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The differences between packaging engineers and design engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a packaging engineer, becoming a design engineer takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a packaging engineer has an average salary of $88,452, which is higher than the $77,134 average annual salary of a design engineer.
The top three skills for a packaging engineer include CAD, project management and solidworks. The most important skills for a design engineer are C++, UL, and project management.
| Packaging Engineer | Design Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $88,452 | $77,134 |
| Hourly rate | $42.52 | $37.08 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 54,028 | 138,173 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | Bachelor's Degree, 72% |
| Average age | 42 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 6 |
A Packaging Engineer plans and implements packaging designs to ensure product integrity and appeal. Their primary duties include supervising and managing the complete packaging development process, analyzing engineering drawings, and conducting periodic vendor reviews.
A design engineer is responsible for creating systems and applications based on their expertise. Design engineers work through client specifications based on business needs. A design engineer also provides recommendations on improving existing systems to boost its performance and increase efficiency. Design engineers must have an excellent command of computer systems, programming codes, and technical data to ensure the system's stability and high-quality processes. A design engineer should also have strong analytical and time-management skills to perform tasks and meet deadlines.
Packaging engineers and design engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Packaging Engineer | Design Engineer | |
| Average salary | $88,452 | $77,134 |
| Salary range | Between $65,000 And $118,000 | Between $57,000 And $102,000 |
| Highest paying City | Santa Rosa, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Apple | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a packaging engineer and a design engineer in terms of educational background:
| Packaging Engineer | Design Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | Bachelor's Degree, 72% |
| Most common major | Engineering And Industrial Management | Mechanical Engineering |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Michigan Technological University |
Here are the differences between packaging engineers' and design engineers' demographics:
| Packaging Engineer | Design Engineer | |
| Average age | 42 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 77.1% Female, 22.9% | Male, 88.9% Female, 11.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.6% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 11.2% Asian, 13.1% White, 67.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 3.2% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 8.2% Asian, 16.8% White, 67.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 4% | 5% |