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The differences between design engineers and product 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 engineer. Additionally, a product engineer has an average salary of $89,645, 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 engineer are CAD, product design, and project management.
| Design Engineer | Product Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $77,134 | $89,645 |
| Hourly rate | $37.08 | $43.10 |
| Growth rate | 2% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 138,173 | 157,888 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| 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 engineer specializes in designing and developing commercial materials and services. They are primarily responsible for conducting thorough research and analysis of the latest trends and marketing conditions to come up with new ideas and products for the public. Moreover, they are also responsible for producing reports and presentations, coordinating with the development team of their company. Product engineers also reach out to vendors and suppliers for the raw materials, set regulations and standards for the product, and even conduct a rigorous and regular quality check.
Design engineers and product engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Design Engineer | Product Engineer | |
| Average salary | $77,134 | $89,645 |
| Salary range | Between $57,000 And $102,000 | Between $68,000 And $118,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Meta | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a design engineer and a product engineer in terms of educational background:
| Design Engineer | Product Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| 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 engineers' demographics:
| Design Engineer | Product Engineer | |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 88.9% Female, 11.1% | Male, 87.8% Female, 12.2% |
| 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, 7.9% Asian, 17.0% White, 67.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 5% |