Purchasing administrator vs purchaser

The differences between purchasing administrators and purchasers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a purchasing administrator and a purchaser. Additionally, a purchaser has an average salary of $50,031, which is higher than the $40,133 average annual salary of a purchasing administrator.

The top three skills for a purchasing administrator include purchase orders, invoice and data entry. The most important skills for a purchaser are purchase orders, FDA, and POS.

Purchasing administrator vs purchaser overview

	Purchasing Administrator	Purchaser
Yearly salary	$40,133	$50,031
Hourly rate	$19.29	$24.05
Growth rate	-8%	-
Number of jobs	63,681	6,852
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 57%	Bachelor's Degree, 54%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	6	6

What does a purchasing administrator do?

A purchasing administrator is primarily in charge of overseeing a company's purchasing procedures. As a purchasing administrator, it is their duty to monitor the company's inventory of supplies, gather and analyze purchase requests, and process purchase orders, resolving issues should there be any. They must also negotiate with vendors and suppliers, building positive relationships with them. Furthermore, as a purchasing administrator, it is essential to maintain records of all transactions, producing progress reports regularly for a smooth and efficient workflow.

What does a purchaser do?

A Purchaser is responsible for buying goods and services from distribution centers to sell to customers or other companies. They conduct data analysis and research current market trends to identify public demands and generate resources that would increase the company's revenues and profitability. They also ensure the adequacy of supply inventories for deliveries, respond to customers' inquiries and concerns, and recommend products according to their needs and budget requirements. A Purchaser must have excellent communication and organizational skills, especially in documenting purchase transactions and negotiating contracts with suppliers and vendors.

Purchasing administrator vs purchaser salary

Purchasing administrators and purchasers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Purchasing Administrator	Purchaser
Average salary	$40,133	$50,031
Salary range	Between $30,000 And $53,000	Between $36,000 And $68,000
Highest paying City	Sacramento, CA	Atlantic City, NJ
Highest paying state	Washington	New Jersey
Best paying company	Rivian	Barnes Group
Best paying industry	Health Care	Technology

Differences between purchasing administrator and purchaser education

There are a few differences between a purchasing administrator and a purchaser in terms of educational background:

	Purchasing Administrator	Purchaser
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 57%	Bachelor's Degree, 54%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Purchasing administrator vs purchaser demographics

Here are the differences between purchasing administrators' and purchasers' demographics:

	Purchasing Administrator	Purchaser
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 24.0% Female, 76.0%	Male, 49.2% Female, 50.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.5% Asian, 7.8% White, 65.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%	Black or African American, 8.8% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.2% Asian, 7.7% White, 66.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between purchasing administrator and purchaser duties and responsibilities

Purchasing administrator example responsibilities.

Manage the RFP preparation and analysis, cost negotiations, and vendor performance management.
Manage logistics and materials receive for appropriate quantities, timeliness and accuracy to complete project project.
Resolve RMA s on all engineering material.
Schedule product delivery against customer needs and MRP.
Administer the ISO 9001 and vendor performance evaluation process.
Maintain and update supplier master information in the ERP system.

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Purchaser example responsibilities.

Purchase components for production; run daily production schedule; manage inventory of items; source alternative items for production
Work extensively with customers to identify business and project requirements through RFI's, RFP's, and RFQ's.
Handle RFQ (request for quotation) and the RFB (request for bid).
Insure day to day operations run smoothly.
Operate ERP system in factory and keep the data update.
Order parts & MRO items as needed for production workers.

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Purchasing administrator vs purchaser skills

Common purchasing administrator skills

Purchase Orders, 33%
Invoice, 10%
Data Entry, 10%
ERP, 4%
Office Equipment, 2%
Credit Card, 2%

Common purchaser skills

Purchase Orders, 38%
FDA, 7%
POS, 6%
Commodities, 5%
Logistics, 4%
Expedite, 3%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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