Cost controller vs quantity surveyor

The differences between cost controllers and quantity surveyors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a cost controller, becoming a quantity surveyor takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a cost controller has an average salary of $76,697, which is higher than the $71,438 average annual salary of a quantity surveyor.

The top three skills for a cost controller include project management, cost analysis and financial statements. The most important skills for a quantity surveyor are construction projects, QS, and cost estimates.

Cost controller vs quantity surveyor overview

	Cost Controller	Quantity Surveyor
Yearly salary	$76,697	$71,438
Hourly rate	$36.87	$34.35
Growth rate	6%	1%
Number of jobs	17,477	2,128
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 70%	Bachelor's Degree, 68%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	4	6

Cost controller vs quantity surveyor salary

Cost controllers and quantity surveyors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Cost Controller	Quantity Surveyor
Average salary	$76,697	$71,438
Salary range	Between $51,000 And $114,000	Between $44,000 And $114,000
Highest paying City	Sunnyvale, CA	Cheshire, CT
Highest paying state	Massachusetts	New Jersey
Best paying company	NOVA Chemicals	Air Products
Best paying industry	Energy	-

Differences between cost controller and quantity surveyor education

There are a few differences between a cost controller and a quantity surveyor in terms of educational background:

	Cost Controller	Quantity Surveyor
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 70%	Bachelor's Degree, 68%
Most common major	Accounting	Civil Engineering
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Cost controller vs quantity surveyor demographics

Here are the differences between cost controllers' and quantity surveyors' demographics:

	Cost Controller	Quantity Surveyor
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 63.2% Female, 36.8%	Male, 81.6% Female, 18.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.8% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.2% Asian, 13.4% White, 62.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 3.4% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 10.9% Asian, 5.0% White, 75.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between cost controller and quantity surveyor duties and responsibilities

Cost controller example responsibilities.

Improve project process by developing and implementing cost structure, then manage job-specific code of accounts for WBS approvals.
Manage treasury, open several new accounts, establish new procedures and controls, monitor daily activity.
Prepare monthly write-ups reports for the cost performance and EAC forecast
Identify wrongly charge WBS in order to control the budget release under each WBS element.
Facilitate capital project team's operating expense budgets, forecast, variance comments, accruals, and reporting.
Analyze purchase order commitment to calculate accruals.

Quantity surveyor example responsibilities.

Prepare shop drawings using AutoCAD software.
Update contract BOQ base on contractors approve shop drawings to submit update BOQ and expect cost of completion.
Base: UK, UAE, Trinidad
Assist in the preparation of tenders for new contracts including pre-contract measurements and pricing.
Follow and maintain the drawing set using AutoCAD and release them to supervisors for assign tasks.
Check the quantities in BOQ during site handover for the contractor and match them with the implemented quantities at the site.

Cost controller vs quantity surveyor skills

Common cost controller skills

Project Management, 11%
Cost Analysis, 7%
Financial Statements, 6%
Cost Estimates, 6%
Variance Analysis, 5%
Cost Data, 5%

Common quantity surveyor skills

Construction Projects, 18%
QS, 12%
Cost Estimates, 6%
Contractual Claims, 6%
Cost Analysis, 6%
Cost Control, 6%