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The differences between implementation engineers and software engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become an implementation engineer, becoming a software engineer takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a software engineer has an average salary of $100,260, which is higher than the $88,779 average annual salary of an implementation engineer.
The top three skills for an implementation engineer include java, troubleshoot and infrastructure. The most important skills for a software engineer are java, python, and software development.
| Implementation Engineer | Software Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $88,779 | $100,260 |
| Hourly rate | $42.68 | $48.20 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 21% |
| Number of jobs | 91,303 | 339,938 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 3.5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Average age | 44 | 39 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 4 |
An implementation engineer is responsible for evaluating the company's technology solutions to support business operations and processes. Implementation engineers assist with the overall technical design concept and diagnostic tests to ensure that the features and performance meet the highest quality standards and business requirements. They also identify the systems' potential failures and develop troubleshooting reports as necessary. An implementation engineer must have excellent communication and technical skills to strategize improvements on the systems' infrastructure for optimization.
A software engineer is a computer science professional who is responsible for the development of information systems, designing and building computer systems software and applications software. They often prefer to call themselves as a software developer or computer programmer. They have substantial knowledge of programming languages, software development, and computer operating systems, and other technologies. They use these to turn a plan into a final output. They can create a design, test, and develop software based on the needs of their clients.
Implementation engineers and software engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Implementation Engineer | Software Engineer | |
| Average salary | $88,779 | $100,260 |
| Salary range | Between $64,000 And $121,000 | Between $73,000 And $136,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Bruno, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Apple | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Start-up |
There are a few differences between an implementation engineer and a software engineer in terms of educational background:
| Implementation Engineer | Software Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Harvard University |
Here are the differences between implementation engineers' and software engineers' demographics:
| Implementation Engineer | Software Engineer | |
| Average age | 44 | 39 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 83.7% Female, 16.3% | Male, 78.0% Female, 22.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 1.4% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 6.9% Asian, 10.7% White, 74.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 4.4% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 8.1% Asian, 34.0% White, 48.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 8% |