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Lead programmer vs lead developer

The differences between lead programmers and lead developers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-8 years to become a lead programmer, becoming a lead developer takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a lead programmer has an average salary of $118,938, which is higher than the $116,340 average annual salary of a lead developer.

The top three skills for a lead programmer include java, javascript and python. The most important skills for a lead developer are java, javascript, and architecture.

Lead programmer vs lead developer overview

Lead ProgrammerLead Developer
Yearly salary$118,938$116,340
Hourly rate$57.18$55.93
Growth rate-7%21%
Number of jobs197,084274,208
Job satisfaction5-
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 69%Bachelor's Degree, 68%
Average age4739
Years of experience84

Lead programmer vs lead developer salary

Lead programmers and lead developers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Lead ProgrammerLead Developer
Average salary$118,938$116,340
Salary rangeBetween $87,000 And $161,000Between $83,000 And $161,000
Highest paying CityBellevue, WASan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateWashingtonCalifornia
Best paying companyMerrill LynchMayo Clinic
Best paying industryPharmaceuticalRetail

Differences between lead programmer and lead developer education

There are a few differences between a lead programmer and a lead developer in terms of educational background:

Lead ProgrammerLead Developer
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 69%Bachelor's Degree, 68%
Most common majorComputer ScienceComputer Science
Most common collegeMassachusetts Institute of TechnologyMassachusetts Institute of Technology

Lead programmer vs lead developer demographics

Here are the differences between lead programmers' and lead developers' demographics:

Lead ProgrammerLead Developer
Average age4739
Gender ratioMale, 88.3% Female, 11.7%Male, 76.4% Female, 23.6%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 5.1% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 9.1% Asian, 14.9% White, 66.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%Black or African American, 4.5% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 8.2% Asian, 29.9% White, 52.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage11%8%

Differences between lead programmer and lead developer duties and responsibilities

Lead programmer example responsibilities.

  • Lead programmer managing several teams on multiple games for the XBOX, PS2, and PC.
  • Lead solutions engineering that involve process automation, macro conversion and functionality enhancement.
  • Develop custom HTML and CSS documents for external clients.
  • Format HTML, RTF and PDF reports, using SAS - output delivery system ODS.
  • Administer multiple Linux base web servers.
  • Develop stored procedures for data access using PL/SQL.
  • Show more

Lead developer example responsibilities.

  • Develop UNIX shell scripts to automate the process of running jobs/batches for scheduling and process the feeds.
  • Consult on the database schema, create business environments, write stored procedures in PL/SQL, authore reports and manage security.
  • Configure and manage JGroup multicasting communication for apache tomcat web servers.
  • Develop an UI tool for inbound and outbound file monitoring tool using HTML, CSS, JavaScript etc.
  • Used HTML5 create forms and tables to display client's personal information which is fetched from back-end by using AJAX.
  • Object orient design and implementation with agile application development using scrum.
  • Show more

Lead programmer vs lead developer skills

Common lead programmer skills
  • Java, 11%
  • JavaScript, 5%
  • Python, 5%
  • Web Services, 5%
  • Database Design, 5%
  • Code Reviews, 5%
Common lead developer skills
  • Java, 10%
  • JavaScript, 5%
  • Architecture, 5%
  • C++, 4%
  • Web Application, 4%
  • GIT, 4%

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