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The differences between senior principal engineers and research 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 principal engineer and a research engineer. Additionally, a senior principal engineer has an average salary of $130,642, which is higher than the $96,945 average annual salary of a research engineer.
The top three skills for a senior principal engineer include python, architecture and java. The most important skills for a research engineer are python, java, and software development.
| Senior Principal Engineer | Research Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $130,642 | $96,945 |
| Hourly rate | $62.81 | $46.61 |
| Growth rate | 2% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 272,459 | 136,763 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A senior principal engineer is responsible for leading engineering tasks within an organization and reports project updates to senior management. Senior principal engineers develop strategic methods and principles to improve the technical stability and efficiency of the company's systems, creating business proposals according to clients' specifications, and negotiating contracts with suppliers and other service providers. They also train new staff and identify innovations and business opportunities that would generate more revenue resources for the company.
Research Engineers are responsible for a wide range of duties, including researching and developing new technologies and prototypes, and finding solutions to improve techniques, procedures, and technologies.
Senior principal engineers and research engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Principal Engineer | Research Engineer | |
| Average salary | $130,642 | $96,945 |
| Salary range | Between $93,000 And $182,000 | Between $67,000 And $138,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Menlo Park, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Airbnb | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Start-up |
There are a few differences between a senior principal engineer and a research engineer in terms of educational background:
| Senior Principal Engineer | Research Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Mechanical Engineering |
| Most common college | Michigan Technological University | Georgia Institute of Technology |
Here are the differences between senior principal engineers' and research engineers' demographics:
| Senior Principal Engineer | Research Engineer | |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 88.2% Female, 11.8% | Male, 81.7% Female, 18.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 17.2% White, 67.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% | Black or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 16.9% White, 67.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 5% |