Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between quality assurance engineering managers and quality assurance leads can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a quality assurance engineering manager, becoming a quality assurance lead takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a quality assurance engineering manager has an average salary of $124,894, which is higher than the $94,758 average annual salary of a quality assurance lead.
The top three skills for a quality assurance engineering manager include corrective action, continuous improvement and java. The most important skills for a quality assurance lead are QA, test cases, and test plan.
| Quality Assurance Engineering Manager | Quality Assurance Lead | |
| Yearly salary | $124,894 | $94,758 |
| Hourly rate | $60.05 | $45.56 |
| Growth rate | 3% | - |
| Number of jobs | 114,803 | 82,242 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Average age | 48 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 4 |
Quality Assurance Engineering Managers require up to five years in any related field and one to three years of supervisory experience, and a healthy and developed set of skills including math, leadership, and crucial thinking. Those who choose this career option can expect an annual salary between $80K and $141K. Their responsibilities involve the development and safeguarding of quality standards for production companies and staff management, production process oversight, data analysis, and strategy planning to ensure higher product quality.
A quality assurance lead, also known as QA Lead, is responsible for conducting necessary quality tests and analyses for software program and development. As a quality assurance lead, they must take the lead in ensuring quality during development by proactively performing critical evaluations, troubleshooting, and providing precise documentation. It is also essential to identify issues and resolve them as soon as possible. Furthermore, a quality assurance lead must maintain an active line of communication and coordination as most of the work will be in a team setting.
Quality assurance engineering managers and quality assurance leads have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Quality Assurance Engineering Manager | Quality Assurance Lead | |
| Average salary | $124,894 | $94,758 |
| Salary range | Between $90,000 And $172,000 | Between $72,000 And $123,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Alaska | California |
| Best paying company | Meta | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Retail |
There are a few differences between a quality assurance engineering manager and a quality assurance lead in terms of educational background:
| Quality Assurance Engineering Manager | Quality Assurance Lead | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Most common major | Business | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
Here are the differences between quality assurance engineering managers' and quality assurance leads' demographics:
| Quality Assurance Engineering Manager | Quality Assurance Lead | |
| Average age | 48 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 85.1% Female, 14.9% | Male, 63.0% Female, 37.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 12.9% Asian, 9.0% White, 69.9% 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 | 8% | 11% |