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The differences between human factors engineers and usability specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a human factors engineer and a usability specialist. Additionally, a human factors engineer has an average salary of $96,427, which is higher than the $86,253 average annual salary of a usability specialist.
The top three skills for a human factors engineer include user research, human centered design and user experience. The most important skills for a usability specialist are user experience, web application, and user interface.
| Human Factors Engineer | Usability Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $96,427 | $86,253 |
| Hourly rate | $46.36 | $41.47 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 57,075 | 790 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 69% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
Human factors engineers and usability specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Human Factors Engineer | Usability Specialist | |
| Average salary | $96,427 | $86,253 |
| Salary range | Between $74,000 And $124,000 | Between $51,000 And $143,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Oakland, CA |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Blue Shield of California | |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Media |
There are a few differences between a human factors engineer and a usability specialist in terms of educational background:
| Human Factors Engineer | Usability Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 69% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Most common major | Psychology | Psychology |
| Most common college | University of Michigan - Ann Arbor | Carnegie Mellon University |
Here are the differences between human factors engineers' and usability specialists' demographics:
| Human Factors Engineer | Usability Specialist | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 63.9% Female, 36.1% | Male, 59.5% Female, 40.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.9% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 12.0% Asian, 11.5% White, 67.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 4.5% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 13.9% White, 66.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 4% | 4% |