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The differences between senior software engineer managers and software development managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a senior software engineer manager, becoming a software development manager takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a senior software engineer manager has an average salary of $147,474, which is higher than the $134,747 average annual salary of a software development manager.
The top three skills for a senior software engineer manager include java, emerging technologies and software development. The most important skills for a software development manager are java, AWS, and architecture.
| Senior Software Engineer Manager | Software Development Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $147,474 | $134,747 |
| Hourly rate | $70.90 | $64.78 |
| Growth rate | 21% | 21% |
| Number of jobs | 299,566 | 265,464 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 71% |
| Average age | 39 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 6 |
A Senior Software Engineer Manager oversees software development and helps manage the team to accomplish milestones on a specific project. The Senior Software Engineer Manager's task is to guide, instruct, and junior train developers and ensure efficiency and quality. The senior developer also checks every detail of the software, order adjustments in problematic areas of the program, and does troubleshooting during finalization. The Senior Developer is the primary contact person in the software development team and advises the company on the proper path to take when planning a new software.
A software development manager is an individual who manages teams of software developers that design and create software applications and web services for clients. Software development managers should delegate duties and establish development standards for the development team as well as create a budget and timeline for the project. They must meet with management to discuss how software applications can achieve business objectives. Once the software has been developed, software development managers must train technical and non-technical end-users. They must also be skilled in different programming languages such as HTML, SQL, and JavaScript.
Senior software engineer managers and software development managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Software Engineer Manager | Software Development Manager | |
| Average salary | $147,474 | $134,747 |
| Salary range | Between $106,000 And $205,000 | Between $100,000 And $180,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Bruno, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Meta | |
| Best paying industry | - | Technology |
There are a few differences between a senior software engineer manager and a software development manager in terms of educational background:
| Senior Software Engineer Manager | Software Development Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 71% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between senior software engineer managers' and software development managers' demographics:
| Senior Software Engineer Manager | Software Development Manager | |
| Average age | 39 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 86.1% Female, 13.9% | Male, 85.1% Female, 14.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.4% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 8.2% Asian, 29.9% White, 52.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 12.0% White, 67.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 11% |