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The differences between principal test engineers and senior principal 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 principal test engineer, becoming a senior principal engineer takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a senior principal engineer has an average salary of $130,642, which is higher than the $116,493 average annual salary of a principal test engineer.
The top three skills for a principal test engineer include python, C++ and java. The most important skills for a senior principal engineer are python, architecture, and java.
| Principal Test Engineer | Senior Principal Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $116,493 | $130,642 |
| Hourly rate | $56.01 | $62.81 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 96,539 | 272,459 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Average age | 44 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 6 |
Principal Test Engineers test automation tools and frameworks like Selenium, Appium, and Ranorex. They make sure that the software their companies offer is safe and reliable for consumer use. Being a principal test engineer requires testing to influence better software design, promoting good engineering practice, security, testability, scalability, drafting bug prevention strategies, and reliability. They are responsible for defining test goals, preparing and executing system-level functional tests, providing new project forecasts based on the provided information, and improving the current test solutions by reducing the test time, repeat tests, and yield analysis.
A senior principal engineer is responsible for leading engineering tasks within an organization and reports project updates to senior management. Senior principal engineers develop strategic methods and principles to improve the technical stability and efficiency of the company's systems, creating business proposals according to clients' specifications, and negotiating contracts with suppliers and other service providers. They also train new staff and identify innovations and business opportunities that would generate more revenue resources for the company.
Principal test engineers and senior principal engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Principal Test Engineer | Senior Principal Engineer | |
| Average salary | $116,493 | $130,642 |
| Salary range | Between $84,000 And $159,000 | Between $93,000 And $182,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Microsoft | Airbnb |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Professional |
There are a few differences between a principal test engineer and a senior principal engineer in terms of educational background:
| Principal Test Engineer | Senior Principal Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | California State University - Long Beach | Michigan Technological University |
Here are the differences between principal test engineers' and senior principal engineers' demographics:
| Principal Test Engineer | Senior Principal Engineer | |
| Average age | 44 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 89.8% Female, 10.2% | Male, 88.2% Female, 11.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 12.0% White, 67.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | 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% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 5% |