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The differences between lead engineers and senior principal 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 principal engineer. Additionally, a senior principal engineer has an average salary of $130,642, 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 principal engineer are python, architecture, and java.
| Lead Engineer | Senior Principal Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $84,927 | $130,642 |
| Hourly rate | $40.83 | $62.81 |
| Growth rate | 2% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 301,777 | 272,459 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| 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 principal engineer is responsible for leading engineering tasks within an organization and reports project updates to senior management. Senior principal engineers develop strategic methods and principles to improve the technical stability and efficiency of the company's systems, creating business proposals according to clients' specifications, and negotiating contracts with suppliers and other service providers. They also train new staff and identify innovations and business opportunities that would generate more revenue resources for the company.
Lead engineers and senior principal engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Lead Engineer | Senior Principal Engineer | |
| Average salary | $84,927 | $130,642 |
| Salary range | Between $60,000 And $120,000 | Between $93,000 And $182,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Hawaii | California |
| Best paying company | Meta | Airbnb |
| Best paying industry | Automotive | Professional |
There are a few differences between a lead engineer and a senior principal engineer in terms of educational background:
| Lead Engineer | Senior Principal Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | Michigan Technological University |
Here are the differences between lead engineers' and senior principal engineers' demographics:
| Lead Engineer | Senior Principal Engineer | |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 90.8% Female, 9.2% | Male, 88.2% Female, 11.8% |
| 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, 17.2% White, 67.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 5% |