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The differences between lead hardware engineers and design verification engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a lead hardware engineer and a design verification engineer. Additionally, a lead hardware engineer has an average salary of $121,252, which is higher than the $117,277 average annual salary of a design verification engineer.
The top three skills for a lead hardware engineer include RF, system design and FPGA. The most important skills for a design verification engineer are python, UVM, and design verification.
| Lead Hardware Engineer | Design Verification Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $121,252 | $117,277 |
| Hourly rate | $58.29 | $56.38 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 39,713 | 65,429 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 64% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A lead hardware engineer partners with the mechanical engineering team and product team to design and define brand new hardware products. They lead the development of connectors, firmware protocols, cards, electric chargers, controllers, and chips. Besides supervising electrical and hardware engineers, lead hardware engineers also work hand-in-hand with business analysts, software engineers, and project managers. Other duties performed by lead hardware engineers include component sourcing and performing technical specification and technical requirements analysis. Also, they provide solutions for complicated material handling and paper challenges.
A design verification engineer is responsible for running diagnostic tests on project outputs and adjusting methodologies as needed to achieve high-quality deliverables according to clients' specifications and business requirements. Design verification engineers create efficient techniques to improve products and services by utilizing various system tools and applications. They also design engineering protocols by analyzing previous test designs and calibrating them with the team. A design verification engineer must have excellent technical skills, as well as highly-communicative and organizational, especially on meeting deadlines and working under minimal supervision.
Lead hardware engineers and design verification engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Lead Hardware Engineer | Design Verification Engineer | |
| Average salary | $121,252 | $117,277 |
| Salary range | Between $89,000 And $163,000 | Between $88,000 And $154,000 |
| Highest paying City | Seattle, WA | Seattle, WA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | Washington |
| Best paying company | Meta | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Start-up | Start-up |
There are a few differences between a lead hardware engineer and a design verification engineer in terms of educational background:
| Lead Hardware Engineer | Design Verification Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 64% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Northeastern University | Northeastern University |
Here are the differences between lead hardware engineers' and design verification engineers' demographics:
| Lead Hardware Engineer | Design Verification Engineer | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 92.8% Female, 7.2% | Male, 85.3% Female, 14.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 7.6% Unknown, 2.9% Hispanic or Latino, 9.7% Asian, 29.5% White, 49.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 4.4% Unknown, 2.8% Hispanic or Latino, 9.0% Asian, 39.9% White, 43.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 4% | 4% |