Data analyst vs data research analyst

The differences between data analysts and data research analysts can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a data analyst, becoming a data research analyst takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a data analyst has an average salary of $74,342, which is higher than the $57,865 average annual salary of a data research analyst.

The top three skills for a data analyst include data analysis, python and power bi. The most important skills for a data research analyst are data analysis, data collection, and patients.

Data analyst vs data research analyst overview

	Data Analyst	Data Research Analyst
Yearly salary	$74,342	$57,865
Hourly rate	$35.74	$27.82
Growth rate	11%	19%
Number of jobs	167,520	135,144
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 65%	Bachelor's Degree, 65%
Average age	44	37
Years of experience	4	6

What does a data analyst do?

Data analysts are responsible for interpreting the company's statistics and providing sound recommendations to the organization. They manage the organization's data sets, usually related to market performance, finance, or human resources. They are in charge of studying the available data, spotting trends, interpreting what the data and the trends mean, and recommending suggestions that will help the organization perform better. Their recommendations should also be relevant and backed up with strong analyses. Data analysts are expected to have a good grasp of the current market trends in the industry.

What does a data research analyst do?

The job of a data research analyst focuses on the interpretation of research results. The results data research analysts gather is turned into information offering ways for business improvement. They collect data information from different sources then interpret their patterns and trends. These professionals prepare investigative reports on assets and securities for a client or in-house use. They need to develop skills in a good organization, excellent communication, attention to detail, and accuracy.

Data analyst vs data research analyst salary

Data analysts and data research analysts have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Data Analyst	Data Research Analyst
Average salary	$74,342	$57,865
Salary range	Between $53,000 And $103,000	Between $40,000 And $81,000
Highest paying City	Richmond, CA	Bellevue, WA
Highest paying state	New Jersey	Washington
Best paying company	The Citadel	Microsoft
Best paying industry	Finance	Finance

Differences between data analyst and data research analyst education

There are a few differences between a data analyst and a data research analyst in terms of educational background:

	Data Analyst	Data Research Analyst
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 65%	Bachelor's Degree, 65%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Northwestern University	University of Georgia

Data analyst vs data research analyst demographics

Here are the differences between data analysts' and data research analysts' demographics:

	Data Analyst	Data Research Analyst
Average age	44	37
Gender ratio	Male, 50.2% Female, 49.8%	Male, 48.4% Female, 51.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.5% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 8.5% Asian, 14.5% White, 64.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 4.7% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 14.0% White, 65.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage	12%	10%

Differences between data analyst and data research analyst duties and responsibilities

Data analyst example responsibilities.

Manage patient s data in UNIX system.
Manage loan performance in Hyperion Financials using SQL and PL/SQL tools.
Manage and contribute to EDI processes ensuring HIPAA compliance and access to clearing house review on individual case status.
Develop Java application to automate reformatting of text files for an internal application.
Execute deterministic modeling and Monte Carlo simulations in MATLAB to achieve greater mathematical confidence in results obtain from analysis.
Manage weapon system project websites via SharePoint, including troubleshooting technical issues and developing guidelines for public/private information and user permissions.

Data research analyst example responsibilities.

Manage weapon system project websites via SharePoint, including troubleshooting technical issues and developing guidelines for public/private information and user permissions.
Implement data and analysis visualization using Java.
Clean data in SPSS for further analysis, formatting variable names, labels, and order.
Utilize SAS data outputs and an intimate working knowledge of Atlantic coast fisheries to identify anomalies in the data sets.
Develop tools using VBA to validate input and export data correlation to decrease manual validation time need by data owners.
Contribute towards thesaurus management and visualization tools development.

Data analyst vs data research analyst skills

Common data analyst skills

Data Analysis, 10%
Python, 7%
Power Bi, 6%
Data Management, 6%
Visualization, 5%
Data Quality, 4%

Common data research analyst skills

Data Analysis, 10%
Data Collection, 9%
Patients, 8%
Python, 7%
Research Projects, 5%
Data Management, 5%

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Data Analyst vs Data Research Analyst

Updated January 8, 2025

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