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The differences between procurement engineers and buyers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a procurement engineer, becoming a buyer takes usually requires More than 10 years. Additionally, a procurement engineer has an average salary of $75,682, which is higher than the $54,049 average annual salary of a buyer.
The top three skills for a procurement engineer include project management, cost reduction and supplier quality. The most important skills for a buyer are purchase orders, customer service, and logistics.
| Procurement Engineer | Buyer | |
| Yearly salary | $75,682 | $54,049 |
| Hourly rate | $36.39 | $25.99 |
| Growth rate | 10% | - |
| Number of jobs | 28,571 | 23,589 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 75% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Average age | 42 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 4 | - |
Procurement engineers are professionals who are responsible for procuring technical goods and services that are used in the industrial operation of an organization. These engineers must evaluate all new and existing suppliers and negotiate purchase agreements to ensure that the purchased goods and services are delivered as promised. They must ensure that all the machines and equipment are following the quality and performance standards of the facility. Procurement engineers must also choose appropriate suppliers by analyzing and comparing their products and prices.
A buyer's duties include product sourcing and comparing resources for the best product range that would suit the specific needs of the business. Buyers must have excellent communication and negotiation skills to evaluate items that most likely benefit the customer and improve the sales of daily operations with cost-efficient products. They also conduct extensive research for market and price trends while considering the highest quality standards. Buyers should also possess strong analytical skills to create purchase orders and statistical analysis.
Procurement engineers and buyers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Procurement Engineer | Buyer | |
| Average salary | $75,682 | $54,049 |
| Salary range | Between $54,000 And $105,000 | Between $37,000 And $76,000 |
| Highest paying City | Menlo Park, CA | Englewood, NJ |
| Highest paying state | Massachusetts | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Apple | NVIDIA |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Automotive |
There are a few differences between a procurement engineer and a buyer in terms of educational background:
| Procurement Engineer | Buyer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 75% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | California State University - Bakersfield |
Here are the differences between procurement engineers' and buyers' demographics:
| Procurement Engineer | Buyer | |
| Average age | 42 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 83.1% Female, 16.9% | Male, 43.9% Female, 56.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.2% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.4% Asian, 15.1% White, 66.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 4.0% Unknown, 3.1% Hispanic or Latino, 10.0% Asian, 6.7% White, 75.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 4% | 15% |