Code official vs residential building inspector

The differences between code officials and residential 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 residential building inspector. Additionally, a code official has an average salary of $54,026, which is higher than the $48,597 average annual salary of a residential building inspector.

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

Code official vs residential building inspector overview

	Code Official	Residential Building Inspector
Yearly salary	$54,026	$48,597
Hourly rate	$25.97	$23.36
Growth rate	-4%	-4%
Number of jobs	324	28,745
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 47%	Bachelor's Degree, 45%
Average age	50	50
Years of experience	6	6

Code official vs residential building inspector salary

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

	Code Official	Residential Building Inspector
Average salary	$54,026	$48,597
Salary range	Between $34,000 And $83,000	Between $28,000 And $82,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between code official and residential building inspector education

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

	Code Official	Residential Building Inspector
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 47%	Bachelor's Degree, 45%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	San Diego State University	San Diego State University

Code official vs residential building inspector demographics

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

	Code Official	Residential Building Inspector
Average age	50	50
Gender ratio	Male, 73.6% Female, 26.4%	Male, 87.6% Female, 12.4%
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, 8.1% Unknown, 5.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.8% Asian, 3.4% White, 69.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage	5%	5%

Differences between code official and residential 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.

Residential building inspector example responsibilities.

Lead site excavations, form structuring, and supervise concrete pours.
Perform residential building, plumbing, mechanical and electrical inspections.
Pass all require residential building, electrical, plumbing and mechanical inspector exams.
Conduct inspections of newly build or previously own homes, condominiums, town homes, manufacture homes.

Code official vs residential 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 residential building inspector skills

Sketch, 39%
Windows, 10%
Plumbing, 10%
Residential Buildings, 9%
Inspection Process, 8%
HVAC, 6%

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Code Official vs Residential Building Inspector

Updated January 8, 2025

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