Contracts administrator vs project administrator

The differences between contracts administrators and project administrators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a contracts administrator has an average salary of $52,876, which is higher than the $52,862 average annual salary of a project administrator.

The top three skills for a contracts administrator include contract administration, customer service and contract management. The most important skills for a project administrator are project management, purchase orders, and customer service.

Contracts administrator vs project administrator overview

	Contracts Administrator	Project Administrator
Yearly salary	$52,876	$52,862
Hourly rate	$25.42	$25.41
Growth rate	-6%	-8%
Number of jobs	58,038	141,253
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 61%	Bachelor's Degree, 60%
Average age	48	47
Years of experience	6	-

What does a contracts administrator do?

Contract administrators create and manage legal contracts from which the company participates. They ensure that all entities to the contract will accomplish their obligations, as indicated in the contract. They usually work for larger organizations that might be involved with different or highly complex contracts. These organizations spread across a range of industries, including government, construction, and healthcare. Their responsibilities include addressing any conflicts of questions regarding the contract, analyzing the possible risks posed by contracts, and working alongside the legal and procurement teams.

What does a project administrator do?

A project administrator is an individual who assists the project manager in the preparation, reporting, and analysis of projects. Project administrators are given tasks with administrative responsibilities such as managing the budget for supply orders, coordinating meetings with contractors, and doing site visits. They are involved with hiring staff members for a project and creating employee guidelines based on talents, skills, and abilities. Project administrators are also responsible for providing reports on the project's progress to the top management.

Contracts administrator vs project administrator salary

Contracts administrators and project administrators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Contracts Administrator	Project Administrator
Average salary	$52,876	$52,862
Salary range	Between $35,000 And $78,000	Between $33,000 And $83,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	Baltimore, MD
Highest paying state	Maryland	Maryland
Best paying company	Ngam Advisors, L.P.	Urban Institute
Best paying industry	Finance	Construction

Differences between contracts administrator and project administrator education

There are a few differences between a contracts administrator and a project administrator in terms of educational background:

	Contracts Administrator	Project Administrator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 61%	Bachelor's Degree, 60%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Contracts administrator vs project administrator demographics

Here are the differences between contracts administrators' and project administrators' demographics:

	Contracts Administrator	Project Administrator
Average age	48	47
Gender ratio	Male, 32.2% Female, 67.8%	Male, 25.0% Female, 75.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.6% Asian, 7.7% White, 65.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%	Black or African American, 7.7% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.9% Asian, 8.9% White, 65.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	7%	10%

Differences between contracts administrator and project administrator duties and responsibilities

Contracts administrator example responsibilities.

Manage communication between both interviewees and candidates regarding interview logistics.
Coordinate requirements and interface with other division personnel to accomplish timely and cost effective procurement of assign commodities.
Optimize GPO department operating efficiency with cleanup, data analysis, and rebate reconciliation projects.
Ensure ERP data management for customer info and contract.
Mentor employees new to the duties and responsibilities of an SCA.
Utilize SQL queries, advance excel formulas, functions and project scheduling tools.

Project administrator example responsibilities.

Lead organization in achieving ISO 9000 certification, which lead to future certification under both ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001.
Manage and execute the SharePoint business integration implementation project and become the corporate governance portal administrator.
Manage quality assurance checks for FDA and internal audits which result in no documentation/information error and successful completion of the audits.
Create and execute SQL to query DB2 databases.
Compose, prepare, proofread, edit and publish department correspondence.
Coordinate in creation and execution of QA and testing processes, test strategies and plans.

Contracts administrator vs project administrator skills

Common contracts administrator skills

Contract Administration, 11%
Customer Service, 7%
Contract Management, 6%
Proposal Preparation, 5%
Purchase Orders, 5%
Contract Terms, 5%

Common project administrator skills

Project Management, 12%
Purchase Orders, 8%
Customer Service, 7%
PowerPoint, 6%
Data Entry, 5%
Assist Project, 4%

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Contracts Administrator
Contracts Administrator vs Project Administrator

Updated January 8, 2025

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