Senior buyer vs purchasing assistant

The differences between senior buyers and purchasing assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a senior buyer and a purchasing assistant. Additionally, a senior buyer has an average salary of $79,848, which is higher than the $38,331 average annual salary of a purchasing assistant.

The top three skills for a senior buyer include supply chain, purchase orders and MRP. The most important skills for a purchasing assistant are purchase orders, purchase requisitions, and customer service.

Senior buyer vs purchasing assistant overview

	Senior Buyer	Purchasing Assistant
Yearly salary	$79,848	$38,331
Hourly rate	$38.39	$18.43
Growth rate	-	-8%
Number of jobs	27,412	8,415
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 70%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	6	6

What does a senior buyer do?

The job of senior buyers, or also known as purchasing agents, is to meet the material needs of an organization. They are responsible for finding suppliers, arranging the distribution to several retail outlets, and supervising other purchasing agents. They also look for new product streams and establish procurement strategies. Senior buyers typically begin their careers as assistant buyers or junior purchasing agents. Most employers usually prefer those with college degrees in marketing, business, and economics.

What does a purchasing assistant do?

A purchasing assistant is responsible for obtaining raw materials and goods for a business or company. They primarily function to assist purchasing managers or supervisors by keeping records, maintaining inventory, reviewing purchase orders, and monitoring shipments and deliveries. Furthermore, a purchasing assistant may perform administrative support tasks ranging from arranging appointments and managing schedules, answering calls and inquiries, reaching out to vendors and suppliers, producing reports, and coordinating with various departments to ensure the smooth flow of products within the company.

Senior buyer vs purchasing assistant salary

Senior buyers and purchasing assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Senior Buyer	Purchasing Assistant
Average salary	$79,848	$38,331
Salary range	Between $56,000 And $112,000	Between $31,000 And $47,000
Highest paying City	New York, NY	Baltimore, MD
Highest paying state	New York	Maryland
Best paying company	Capgemini	University of California, Berkeley
Best paying industry	Hospitality	Technology

Differences between senior buyer and purchasing assistant education

There are a few differences between a senior buyer and a purchasing assistant in terms of educational background:

	Senior Buyer	Purchasing Assistant
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 70%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Senior buyer vs purchasing assistant demographics

Here are the differences between senior buyers' and purchasing assistants' demographics:

	Senior Buyer	Purchasing Assistant
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 57.7% Female, 42.3%	Male, 22.8% Female, 77.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.8% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.1% Asian, 7.6% White, 66.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%	Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.4% Asian, 7.8% White, 65.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between senior buyer and purchasing assistant duties and responsibilities

Senior buyer example responsibilities.

Manage assigned commodities by communicating MRP changes and forecasts to minimize excess inventory to achieve optimum inventory levels.
Manage and analyze supplier OTD and keep in constant communication with suppliers to help improve delivery.
Manage ECO process with overseas manufacturing partner.
Lead Made2Manage ERP system development and implementation to improve effectiveness and efficiency of inventory.
Manage invoice reconciliations, RFQ management, system database review and regular inventory reporting.
Manage commodities at establish re-order point levels meeting forecast for production scale-up and revenue goals.

Purchasing assistant example responsibilities.

Manage RFP process and play a key role in minimizing the cost of printing.
Schedule and manage new product trials, liaise with vendors, surgeons and specialty coordinators.
Manage activities of purchasing, production planning and scheduling, inventory management, warehousing and logistics.
Master point of service (POS) computer system for automate order taking.
Input of purchase orders into ERP system, order acknowledgments, follow-up, and expedition of orders.
Prepare purchase orders using MRP, inspect incoming shipments for quality, and attend press checks for production approval.

Senior buyer vs purchasing assistant skills

Common senior buyer skills

Supply Chain, 17%
Purchase Orders, 11%
MRP, 4%
Supplier Performance, 4%
Commodities, 4%
Continuous Improvement, 4%

Common purchasing assistant skills

Purchase Orders, 30%
Purchase Requisitions, 18%
Customer Service, 11%
Data Entry, 8%
Logistics, 3%
POS, 2%

Senior Buyer vs. similar jobs

Senior Buyer related careers

Senior Buyer related jobs

What similar roles do

Zippia Careers
Business and Financial Industry
Senior Buyer
Senior Buyer vs Purchasing Assistant

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse business and financial jobs