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The differences between quality assurance engineers and test engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a quality assurance engineer and a test engineer. Additionally, a quality assurance engineer has an average salary of $82,215, which is higher than the $79,832 average annual salary of a test engineer.
The top three skills for a quality assurance engineer include java, python and regression. The most important skills for a test engineer are python, C++, and C #.
| Quality Assurance Engineer | Test Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $82,215 | $79,832 |
| Hourly rate | $39.53 | $38.38 |
| Growth rate | - | - |
| Number of jobs | 243,536 | 228,974 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 71% | Bachelor's Degree, 72% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A Quality Assurance Engineer's role is to oversee the overall production and ensure that the product is cost-efficient and aligns with the company's standards. The responsibility mainly revolves around conducting activities that examine and scrutinize the condition of a product or service to identify issues and come up with possible solutions to resolve the issue or attain stronger customer satisfaction. Furthermore, the Quality Assurance Engineer must also ensure that the product adheres to the government regulations and market guidelines.
Test engineers are professionals who observe and record the quality of products, which includes functionality, durability, speed, and safety. They are responsible for checking the materials and procedures thoroughly throughout the production cycle. It is their duty to run tests on different criteria to identify and fix technical issues. They analyze reactions to determine the causes of malfunctions and recommend potential improvements. Moreover, they test products before they are launched to ensure customers get high-quality and functional products.
Quality assurance engineers and test engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Quality Assurance Engineer | Test Engineer | |
| Average salary | $82,215 | $79,832 |
| Salary range | Between $61,000 And $109,000 | Between $60,000 And $104,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Mateo, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | The Citadel | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Telecommunication |
There are a few differences between a quality assurance engineer and a test engineer in terms of educational background:
| Quality Assurance Engineer | Test Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 71% | Bachelor's Degree, 72% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | California State University - Long Beach |
Here are the differences between quality assurance engineers' and test engineers' demographics:
| Quality Assurance Engineer | Test Engineer | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 69.5% Female, 30.5% | Male, 81.7% Female, 18.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 12.0% White, 67.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 12.0% White, 67.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |