Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between quality inspectors and quality engineers 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 $33,197 average annual salary of a quality inspector.
The top three skills for a quality inspector include calipers, micrometers and quality standards. The most important skills for a quality engineer are corrective action, continuous improvement, and ISO.
| Quality Inspector | Quality Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $33,197 | $79,672 |
| Hourly rate | $15.96 | $38.30 |
| Growth rate | -3% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 70,978 | 96,838 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 37% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Average age | 45 | 42 |
| Years of experience | - | 4 |
A Quality Control Inspector is responsible for making sure that the manufactured products in a particular company or organization are up to standard and adheres to the rules and regulations. They continuously monitor production operations where they manually inspect products, accepting and rejecting those that do not meet the standard quality, and provide recommendations should it be necessary. Moreover, the Quality Control Inspectors coordinates with workers to ensure improvements, and with management to report the results.
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.
Quality inspectors and quality engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Quality Inspector | Quality Engineer | |
| Average salary | $33,197 | $79,672 |
| Salary range | Between $25,000 And $42,000 | Between $61,000 And $103,000 |
| Highest paying City | Minneapolis, MN | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | Washington |
| Best paying company | Nabors Industries | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Health Care | Technology |
There are a few differences between a quality inspector and a quality engineer in terms of educational background:
| Quality Inspector | Quality Engineer | |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 37% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Most common major | Business | Mechanical Engineering |
| Most common college | - | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between quality inspectors' and quality engineers' demographics:
| Quality Inspector | Quality Engineer | |
| Average age | 45 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 53.5% Female, 46.5% | Male, 78.2% Female, 21.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.6% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.2% Asian, 8.5% White, 57.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0% | 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% |
| LGBT Percentage | 4% | 4% |