Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between retirement plan specialists and benefits analysts can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a retirement plan specialist and a benefits analyst. Additionally, a retirement plan specialist has an average salary of $60,611, which is higher than the $50,944 average annual salary of a benefits analyst.
The top three skills for a retirement plan specialist include life insurance, financial products and FINRA. The most important skills for a benefits analyst are customer service, HR, and HRIS.
| Retirement Plan Specialist | Benefits Analyst | |
| Yearly salary | $60,611 | $50,944 |
| Hourly rate | $29.14 | $24.49 |
| Growth rate | 7% | 7% |
| Number of jobs | 9,336 | 20,211 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 76% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
Retirement plan specialists are experts who plan out their client's financial needs for retirement. The specialist's design and implement savings, benefit, and pension programs for clients. They have to explain the complicated nature of compensation, investment, and retirement packages to employees clearly and concisely. They process retirement plans following company and federal regulations. Also, they often have a background in business or human resources, and they may choose to earn employee benefit certifications that may help with their career advancement.
A Benefits Analyst is responsible for administering and communicating benefit programs for an organization. They attract and retain employees through researching, recommending, and explaining benefit programs.
Retirement plan specialists and benefits analysts have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Retirement Plan Specialist | Benefits Analyst | |
| Average salary | $60,611 | $50,944 |
| Salary range | Between $41,000 And $88,000 | Between $36,000 And $70,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | - | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | - | Amd |
| Best paying industry | - | Professional |
There are a few differences between a retirement plan specialist and a benefits analyst in terms of educational background:
| Retirement Plan Specialist | Benefits Analyst | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 76% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between retirement plan specialists' and benefits analysts' demographics:
| Retirement Plan Specialist | Benefits Analyst | |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 54.4% Female, 45.6% | Male, 27.8% Female, 72.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.5% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 15.2% Asian, 7.8% White, 62.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 11.1% Unknown, 3.6% Hispanic or Latino, 15.2% Asian, 7.8% White, 61.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 9% |