Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between applications development specialists and applications programmers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become an applications development specialist, becoming an applications programmer takes usually requires 6-8 years. Additionally, an applications development specialist has an average salary of $99,856, which is higher than the $85,133 average annual salary of an applications programmer.
The top three skills for an applications development specialist include java, application development and C++. The most important skills for an applications programmer are java, C++, and database.
| Applications Development Specialist | Applications Programmer | |
| Yearly salary | $99,856 | $85,133 |
| Hourly rate | $48.01 | $40.93 |
| Growth rate | 8% | -7% |
| Number of jobs | 74,373 | 215,240 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 70% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Average age | 44 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 8 |
An applications development specialist focuses on the design and coding of an application or software for a company. The development specialist's job is to determine the most efficient method to develop a program without sacrificing quality. It is also the position's task to ensure that a program is a solution to its needs and other problems identified through feedback from employees. The applications development specialist is also part of the backend team and can work alongside the research and development department when creating new software to be sold to the market.
An application programmer is responsible for creating and designing computer systems and applications according to client specifications and business requirements. Application programmers run quality checks on the draft outputs to ensure its stability and efficiency for high-level performance. They also evaluate existing applications and recommend technical solutions to improve scalability. An application programmer must have excellent technical skills with a strong command of programming languages and system codes to determine the feasibility of applications and adjust features as needed.
Applications development specialists and applications programmers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Applications Development Specialist | Applications Programmer | |
| Average salary | $99,856 | $85,133 |
| Salary range | Between $78,000 And $127,000 | Between $64,000 And $112,000 |
| Highest paying City | Jersey City, NJ | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | Washington |
| Best paying company | MUFG EMEA | Dropbox |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Finance |
There are a few differences between an applications development specialist and an applications programmer in terms of educational background:
| Applications Development Specialist | Applications Programmer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 70% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Computer Science |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
Here are the differences between applications development specialists' and applications programmers' demographics:
| Applications Development Specialist | Applications Programmer | |
| Average age | 44 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 72.2% Female, 27.8% | Male, 74.6% Female, 25.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.9% Unknown, 6.8% Hispanic or Latino, 14.3% Asian, 7.0% White, 60.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 4.9% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 8.6% Asian, 16.4% White, 65.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 12% | 11% |