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The differences between lead product engineers and production engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a lead product engineer, becoming a production engineer takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a lead product engineer has an average salary of $105,767, which is higher than the $89,727 average annual salary of a production engineer.
The top three skills for a lead product engineer include java, solidworks and software development. The most important skills for a production engineer are java, continuous improvement, and lean manufacturing.
| Lead Product Engineer | Production Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $105,767 | $89,727 |
| Hourly rate | $50.85 | $43.14 |
| Growth rate | 2% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 149,514 | 94,789 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 76% |
| Average age | 41 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 4 |
A lead product engineer designs and develops products and their manufacturing process. As a lead product engineer, you will oversee the product's transition from design to manufacture. It is your duty to create and test product prototypes and source materials needed to build these prototypes. Other duties that you will perform include working closely with the product development team and ensuring all products meet safety policies. Additionally, you will also be responsible for providing product engineer support and maintaining product technical documentation.
A production engineer is responsible for monitoring the production operations, ensuring everyone's adherence to safety protocols, and evaluating the staff's performance, strategizing on maximizing productivity to deliver efficient results that would drive revenues and increase profitability. Production engineers inspect the reliability of production equipment and machinery, conducting preventive maintenance, and repair inconsistencies to prevent production delays. They also identify areas of improvement with the manufacturing processes and escalate best practices for improvement. A production engineer must be knowledgeable about technological advancements and incorporate ideas to minimize costs without sacrificing the quality of services.
Lead product engineers and production engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Lead Product Engineer | Production Engineer | |
| Average salary | $105,767 | $89,727 |
| Salary range | Between $81,000 And $137,000 | Between $64,000 And $125,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Meta | Cheniere Energy |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a lead product engineer and a production engineer in terms of educational background:
| Lead Product Engineer | Production Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 76% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Mechanical Engineering |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between lead product engineers' and production engineers' demographics:
| Lead Product Engineer | Production Engineer | |
| Average age | 41 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 84.2% Female, 15.8% | Male, 86.7% Female, 13.3% |
| Race ratio | 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% | Black or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.5% Asian, 15.4% White, 65.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 4% |