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The differences between senior development engineers and staff 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 senior development engineer and a staff engineer. Additionally, a senior development engineer has an average salary of $113,763, which is higher than the $107,530 average annual salary of a staff engineer.
The top three skills for a senior development engineer include java, python and C++. The most important skills for a staff engineer are java, python, and architecture.
| Senior Development Engineer | Staff Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $113,763 | $107,530 |
| Hourly rate | $54.69 | $51.70 |
| Growth rate | 2% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 295,281 | 277,011 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A senior development engineer is responsible for designing and developing products and systems according to the needs of an organization. They typically conduct extensive research and analysis, create plans with designers and other engineers, build prototypes and test structures, troubleshoot problems, and create strategies to optimize operations. Moreover, being the senior development engineer, they must lead and serve as a role model to junior engineers in reaching goals, all while enforcing and promoting the company's policies and regulations.
Staff engineers are responsible for designing, developing, and inspecting various products, equipment, or structures. These professionals may perform varied duties depending on their specialization that includes overseeing the design and construction of buildings, bridges, sewer systems, and other infrastructure, estimating the financial costs of construction projects, and ensuring compliance with health and safety laws and regulations. Other duties include designing and developing machinery, tools, and engines, solving design problems, and building the manufacturing equipment needed to create their products.
Senior development engineers and staff engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Development Engineer | Staff Engineer | |
| Average salary | $113,763 | $107,530 |
| Salary range | Between $87,000 And $148,000 | Between $69,000 And $167,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Mateo, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Netflix | Flexport |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Telecommunication |
There are a few differences between a senior development engineer and a staff engineer in terms of educational background:
| Senior Development Engineer | Staff Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
Here are the differences between senior development engineers' and staff engineers' demographics:
| Senior Development Engineer | Staff Engineer | |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 92.0% Female, 8.0% | Male, 87.9% Female, 12.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 16.8% White, 67.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% | Black or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 16.8% White, 67.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 5% |