Code official vs building inspector

The differences between code officials and building inspectors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a code official and a building inspector. Additionally, a code official has an average salary of $54,026, which is higher than the $51,781 average annual salary of a building inspector.

The top three skills for a code official include plumbing, construction projects and code compliance. The most important skills for a building inspector are plumbing, customer service, and building construction.

Code official vs building inspector overview

	Code Official	Building Inspector
Yearly salary	$54,026	$51,781
Hourly rate	$25.97	$24.89
Growth rate	-4%	-4%
Number of jobs	324	20,962
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 47%	Bachelor's Degree, 44%
Average age	50	50
Years of experience	6	6

Code official vs building inspector salary

Code officials and building inspectors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Code Official	Building Inspector
Average salary	$54,026	$51,781
Salary range	Between $34,000 And $83,000	Between $31,000 And $84,000
Highest paying City	-	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	-	California
Best paying company	-	Icma-rc
Best paying industry	-	Technology

Differences between code official and building inspector education

There are a few differences between a code official and a building inspector in terms of educational background:

	Code Official	Building Inspector
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 47%	Bachelor's Degree, 44%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	San Diego State University	San Diego State University

Code official vs building inspector demographics

Here are the differences between code officials' and building inspectors' demographics:

	Code Official	Building Inspector
Average age	50	50
Gender ratio	Male, 73.6% Female, 26.4%	Male, 88.9% Female, 11.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.4% Unknown, 5.7% Hispanic or Latino, 13.1% Asian, 3.4% White, 68.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 8.4% Unknown, 5.7% Hispanic or Latino, 13.1% Asian, 3.4% White, 68.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage	5%	5%

Differences between code official and building inspector duties and responsibilities

Code official example responsibilities.

Manage high volume case assignments to a final disposition of abatement, civil summons, criminal arrests or referral.
Perform plumbing, electric, building, and HVAC inspections for residential and commercial projects.
Retrieve patients' information from internal system, distribute proper reports to physicians and other materials to corresponding departments.
Conduct investigation inspection on HUD construct manufactured homes.

Building inspector example responsibilities.

Lead site excavations, form structuring, and supervise concrete pours.
Manage high volume case assignments to a final disposition of abatement, civil summons, criminal arrests or referral.
Work from ladders, hanging scaffolding, boats, and from the bucket of snooper and bucket trucks.
Assist in roofing and carpentry.
Administer FEMA floodplain and mitigation efforts.
Work orders for HVAC and architectural contractors.

Code official vs building inspector skills

Common code official skills

Plumbing, 18%
Construction Projects, 12%
Code Compliance, 12%
Plan Review, 10%
Fire Protection, 8%
Building Codes, 8%

Common building inspector skills

Plumbing, 14%
Customer Service, 9%
Building Construction, 9%
Ladders, 8%
Construction Sites, 5%
Code Violations, 5%