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The differences between product engineers and product development 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 product engineer and a product development engineer. Additionally, a product engineer has an average salary of $89,645, which is higher than the $86,075 average annual salary of a product development engineer.
The top three skills for a product engineer include CAD, product design and project management. The most important skills for a product development engineer are CAD, solidworks, and product development.
| Product Engineer | Product Development Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $89,645 | $86,075 |
| Hourly rate | $43.10 | $41.38 |
| Growth rate | 2% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 157,888 | 202,155 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 74% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
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.
A Product Development Engineer is responsible for creating and testing new product designs. They collaborate with market researchers to evaluate market needs, existing competition, and potential costs.
Product engineers and product development engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Product Engineer | Product Development Engineer | |
| Average salary | $89,645 | $86,075 |
| Salary range | Between $68,000 And $118,000 | Between $64,000 And $113,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Sunnyvale, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Meta | Amazon |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a product engineer and a product development engineer in terms of educational background:
| Product Engineer | Product Development Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 74% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Mechanical Engineering |
| Most common college | Michigan Technological University | Michigan Technological University |
Here are the differences between product engineers' and product development engineers' demographics:
| Product Engineer | Product Development Engineer | |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 87.8% Female, 12.2% | Male, 86.8% Female, 13.2% |
| Race ratio | 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% | Black or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 16.7% White, 67.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 5% |