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The differences between lead network specialists and network 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 network specialist and a network engineer. Additionally, a lead network specialist has an average salary of $99,922, which is higher than the $83,557 average annual salary of a network engineer.
The top three skills for a lead network specialist include switches, NOC and network performance. The most important skills for a network engineer are switches, troubleshoot, and network infrastructure.
| Lead Network Specialist | Network Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $99,922 | $83,557 |
| Hourly rate | $48.04 | $40.17 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 28,782 | 72,346 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 60% | Bachelor's Degree, 62% |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
Lead network specialists and network engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Lead Network Specialist | Network Engineer | |
| Average salary | $99,922 | $83,557 |
| Salary range | Between $72,000 And $138,000 | Between $62,000 And $111,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Menlo Park, CA |
| Highest paying state | - | California |
| Best paying company | - | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | - | Technology |
There are a few differences between a lead network specialist and a network engineer in terms of educational background:
| Lead Network Specialist | Network Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 60% | Bachelor's Degree, 62% |
| Most common major | Business | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | California State University - Long Beach |
Here are the differences between lead network specialists' and network engineers' demographics:
| Lead Network Specialist | Network Engineer | |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 85.4% Female, 14.6% | Male, 90.6% Female, 9.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.0% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.7% Asian, 10.1% White, 62.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.6% Asian, 13.7% White, 61.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 9% |