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The differences between drive test engineers and customer 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 drive test engineer and a customer engineer. Additionally, a customer engineer has an average salary of $101,212, which is higher than the $76,872 average annual salary of a drive test engineer.
The top three skills for a drive test engineer include data collection, GPS and pre. The most important skills for a customer engineer are customer service, technical problems, and level agreements.
| Drive Test Engineer | Customer Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $76,872 | $101,212 |
| Hourly rate | $36.96 | $48.66 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 36,537 | 44,709 |
| Job satisfaction | 4 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 69% | Bachelor's Degree, 46% |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
For cars and other automobiles' best performance, drive test engineers can be asked for suggestions. From their expertise, one can ensure that the chosen car is equipped with the necessary accessories such as GPS, Bluetooth hubs, an air conditioner, locks, and USB ports. They train and teach people how to drive safely, following road laws and protocols. They monitor for enhancements and provide reports to stakeholders and managers for its application. They can troubleshoot minor software problems in automobiles.
A customer engineer provides technical support to organizations having issues with their products or services. Duties and responsibilities may vary depending on the sector, but generally include diagnosing and troubleshooting technical problems with products, performing tests, upgrades and diagnostics to prevent delay or downtime caused by-product issues, and keeping updated reports outlining the problems and measures taken to resolve them. A customer engineer is also responsible for discussing service contracts and their benefits with clients.
Drive test engineers and customer engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Drive Test Engineer | Customer Engineer | |
| Average salary | $76,872 | $101,212 |
| Salary range | Between $57,000 And $103,000 | Between $77,000 And $131,000 |
| Highest paying City | Cupertino, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Apple | |
| Best paying industry | Retail | Start-up |
There are a few differences between a drive test engineer and a customer engineer in terms of educational background:
| Drive Test Engineer | Customer Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 69% | Bachelor's Degree, 46% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Northeastern University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between drive test engineers' and customer engineers' demographics:
| Drive Test Engineer | Customer Engineer | |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 92.4% Female, 7.6% | Male, 90.4% Female, 9.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.9% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.3% Asian, 15.9% White, 63.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 4.8% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 14.5% White, 64.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |