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The differences between quality engineers and auditors/quality can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a quality engineer has an average salary of $79,672, which is higher than the $35,312 average annual salary of an auditor/quality.
The top three skills for a quality engineer include corrective action, continuous improvement and ISO. The most important skills for an auditor/quality are excellent interpersonal, excellent organizational, and audit findings.
| Quality Engineer | Auditor/Quality | |
| Yearly salary | $79,672 | $35,312 |
| Hourly rate | $38.30 | $16.98 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 96,838 | 77,040 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 70% | Bachelor's Degree, 39% |
| Average age | 42 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | - |
A quality engineer's responsibilities include ensuring that the manufacturing processes are efficient and accurate, documenting findings that would raise concerns, conducting quality tests while observing parameters, and implementing changes as necessary to meet the highest quality standards. Quality engineers need to have excellent problem-solving and observation skills to detect any irregularities and possible malfunctions. They also must be able to communicate effectively with the clients for feedbacks and corrective adjustments, address complaints, and immediately resolve any inconsistencies made.
A quality auditor is responsible for inspecting the company's services and products, ensuring its adherence to business requirements and internal regulations. Quality auditors analyze the efficiency of operational functions and production processes to maintain high-quality deliverables with the utmost consideration for the safety and security of the production staff. They run quality checks for the outputs, create findings reports, and strategize methodologies to enhance stability by utilizing standard testing parameters. A quality auditor must have excellent communication and organizational skills, as they may also recommend opportunities to generate more resources and increase revenues.
Quality engineers and auditors/quality have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Quality Engineer | Auditor/Quality | |
| Average salary | $79,672 | $35,312 |
| Salary range | Between $61,000 And $103,000 | Between $24,000 And $50,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Shelton, CT |
| Highest paying state | Washington | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Meta | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Retail |
There are a few differences between a quality engineer and an auditor/quality in terms of educational background:
| Quality Engineer | Auditor/Quality | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 70% | Bachelor's Degree, 39% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Business |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between quality engineers' and auditors/quality' demographics:
| Quality Engineer | Auditor/Quality | |
| Average age | 42 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 78.2% Female, 21.8% | Male, 44.8% Female, 55.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.7% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 11.5% Asian, 13.9% White, 65.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 8.5% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.8% Asian, 12.2% White, 64.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 4% | 7% |