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The differences between research engineers and development engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a research engineer and a development engineer. Additionally, a research engineer has an average salary of $96,945, which is higher than the $93,206 average annual salary of a development engineer.
The top three skills for a research engineer include python, java and software development. The most important skills for a development engineer are java, python, and software development.
| Research Engineer | Development Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $96,945 | $93,206 |
| Hourly rate | $46.61 | $44.81 |
| Growth rate | 2% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 136,763 | 224,881 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 72% |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
Research Engineers are responsible for a wide range of duties, including researching and developing new technologies and prototypes, and finding solutions to improve techniques, procedures, and technologies.
A Development Engineer is responsible for the development and validation of products, systems, and components. They are also responsible for quality control of work and continuous improvement of engineer activities.
Research engineers and development engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Research Engineer | Development Engineer | |
| Average salary | $96,945 | $93,206 |
| Salary range | Between $67,000 And $138,000 | Between $70,000 And $122,000 |
| Highest paying City | Menlo Park, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | Washington |
| Best paying company | The Citadel | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Start-up | Technology |
There are a few differences between a research engineer and a development engineer in terms of educational background:
| Research Engineer | Development Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 72% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Mechanical Engineering |
| Most common college | Georgia Institute of Technology | Michigan Technological University |
Here are the differences between research engineers' and development engineers' demographics:
| Research Engineer | Development Engineer | |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 81.7% Female, 18.3% | Male, 85.5% Female, 14.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 16.9% White, 67.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% | Black or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 16.7% White, 67.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 5% |