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The differences between project planners and planning engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a project planner, becoming a planning engineer takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a project planner has an average salary of $86,926, which is higher than the $82,521 average annual salary of a planning engineer.
The top three skills for a project planner include project management, project planning and microsoft project. The most important skills for a planning engineer are project management, infrastructure, and transmission planning.
| Project Planner | Planning Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $86,926 | $82,521 |
| Hourly rate | $41.79 | $39.67 |
| Growth rate | -3% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 56,558 | 56,792 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Average age | 45 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 4 |
A project planner is responsible for determining project management procedures according to business requirements and client specifications. Project planners schedule deliverables of outputs for every milestone to ensure that the team follows the track of guidelines, adhering to the company policies and project plans. They write status reports, conduct cost expenses analysis, and strategize techniques in maximizing the team's productivity and efficiency. A project planner also identifies opportunities to improve project workloads and adjust procedures as necessary to meet the highest goals and objectives.
A planning engineer is in charge of developing plans and systems to organize and schedule project procedures, ensuring efficiency and timeliness. Their responsibilities revolve around learning and understanding the extent of all operations, setting schedules and objectives, liaising with external parties such as vendors or distributors, and maintaining an active communication line with other departments. Furthermore, a planning engineer must monitor the progress of the workflow and the performance of the workforce, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
Project planners and planning engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Project Planner | Planning Engineer | |
| Average salary | $86,926 | $82,521 |
| Salary range | Between $63,000 And $118,000 | Between $61,000 And $110,000 |
| Highest paying City | Davis, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Novo Nordisk | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Hospitality | Energy |
There are a few differences between a project planner and a planning engineer in terms of educational background:
| Project Planner | Planning Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Most common major | Business | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Western Carolina University | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between project planners' and planning engineers' demographics:
| Project Planner | Planning Engineer | |
| Average age | 45 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 65.1% Female, 34.9% | Male, 83.2% Female, 16.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.3% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.9% Asian, 7.0% White, 60.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.6% Asian, 15.6% White, 65.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 4% |