Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between quality engineers and software 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 engineer and a software engineer. Additionally, a software engineer has an average salary of $100,260, which is higher than the $79,672 average annual salary of a quality engineer.
The top three skills for a quality engineer include corrective action, continuous improvement and ISO. The most important skills for a software engineer are java, python, and software development.
| Quality Engineer | Software Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $79,672 | $100,260 |
| Hourly rate | $38.30 | $48.20 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 21% |
| Number of jobs | 96,838 | 339,938 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 3.5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 70% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Average age | 42 | 39 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 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 software engineer is a computer science professional who is responsible for the development of information systems, designing and building computer systems software and applications software. They often prefer to call themselves as a software developer or computer programmer. They have substantial knowledge of programming languages, software development, and computer operating systems, and other technologies. They use these to turn a plan into a final output. They can create a design, test, and develop software based on the needs of their clients.
Quality engineers and software engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Quality Engineer | Software Engineer | |
| Average salary | $79,672 | $100,260 |
| Salary range | Between $61,000 And $103,000 | Between $73,000 And $136,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Bruno, CA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | California |
| Best paying company | Meta | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Start-up |
There are a few differences between a quality engineer and a software engineer in terms of educational background:
| Quality Engineer | Software Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 70% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Harvard University |
Here are the differences between quality engineers' and software engineers' demographics:
| Quality Engineer | Software Engineer | |
| Average age | 42 | 39 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 78.2% Female, 21.8% | Male, 78.0% Female, 22.0% |
| 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, 4.4% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 8.1% Asian, 34.0% White, 48.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 4% | 8% |