Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between fuel cell engineers and product engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-12 months to become a fuel cell engineer, becoming a product engineer takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a fuel cell engineer has an average salary of $92,756, which is higher than the $89,645 average annual salary of a product engineer.
The top three skills for a fuel cell engineer include data analysis, FEA and labview. The most important skills for a product engineer are CAD, product design, and project management.
| Fuel Cell Engineer | Product Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $92,756 | $89,645 |
| Hourly rate | $44.59 | $43.10 |
| Growth rate | 2% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 25,365 | 157,888 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 6 |
A fuel cell engineer is tasked with the design, evaluation, or construction of components or systems that make up a fuel cell. They are also tasked with designing and implementing any programs that deal with fuel cell testing or development. They write technical reports related to any engineering project and collaborate with other engineers to plan fuel cell reduction. On special occasions, they give specifications for materials that make up the fuel cell.
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.
Fuel cell engineers and product engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Fuel Cell Engineer | Product Engineer | |
| Average salary | $92,756 | $89,645 |
| Salary range | Between $67,000 And $127,000 | Between $68,000 And $118,000 |
| Highest paying City | West Sacramento, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Apple | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Automotive | Technology |
There are a few differences between a fuel cell engineer and a product engineer in terms of educational background:
| Fuel Cell Engineer | Product Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Mechanical Engineering |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Michigan Technological University |
Here are the differences between fuel cell engineers' and product engineers' demographics:
| Fuel Cell Engineer | Product Engineer | |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 88.5% Female, 11.5% | Male, 87.8% Female, 12.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 17.0% White, 67.5% 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% |