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The differences between product quality engineers and quality engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a product quality engineer and a quality engineer. Additionally, a product quality engineer has an average salary of $94,173, which is higher than the $79,672 average annual salary of a quality engineer.
The top three skills for a product quality engineer include product quality, continuous improvement and sigma. The most important skills for a quality engineer are corrective action, continuous improvement, and ISO.
| Product Quality Engineer | Quality Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $94,173 | $79,672 |
| Hourly rate | $45.28 | $38.30 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 152,621 | 96,838 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A product quality engineer is responsible for conducting quality check procedures for outputs and manufacturing processes to ensure high-quality deliverables according to business requirements and client specifications. Product quality engineers implement quality assessment criteria with strict adherence to internal guidelines and regulatory policies. They inspect the tools and equipment used for the production and solve inconsistencies, recommending and writing process reports to prevent fault reoccurrence that may affect product standards and market quality and cause distribution delays.
A quality engineer's responsibilities include ensuring that the manufacturing processes are efficient and accurate, documenting findings that would raise concerns, conducting quality tests while observing parameters, and implementing changes as necessary to meet the highest quality standards. Quality engineers need to have excellent problem-solving and observation skills to detect any irregularities and possible malfunctions. They also must be able to communicate effectively with the clients for feedbacks and corrective adjustments, address complaints, and immediately resolve any inconsistencies made.
Product quality engineers and quality engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Product Quality Engineer | Quality Engineer | |
| Average salary | $94,173 | $79,672 |
| Salary range | Between $71,000 And $124,000 | Between $61,000 And $103,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | Washington |
| Best paying company | Meta | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a product quality engineer and a quality engineer in terms of educational background:
| Product Quality Engineer | Quality Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Mechanical Engineering |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between product quality engineers' and quality engineers' demographics:
| Product Quality Engineer | Quality Engineer | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 81.8% Female, 18.2% | Male, 78.2% Female, 21.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.2% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.4% Asian, 15.1% White, 66.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 4.7% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 11.5% Asian, 13.9% White, 65.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 4% | 4% |