Sales agent vs real estate agent

The differences between sales agents and real estate agents can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a real estate agent has an average salary of $91,788, which is higher than the $45,217 average annual salary of a sales agent.

The top three skills for a sales agent include customer service, customer satisfaction and life insurance. The most important skills for a real estate agent are customer service, real estate license, and excellent interpersonal.

Sales agent vs real estate agent overview

	Sales Agent	Real Estate Agent
Yearly salary	$45,217	$91,788
Hourly rate	$21.74	$44.13
Growth rate	10%	5%
Number of jobs	391,987	41,399
Job satisfaction	-	4
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 48%	Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Average age	43	49
Years of experience	6	-

What does a sales agent do?

A sales representative is responsible for offering goods and services to potential and existing clients. Sales representatives must display a strong knowledge of the company's products to assist customers with their inquiries and concerns. A sales representative should have exceptional communication skills and extensive knowledge of the sales industry to deliver sales pitches and negotiate pricing offers with the clients. Sales representatives must also keep themselves updated with the current market trends to provide service recommendations, improving their sales to increase revenues.

What does a real estate agent do?

A real estate agent helps owners in the selling or renting of houses, land, offices, buildings, or any piece of property. They should be knowledgeable in the area they work in, which local properties are in the market, and the competitive prices for various properties. It is their responsibility to either market or sells in the best possible and reasonable price and conditions. Negotiating is a vital skill for real estate agents as they act as the middleman for buyers and sellers. Most agents bill the client with a percentage of the final sale price as the fee, but some would get a fixed commission for every sale.

Sales agent vs real estate agent salary

Sales agents and real estate agents have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Sales Agent	Real Estate Agent
Average salary	$45,217	$91,788
Salary range	Between $21,000 And $95,000	Between $66,000 And $126,000
Highest paying City	New York, NY	Long Beach, NY
Highest paying state	New York	West Virginia
Best paying company	Goldman Sachs	Santa Clara Valley Water District
Best paying industry	-	Finance

Differences between sales agent and real estate agent education

There are a few differences between a sales agent and a real estate agent in terms of educational background:

	Sales Agent	Real Estate Agent
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 48%	Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Stanford University	-

Sales agent vs real estate agent demographics

Here are the differences between sales agents' and real estate agents' demographics:

	Sales Agent	Real Estate Agent
Average age	43	49
Gender ratio	Male, 52.7% Female, 47.3%	Male, 43.4% Female, 56.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 5.7% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.0% Asian, 9.3% White, 68.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 5.2% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 13.0% Asian, 6.8% White, 70.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	6%	13%

Differences between sales agent and real estate agent duties and responsibilities

Sales agent example responsibilities.

Manage a CRM pipeline of hundreds of leads with different needs and qualifications.
Generate fresh leads through outbound telemarketing.
Achieve sales standards set for department by effectively communicating Humana campaigns to customers.
Increase customer understanding of Comcast products and pricing models as well as competitive advantage over other service providers.
Schedule and meet individuals\groups for assign or self-generate leads, assist and enroll eligible individuals in suitable Medicare product.
Adhere to all CMS, company, and carrier relate policies and procedures while growing sales.

Real estate agent example responsibilities.

Manage all accounting, cash management, budgeting and financing for individual LLC's and for corporate entity.
Manage extremely complex REO and short sale transactions, coordinating sellers, buyers, and lenders in order to complete them.
Create ad campaigns via Google ad-words and Facebook.
Determine whether title transfers are assessable for taxation.
Learn all phases of real estate ethics, practice and procedures.
Review and analyze corporate leases, securities offerings, and secure transactions.

Sales agent vs real estate agent skills

Common sales agent skills

Customer Service, 10%
Customer Satisfaction, 10%
Life Insurance, 10%
Insurance Products, 7%
Work Ethic, 6%
Cold Calls, 4%

Common real estate agent skills

Customer Service, 15%
Real Estate License, 11%
Excellent Interpersonal, 10%
Real Estate Market, 10%
Open Houses, 7%
Develop Marketing Materials, 6%

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Sales Agent vs Real Estate Agent

Updated January 8, 2025

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