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The differences between product sales engineers and sales support 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 sales engineer and a sales support engineer. Additionally, a product sales engineer has an average salary of $92,735, which is higher than the $78,335 average annual salary of a sales support engineer.
The top three skills for a product sales engineer include product sales, UL and product development. The most important skills for a sales support engineer are CRM, product line, and sales process.
| Product Sales Engineer | Sales Support Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $92,735 | $78,335 |
| Hourly rate | $44.58 | $37.66 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 139,762 | 118,608 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
Production sales engineer positions will require good judgment and business sense, resilience, and even, in an increasing capacity, foreign language skills, as well as teamwork and problem-solving skills. Those who choose this career path will be called upon to provide pre-sales technical assistance and product education, as well as make technical presentations and demonstrations. They will also be required to form liaisons with the sales team and other technical experts and solve any issues clients may have.
A sales support engineer assists customers by dealing with complex issues and concerns, resolving them using their technical expertise. They usually communicate with customers using calls and correspondence, and through this, they also develop and deliver sales proposals, answer inquiries, and provide price quotes. Moreover, a sales support engineer also works to assist sales teams by conducting research and analyses to develop procedures that will optimize operations, producing data and guidelines, and creating sales strategies for profit growth.
Product sales engineers and sales support engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Product Sales Engineer | Sales Support Engineer | |
| Average salary | $92,735 | $78,335 |
| Salary range | Between $67,000 And $126,000 | Between $52,000 And $116,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Fort Collins, CO |
| Highest paying state | California | Virginia |
| Best paying company | Agilent Technologies | |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Energy |
There are a few differences between a product sales engineer and a sales support engineer in terms of educational background:
| Product Sales Engineer | Sales Support Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Most common major | Business | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between product sales engineers' and sales support engineers' demographics:
| Product Sales Engineer | Sales Support Engineer | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 74.8% Female, 25.2% | Male, 84.8% Female, 15.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 1.7% Unknown, 6.2% Hispanic or Latino, 8.0% Asian, 6.5% White, 77.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 1.6% Unknown, 6.2% Hispanic or Latino, 8.0% Asian, 8.2% White, 75.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |