Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between design engineers and product development engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a design engineer and a product development engineer. Additionally, a product development engineer has an average salary of $86,075, which is higher than the $77,134 average annual salary of a design engineer.
The top three skills for a design engineer include C++, UL and project management. The most important skills for a product development engineer are CAD, solidworks, and product development.
| Design Engineer | Product Development Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $77,134 | $86,075 |
| Hourly rate | $37.08 | $41.38 |
| Growth rate | 2% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 138,173 | 202,155 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A design engineer is responsible for creating systems and applications based on their expertise. Design engineers work through client specifications based on business needs. A design engineer also provides recommendations on improving existing systems to boost its performance and increase efficiency. Design engineers must have an excellent command of computer systems, programming codes, and technical data to ensure the system's stability and high-quality processes. A design engineer should also have strong analytical and time-management skills to perform tasks and meet deadlines.
A Product Development Engineer is responsible for creating and testing new product designs. They collaborate with market researchers to evaluate market needs, existing competition, and potential costs.
Design engineers and product development engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Design Engineer | Product Development Engineer | |
| Average salary | $77,134 | $86,075 |
| Salary range | Between $57,000 And $102,000 | Between $64,000 And $113,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Sunnyvale, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Meta | Amazon |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a design engineer and a product development engineer in terms of educational background:
| Design Engineer | Product Development Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Mechanical Engineering |
| Most common college | Michigan Technological University | Michigan Technological University |
Here are the differences between design engineers' and product development engineers' demographics:
| Design Engineer | Product Development Engineer | |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 88.9% Female, 11.1% | Male, 86.8% Female, 13.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.2% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 8.2% Asian, 16.8% White, 67.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% | Black or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 16.7% White, 67.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 5% |