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The differences between lead application engineers and software engineers lead can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a lead application engineer, becoming a software engineer lead takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a software engineer lead has an average salary of $125,565, which is higher than the $111,059 average annual salary of a lead application engineer.
The top three skills for a lead application engineer include java, C++ and infrastructure. The most important skills for a software engineer lead are java, python, and software development.
| Lead Application Engineer | Software Engineer Lead | |
| Yearly salary | $111,059 | $125,565 |
| Hourly rate | $53.39 | $60.37 |
| Growth rate | 2% | 21% |
| Number of jobs | 186,619 | 342,462 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 69% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Average age | 41 | 39 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 4 |
An Application Engineers is responsible for monitoring and ensuring that all the application and software of a client is functioning well. They are the one who develops new engineering software and hardware that leads to innovation and technology. This person has practical communication skills since they need to interact with clients to determine the scope of the project and create a reasonable solution. An Application Engineer possesses skills in a wide range of technical concerns regarding software hardware. Typically, they can be seen different departments like manufacturing, marketing as well as customer services.
A Software Engineer Lead is focused on developing and testing software programs. They manage a team of software engineers that design enterprise software products and operating systems.
Lead application engineers and software engineers lead have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Lead Application Engineer | Software Engineer Lead | |
| Average salary | $111,059 | $125,565 |
| Salary range | Between $85,000 And $144,000 | Between $93,000 And $168,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Seattle, WA |
| Highest paying state | Virginia | Washington |
| Best paying company | Lyft | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Retail | Automotive |
There are a few differences between a lead application engineer and a software engineer lead in terms of educational background:
| Lead Application Engineer | Software Engineer Lead | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 69% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Harvard University |
Here are the differences between lead application engineers' and software engineers lead' demographics:
| Lead Application Engineer | Software Engineer Lead | |
| Average age | 41 | 39 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 87.8% Female, 12.2% | Male, 86.7% Female, 13.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 16.5% White, 68.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% | Black or African American, 4.5% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 8.3% Asian, 29.9% White, 52.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 8% |