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The differences between freight engineers and railroad operating engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a freight engineer and a railroad operating engineer. Additionally, a freight engineer has an average salary of $55,585, which is higher than the $39,170 average annual salary of a railroad operating engineer.
The top three skills for a freight engineer include safety rules, locomotives and FRA. The most important skills for a railroad operating engineer are track maintenance, switches, and hand signals.
Freight engineers and railroad operating engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Freight Engineer | Railroad Operating Engineer | |
| Average salary | $55,585 | $39,170 |
| Salary range | Between $40,000 And $76,000 | Between $27,000 And $56,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | - |
| Highest paying state | - | - |
| Best paying company | - | - |
| Best paying industry | - | - |
There are a few differences between a freight engineer and a railroad operating engineer in terms of educational background:
| Freight Engineer | Railroad Operating Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 50% | Bachelor's Degree, 44% |
| Most common major | Business | Mechanical Engineering |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between freight engineers' and railroad operating engineers' demographics:
| Freight Engineer | Railroad Operating Engineer | |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 88.0% Female, 12.0% | Male, 98.1% Female, 1.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.4% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 11.0% Asian, 1.9% White, 70.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 14.9% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 10.1% Asian, 1.9% White, 68.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 12% | 12% |