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The differences between buying analysts and analysts can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a buying analyst, becoming an analyst takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a buying analyst has an average salary of $77,425, which is higher than the $73,007 average annual salary of an analyst.
The top three skills for a buying analyst include purchase orders, delivery schedules and MRP. The most important skills for an analyst are customer service, troubleshoot, and data analysis.
| Buying Analyst | Analyst | |
| Yearly salary | $77,425 | $73,007 |
| Hourly rate | $37.22 | $35.10 |
| Growth rate | 11% | 11% |
| Number of jobs | 22,966 | 253,138 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Average age | 48 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 4 |
A buying analyst specializes in conducting extensive market research and analysis to develop conclusions and recommendations that will help companies in making purchase decisions. They focus on studying the suppliers and competing companies, gathering and analyzing consumer feedback, performing audits and risk assessments, and making forecast models. They may also assess and evaluate external parties, such as vendors and distributors. Through the findings of their research, a buying analyst may also help in establishing guidelines, protocols, and methods to optimize business operations and develop solutions against problem areas.
Analysts are employees or individual contributors with a vast experience in a particular field that help the organization address challenges. They help the organization improve processes, policies, and other operations protocol by studying the current processes in place and determining the effectiveness of those processes. They also research industry trends and data to make sound inferences and recommendations on what the company should do to improve their numbers. Analysts recommend business solutions and often help the organization roll out these solutions. They ensure that the proposed action plans are effective and produce the desired results.
Buying analysts and analysts have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Buying Analyst | Analyst | |
| Average salary | $77,425 | $73,007 |
| Salary range | Between $52,000 And $113,000 | Between $53,000 And $99,000 |
| Highest paying City | Palo Alto, CA | Jersey City, NJ |
| Highest paying state | Washington | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | YellowHammer | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Technology |
There are a few differences between a buying analyst and an analyst in terms of educational background:
| Buying Analyst | Analyst | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between buying analysts' and analysts' demographics:
| Buying Analyst | Analyst | |
| Average age | 48 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 52.2% Female, 47.8% | Male, 52.4% Female, 47.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.4% Asian, 7.4% White, 65.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% | Black or African American, 7.4% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 8.5% Asian, 14.3% White, 65.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 12% |