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The differences between mechanical development engineers and product 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 development engineer and a product engineer. Additionally, a mechanical development engineer has an average salary of $91,933, which is higher than the $89,645 average annual salary of a product engineer.
The top three skills for a mechanical development engineer include CAD, solidworks and FEA. The most important skills for a product engineer are CAD, product design, and project management.
| Mechanical Development Engineer | Product Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $91,933 | $89,645 |
| Hourly rate | $44.20 | $43.10 |
| Growth rate | 2% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 147,373 | 157,888 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 74% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A mechanical development engineer plans and designs tools, engines, machines, and other mechanically functioning equipment. They perform duties such as overseeing the installation, operation, maintenance and repair of equipment and systems. They also produce specifications for new or modified systems. They supervise design engineering for a variety of facilities, and they coordinate the construction, assembly, and testing of equipment and systems.
A product engineer specializes in designing and developing commercial materials and services. They are primarily responsible for conducting thorough research and analysis of the latest trends and marketing conditions to come up with new ideas and products for the public. Moreover, they are also responsible for producing reports and presentations, coordinating with the development team of their company. Product engineers also reach out to vendors and suppliers for the raw materials, set regulations and standards for the product, and even conduct a rigorous and regular quality check.
Mechanical development engineers and product engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Mechanical Development Engineer | Product Engineer | |
| Average salary | $91,933 | $89,645 |
| Salary range | Between $69,000 And $121,000 | Between $68,000 And $118,000 |
| Highest paying City | Oakland, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Amazon | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a mechanical development engineer and a product engineer in terms of educational background:
| Mechanical Development Engineer | Product Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 74% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Mechanical Engineering |
| Most common college | Michigan Technological University | Michigan Technological University |
Here are the differences between mechanical development engineers' and product engineers' demographics:
| Mechanical Development Engineer | Product Engineer | |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 89.3% Female, 10.7% | Male, 87.8% Female, 12.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.3% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 8.6% Asian, 15.8% White, 67.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% | Black or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 17.0% White, 67.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 5% |