Cargo surveyor vs land surveyor

The differences between cargo surveyors and land surveyors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a cargo surveyor, becoming a land surveyor takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a cargo surveyor has an average salary of $80,171, which is higher than the $46,182 average annual salary of a land surveyor.

The top three skills for a cargo surveyor include commodities, board vessels and cargo operations. The most important skills for a land surveyor are GPS, data collection, and topographic surveys.

Cargo surveyor vs land surveyor overview

	Cargo Surveyor	Land Surveyor
Yearly salary	$80,171	$46,182
Hourly rate	$38.54	$22.20
Growth rate	1%	1%
Number of jobs	2,762	4,717
Job satisfaction	-	4
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 60%	Bachelor's Degree, 43%
Average age	49	44
Years of experience	2	6

Cargo surveyor vs land surveyor salary

Cargo surveyors and land surveyors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Cargo Surveyor	Land Surveyor
Average salary	$80,171	$46,182
Salary range	Between $45,000 And $141,000	Between $31,000 And $66,000
Highest paying City	-	Walnut Creek, CA
Highest paying state	-	California
Best paying company	-	Adobe
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between cargo surveyor and land surveyor education

There are a few differences between a cargo surveyor and a land surveyor in terms of educational background:

	Cargo Surveyor	Land Surveyor
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 60%	Bachelor's Degree, 43%
Most common major	Business	Civil Engineering
Most common college	Northwestern University	Pennsylvania State University

Cargo surveyor vs land surveyor demographics

Here are the differences between cargo surveyors' and land surveyors' demographics:

	Cargo Surveyor	Land Surveyor
Average age	49	44
Gender ratio	Male, 100.0% Female, 0.0%	Male, 93.9% Female, 6.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.8% Unknown, 7.2% Hispanic or Latino, 11.0% Asian, 6.0% White, 63.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 3.4% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 10.9% Asian, 5.0% White, 75.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	11%	7%

Differences between cargo surveyor and land surveyor duties and responsibilities

Cargo surveyor example responsibilities.

Adjust and operate surveying instruments such as prisms, theodolites, and electronicdistance-measuring equipment.
Coordinate with freight forwarders to expedite international shipments.

Land surveyor example responsibilities.

Utilize GPS technology to manage a two man robotic crew assign to residential/ commercial development projects.
Operate survey robotic instruments (Leica TPS1200), data collectors (Carlson, TDS).
Hire and train tribal members in using GPS and conventional survey equipment to assist perform field surveys of vary complexity.
Finalize plans through AutoCAD and Carlson software.
Used a Leica total station with TDS software.
Stake commodities and existing underground using Trimble GNSS equipment.

Cargo surveyor vs land surveyor skills

Common cargo surveyor skills

Commodities, 61%
Board Vessels, 19%
Cargo Operations, 12%
Business Proposals, 8%

Common land surveyor skills

GPS, 21%
Data Collection, 8%
Topographic Surveys, 8%
Survey Data, 8%
Boundary Surveys, 6%
Civil 3D, 6%

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Cargo Surveyor
Cargo Surveyor vs Land Surveyor

Updated January 8, 2025

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