Purchase analyst vs inventory control analyst

The differences between purchase analysts and inventory control analysts can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a purchase analyst has an average salary of $64,581, which is higher than the $54,184 average annual salary of an inventory control analyst.

The top three skills for a purchase analyst include purchase orders, supplier performance and continuous improvement. The most important skills for an inventory control analyst are logistics, inventory control procedures, and inventory management.

Purchase analyst vs inventory control analyst overview

	Purchase Analyst	Inventory Control Analyst
Yearly salary	$64,581	$54,184
Hourly rate	$31.05	$26.05
Growth rate	11%	23%
Number of jobs	88,542	48,044
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 70%	Bachelor's Degree, 60%
Average age	44	45
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 an inventory control analyst do?

An Inventory Control Analyst is responsible for managing the adequacy of inventories for distribution and business operations. Inventory Control Analysts inspect the quality of tools and materials required for the production and identify cost-reduction opportunities without compromising the quality standards. They also perform administrative and clerical duties, such as filing reports, creating purchase requests, processing customers' orders and payments, and overseeing sales targets. An Inventory Control Analyst must have excellent organizational and computer skills, especially handling and updating databases and updating information for accurate reference.

Purchase analyst vs inventory control analyst salary

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

	Purchase Analyst	Inventory Control Analyst
Average salary	$64,581	$54,184
Salary range	Between $42,000 And $98,000	Between $39,000 And $74,000
Highest paying City	Milford, MA	Oakland, CA
Highest paying state	New Jersey	Delaware
Best paying company	MPS Horticulture	VF
Best paying industry	Retail	Transportation

Differences between purchase analyst and inventory control analyst education

There are a few differences between a purchase analyst and an inventory control analyst in terms of educational background:

	Purchase Analyst	Inventory Control Analyst
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 70%	Bachelor's Degree, 60%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Northwestern University	University of Southern California

Purchase analyst vs inventory control analyst demographics

Here are the differences between purchase analysts' and inventory control analysts' demographics:

	Purchase Analyst	Inventory Control Analyst
Average age	44	45
Gender ratio	Male, 45.8% Female, 54.2%	Male, 56.6% Female, 43.4%
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, 12.5% Unknown, 6.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 8.4% White, 57.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	12%	9%

Differences between purchase analyst and inventory control analyst 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.

Inventory control analyst example responsibilities.

Manage the implementation and roll-out of SharePoint as a team collaboration and document management tool.
Prepare weekly and monthly inventory control and performance reporting from the data collect in the warehouse management system (WMS).
Coordinate the procurement, logistics, inventory management, and supplier relations operations.
Document all the new processes create and include them in the ISO procedures.
Create and set up - new item numbers, UPC codes and BOM in company database.
Procure materials base on MRP analysis to support marketing plan and follow up with vendors to ensure availability.

Purchase analyst vs inventory control analyst skills

Common purchase analyst skills

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

Common inventory control analyst skills

Logistics, 10%
Inventory Control Procedures, 7%
Inventory Management, 5%
WMS, 5%
Purchase Orders, 5%
Process Improvement, 5%

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Purchase Analyst
Purchase Analyst vs Inventory Control Analyst

Updated January 8, 2025

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