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The differences between lead engineers and senior applications engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a lead engineer and a senior applications engineer. Additionally, a senior applications engineer has an average salary of $107,989, which is higher than the $84,927 average annual salary of a lead engineer.
The top three skills for a lead engineer include java, python and architecture. The most important skills for a senior applications engineer are java, C++, and database.
| Lead Engineer | Senior Applications Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $84,927 | $107,989 |
| Hourly rate | $40.83 | $51.92 |
| Growth rate | 2% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 301,777 | 274,466 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A lead engineer's duties vary on their line of work or industry of employment. Typically, their responsibilities will revolve around overseeing the progress of operations and performance of the workforce, ensuring that everything is running smoothly. They are also responsible for addressing issues and concerns, assessing risks, monitoring the budget, coordinating with clients and architects, and even training workers. Furthermore, as a lead engineer, it is crucial to conduct regular inspections to ensure the quality of work and maintain a safe environment for all workers.
A senior applications engineer specializes in designing and developing a variety of applications and systems, ensuring quality and efficiency. Their responsibilities typically revolve around utilizing feedback and client needs when making decisions, creating test structures for applications, performing installment and repairs, troubleshooting, and performing regular maintenance checks and upgrades. Furthermore, as a senior applications engineer, it is essential to lead and encourage the engineering team to reach goals, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
Lead engineers and senior applications engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Lead Engineer | Senior Applications Engineer | |
| Average salary | $84,927 | $107,989 |
| Salary range | Between $60,000 And $120,000 | Between $84,000 And $138,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Hawaii | California |
| Best paying company | Meta | Netflix |
| Best paying industry | Automotive | Insurance |
There are a few differences between a lead engineer and a senior applications engineer in terms of educational background:
| Lead Engineer | Senior Applications Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between lead engineers' and senior applications engineers' demographics:
| Lead Engineer | Senior Applications Engineer | |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 90.8% Female, 9.2% | Male, 88.9% Female, 11.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 16.8% White, 67.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% | Black or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 17.1% White, 67.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 5% |