmers or developers. They supervise the development team members in pair programming, code reviews, and good development principle promotions. Their duties include the coordination of the schedule of development staff. Also, they ensure effective communication between the team members and the other IT functions.
An application manager is in charge of overseeing software applications and systems within a company, ensuring efficiency and quality. Typically, their responsibilities revolve around conducting research and analysis to identify company needs, assessing existing applications to determine their strengths and weaknesses, and implementing solutions to optimize the quality of services. They may also conduct regular maintenance checks to ensure the efficiency of applications, performing corrective measures when necessary. Furthermore, as an application manager, it is essential to coordinate with the information technology staff, encouraging them to reach goals and new heights.
Application leads and application managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Application Lead | Application Manager | |
| Average salary | $112,992 | $122,748 |
| Salary range | Between $86,000 And $147,000 | Between $93,000 And $160,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Oregon | California |
| Best paying company | Roku | |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Finance |
There are a few differences between an application lead and an application manager in terms of educational background:
| Application Lead | Application Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 64% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Carnegie Mellon University |
Here are the differences between application leads' and application managers' demographics:
| Application Lead | Application Manager | |
| Average age | 43 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 73.7% Female, 26.3% | Male, 71.1% Female, 28.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.5% Asian, 22.6% White, 52.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 6.8% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 10.2% Asian, 13.5% White, 64.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 11% |