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The differences between lead engineers and senior staff 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 staff engineer. Additionally, a senior staff engineer has an average salary of $136,031, 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 staff engineer are python, java, and architecture.
| Lead Engineer | Senior Staff Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $84,927 | $136,031 |
| Hourly rate | $40.83 | $65.40 |
| Growth rate | 2% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 301,777 | 239,752 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| 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 staff engineer is responsible for supervising a team of engineers, chemists, software developers, or molecular biologists. His/Her or her responsibilities include generating Structured Query Language (SQL) performance audit checklist template, creating SQL data query routines and functions for data extraction, and working directly with stakeholders. The job requires strong mechanical, listening, and mathematical skills and proficiency in Python programming language and computer architecture and hardware. The education requirements for the job include a bachelor's or master's degree in electrical engineering, business, mechanical engineering, or a related field.
Lead engineers and senior staff engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Lead Engineer | Senior Staff Engineer | |
| Average salary | $84,927 | $136,031 |
| Salary range | Between $60,000 And $120,000 | Between $95,000 And $194,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Mateo, CA |
| Highest paying state | Hawaii | California |
| Best paying company | Meta | Airbnb |
| Best paying industry | Automotive | Telecommunication |
There are a few differences between a lead engineer and a senior staff engineer in terms of educational background:
| Lead Engineer | Senior Staff Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | California State Polytechnic University, Pomona |
Here are the differences between lead engineers' and senior staff engineers' demographics:
| Lead Engineer | Senior Staff Engineer | |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 90.8% Female, 9.2% | Male, 78.4% Female, 21.6% |
| 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, 7.8% Asian, 16.8% White, 67.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 5% |