Mechanical design technician vs mechanical engineer

The differences between mechanical design technicians and mechanical engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a mechanical design technician and a mechanical engineer. Additionally, a mechanical engineer has an average salary of $75,352, which is higher than the $60,714 average annual salary of a mechanical design technician.

The top three skills for a mechanical design technician include CAD, revit and fire protection. The most important skills for a mechanical engineer are CAD, solidworks, and mechanical systems.

Mechanical design technician vs mechanical engineer overview

	Mechanical Design Technician	Mechanical Engineer
Yearly salary	$60,714	$75,352
Hourly rate	$29.19	$36.23
Growth rate	2%	2%
Number of jobs	62,685	105,618
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 59%	Bachelor's Degree, 77%
Average age	41	41
Years of experience	6	6

Mechanical design technician vs mechanical engineer salary

Mechanical design technicians and mechanical engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Mechanical Design Technician	Mechanical Engineer
Average salary	$60,714	$75,352
Salary range	Between $47,000 And $77,000	Between $58,000 And $97,000
Highest paying City	-	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	-	Washington
Best paying company	-	Meta
Best paying industry	-	Energy

Differences between mechanical design technician and mechanical engineer education

There are a few differences between a mechanical design technician and a mechanical engineer in terms of educational background:

	Mechanical Design Technician	Mechanical Engineer
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 59%	Bachelor's Degree, 77%
Most common major	Drafting And Design	Mechanical Engineering
Most common college	Northwestern University	Michigan Technological University

Mechanical design technician vs mechanical engineer demographics

Here are the differences between mechanical design technicians' and mechanical engineers' demographics:

	Mechanical Design Technician	Mechanical Engineer
Average age	41	41
Gender ratio	Male, 89.3% Female, 10.7%	Male, 90.6% Female, 9.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.4% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 9.2% Asian, 10.4% White, 72.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%	Black or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 16.6% White, 68.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage	5%	5%

Differences between mechanical design technician and mechanical engineer duties and responsibilities

Mechanical design technician example responsibilities.

Provide mechanical design and sustaining engineering expertise to troubleshoot manufacturing defect trends and achieve a more robust and producible product.
Design and model changes to drawings for support of fabrication and installation of HVAC, plumbing and major commercial/industrial/residential pipe systems.
Engineer air-conditioning, heating, refrigeration, plumbing, and electrical power supply for renovate building spaces.
Convert and clean-up architectural background drawings and establish mechanical and plumbing drawings.
Create BOM for the lines; compose design documentation utilizing technical drawings and engineering specifications.
Design and manufacture documentation for custom smart power distribution products including customer specifications and vendor BOM's.

Mechanical engineer example responsibilities.

Manage machine shop and Sr. Machinist/Toolmaker.
Lead the implementation of Syteline MRP software.
Manage component work orders and failure test scheduling to parts as per DFMEA with design team.
Use of PLM software tools such as WindChill to manage data, revisions, iterations and approvals.
Lead a brainstorming session for review with supplier & management and follow through the successful implementation of a corrective action.
Attain SolidWorks CSWP certification and maintaining proficiency within CREO & AutoCad

Mechanical design technician vs mechanical engineer skills

Common mechanical design technician skills

CAD, 17%
Revit, 10%
Fire Protection, 9%
Solidworks, 8%
Assembly Drawings, 6%
BIM, 6%

Common mechanical engineer skills

CAD, 10%
Solidworks, 9%
Mechanical Systems, 6%
Mechanical Design, 5%
HVAC, 5%
Plumbing, 4%

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Mechanical Design Technician
Mechanical Design Technician vs Mechanical Engineer

Updated January 8, 2025

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