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The differences between event planners and meeting planners can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both an event planner and a meeting planner. Additionally, a meeting planner has an average salary of $56,257, which is higher than the $51,542 average annual salary of an event planner.
The top three skills for an event planner include customer service, vendor contracts and plan events. The most important skills for a meeting planner are client facing, event planning, and powerpoint.
| Event Planner | Meeting Planner | |
| Yearly salary | $51,542 | $56,257 |
| Hourly rate | $24.78 | $27.05 |
| Growth rate | 18% | 18% |
| Number of jobs | 19,793 | 17,112 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 70% | Bachelor's Degree, 78% |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
An event planner is responsible for organizing events, following the clients' needs, instructions, and budget goals. Event planners must be highly communicative to coordinate and negotiate contracts with suppliers, third-party vendors, and venue rentals. They finalize the guest list, catering services, and assist with marketing materials to promote the event. An event planner should also have a broad knowledge of the current market industry trends, which plays a vital role in planning and organizing future event opportunities.
A meeting planner makes professional decisions in all areas of meeting preparation and presentation. They plan meetings, establish meeting objectives, schedule meetings, budget expenses, inspect meeting sites, negotiate with suppliers, and create a speaker lineup. They also need to deal with travel arrangements and with technical equipment used in the course of the meeting.
Event planners and meeting planners have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Event Planner | Meeting Planner | |
| Average salary | $51,542 | $56,257 |
| Salary range | Between $35,000 And $74,000 | Between $40,000 And $77,000 |
| Highest paying City | Stamford, CT | Newark, NJ |
| Highest paying state | Connecticut | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Intelliswift | AbbVie |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Hospitality |
There are a few differences between an event planner and a meeting planner in terms of educational background:
| Event Planner | Meeting Planner | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 70% | Bachelor's Degree, 78% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | San Diego State University | San Diego State University |
Here are the differences between event planners' and meeting planners' demographics:
| Event Planner | Meeting Planner | |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 22.4% Female, 77.6% | Male, 12.4% Female, 87.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.4% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 5.9% White, 61.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 16.2% Asian, 5.9% White, 61.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 16% | 16% |