Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between senior hardware engineers and senior staff engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a senior hardware engineer, becoming a senior staff engineer takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a senior staff engineer has an average salary of $136,031, which is higher than the $116,383 average annual salary of a senior hardware engineer.
The top three skills for a senior hardware engineer include C++, RF and PCB. The most important skills for a senior staff engineer are python, java, and architecture.
| Senior Hardware Engineer | Senior Staff Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $116,383 | $136,031 |
| Hourly rate | $55.95 | $65.40 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 55,261 | 239,752 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Average age | 44 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 6 |
A Senior Hardware Engineer is responsible for designing computer hardware. They define and coordinate corrective action changes, as well as provide technical support to team members.
A senior staff engineer is responsible for supervising a team of engineers, chemists, software developers, or molecular biologists. His/Her or her responsibilities include generating Structured Query Language (SQL) performance audit checklist template, creating SQL data query routines and functions for data extraction, and working directly with stakeholders. The job requires strong mechanical, listening, and mathematical skills and proficiency in Python programming language and computer architecture and hardware. The education requirements for the job include a bachelor's or master's degree in electrical engineering, business, mechanical engineering, or a related field.
Senior hardware engineers and senior staff engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Hardware Engineer | Senior Staff Engineer | |
| Average salary | $116,383 | $136,031 |
| Salary range | Between $89,000 And $151,000 | Between $95,000 And $194,000 |
| Highest paying City | Seattle, WA | San Mateo, CA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | California |
| Best paying company | Netflix | Airbnb |
| Best paying industry | Automotive | Telecommunication |
There are a few differences between a senior hardware engineer and a senior staff engineer in terms of educational background:
| Senior Hardware Engineer | Senior Staff Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Northeastern University | California State Polytechnic University, Pomona |
Here are the differences between senior hardware engineers' and senior staff engineers' demographics:
| Senior Hardware Engineer | Senior Staff Engineer | |
| Average age | 44 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 93.5% Female, 6.5% | Male, 78.4% Female, 21.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 2.9% Hispanic or Latino, 9.8% Asian, 29.9% White, 50.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | 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 | 4% | 5% |