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The differences between lead product engineers and project lead 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 project lead engineer takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a project lead engineer has an average salary of $106,946, which is higher than the $105,767 average annual salary of a lead product engineer.
The top three skills for a lead product engineer include java, solidworks and software development. The most important skills for a project lead engineer are project management, renewable energy, and project execution.
| Lead Product Engineer | Project Lead Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $105,767 | $106,946 |
| Hourly rate | $50.85 | $51.42 |
| Growth rate | 2% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 149,514 | 98,018 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| 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.
Project lead engineers are engineering professionals who are responsible for leading other professionals in completing a particular project. These engineers must develop a project management framework to be implemented throughout the organization based on the inputs from internal stakeholders and team members. They are required to train junior team members so that they can provide proper technical support functions. Project lead engineers must also prepare and review cost estimates for a variety of projects during bidding, construction, and post-construction phases.
Lead product engineers and project lead engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Lead Product Engineer | Project Lead Engineer | |
| Average salary | $105,767 | $106,946 |
| Salary range | Between $81,000 And $137,000 | Between $78,000 And $146,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Cupertino, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Meta | Apple |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Automotive |
There are a few differences between a lead product engineer and a project lead engineer in terms of educational background:
| Lead Product Engineer | Project Lead Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Mechanical Engineering |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between lead product engineers' and project lead engineers' demographics:
| Lead Product Engineer | Project Lead Engineer | |
| Average age | 41 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 84.2% Female, 15.8% | Male, 86.8% Female, 13.2% |
| 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, 10.4% Asian, 15.2% White, 66.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 4% |