Purchase analyst vs buyer

The differences between purchase analysts 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 purchase analyst, becoming a buyer takes usually requires More than 10 years. Additionally, a purchase analyst has an average salary of $64,581, which is higher than the $54,049 average annual salary of a buyer.

The top three skills for a purchase analyst include purchase orders, supplier performance and continuous improvement. The most important skills for a buyer are purchase orders, customer service, and logistics.

Purchase analyst vs buyer overview

	Purchase Analyst	Buyer
Yearly salary	$64,581	$54,049
Hourly rate	$31.05	$25.99
Growth rate	11%	-
Number of jobs	88,542	23,589
Job satisfaction	-	5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 70%	Bachelor's Degree, 64%
Average age	44	47
Years of experience	4	-

What does a purchase analyst do?

A purchase analyst is responsible for looking at the market outlook and determining what and when to buy when ordering supplies. They are responsible for making an investment in a product or technology, and contracting with vendors. You have varied duties and responsibilities that include researching product prices and comparisons, determining price history and cost-effectiveness, and providing leadership for logistics, resource management decisions, and sourcing. You will also be responsible for purchasing equipment from suppliers and working closely with leadership to develop sourcing strategies.

What does a buyer do?

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.

Purchase analyst vs buyer salary

Purchase analysts and buyers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Purchase Analyst	Buyer
Average salary	$64,581	$54,049
Salary range	Between $42,000 And $98,000	Between $37,000 And $76,000
Highest paying City	Milford, MA	Englewood, NJ
Highest paying state	New Jersey	New Jersey
Best paying company	MPS Horticulture	NVIDIA
Best paying industry	Retail	Automotive

Differences between purchase analyst and buyer education

There are a few differences between a purchase analyst and a buyer in terms of educational background:

	Purchase Analyst	Buyer
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 70%	Bachelor's Degree, 64%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Northwestern University	California State University - Bakersfield

Purchase analyst vs buyer demographics

Here are the differences between purchase analysts' and buyers' demographics:

	Purchase Analyst	Buyer
Average age	44	47
Gender ratio	Male, 45.8% Female, 54.2%	Male, 43.9% Female, 56.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.4% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 9.1% Asian, 10.6% White, 67.2% 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	12%	15%

Differences between purchase analyst and buyer duties and responsibilities

Purchase analyst example responsibilities.

Transport purchases and contract and manage carriers (freight forwarders in order to arrange and manage the transportation of purchases.
Write RFI and RFP documents and manage the process for each.
Compile and manage the RFP excel database containing incumbent supplier pricing and alternative supplier pricing.
Manage purchasing data within proprietary applications and ERP systems with accuracy.
Manage and determine obsolete and/or slow moving inventory for all above mention commodities.
Manage factory activities for key commodities encompassing resource management in materials and production.

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Buyer example responsibilities.

Achieve QA initiatives by increasing transparency and communication with multiple departments and suppliers to achieve daily/weekly/monthly production requirements and expedites.
Manage all incoming RMA equipment, processing and directing to correct locations and departments.
Create, analyze and manage recaps pertaining to inventory, trends, OTB, and markdowns.
Manage KanBan spreadsheets to optimize inventory levels and supplier performance.
Manage business relationship with Japanese OEM of wide-format printer engines.
Manage MRB and IQA escalations to facilitate defective material resolutions.

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Purchase analyst vs buyer skills

Common purchase analyst skills

Purchase Orders, 13%
Supplier Performance, 11%
Continuous Improvement, 5%
ERP, 5%
Cost Analysis, 5%
Logistics, 4%

Common buyer skills

Purchase Orders, 22%
Customer Service, 11%
Logistics, 5%
Supplier Performance, 4%
MRP, 4%
Commodities, 3%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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