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The differences between software architects and software engineers-consultant can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a software architect and a software engineer-consultant. Additionally, a software architect has an average salary of $114,406, which is higher than the $113,987 average annual salary of a software engineer-consultant.
The top three skills for a software architect include java, architecture and cloud. The most important skills for a software engineer-consultant are java, python, and architecture.
| Software Architect | Software Engineer-Consultant | |
| Yearly salary | $114,406 | $113,987 |
| Hourly rate | $55.00 | $54.80 |
| Growth rate | 21% | 21% |
| Number of jobs | 319,594 | 317,033 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 71% |
| Average age | 39 | 39 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A Software Architect develops new programs for a variety of technological devices for businesses, computer games, mobile networks, and/or operating systems. They ensure architectural integrity and consistency across the entire product and work closely with executives to explain the benefits of the software.
A software engineer consultant develops and recommends strategies to optimize a company's software engineering operations. Their responsibilities revolve around conducting extensive research and analysis to find new opportunities, performing software evaluations and risk assessments, identifying the strengths and weaknesses of existing processes, and developing solutions against problem areas. Through the findings of their research, a software engineer consultant draws conclusions and recommendations that will help the company to reach their short and long-term goals and resolve issues or concerns.
Software architects and software engineers-consultant have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Software Architect | Software Engineer-Consultant | |
| Average salary | $114,406 | $113,987 |
| Salary range | Between $82,000 And $158,000 | Between $85,000 And $152,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Foster City, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Aspiration | Advent Software |
| Best paying industry | Health Care | Insurance |
There are a few differences between a software architect and a software engineer-consultant in terms of educational background:
| Software Architect | Software Engineer-Consultant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 71% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Harvard University | Harvard University |
Here are the differences between software architects' and software engineers-consultant' demographics:
| Software Architect | Software Engineer-Consultant | |
| Average age | 39 | 39 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 93.8% Female, 6.2% | Male, 86.1% Female, 13.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 8.1% Asian, 30.0% White, 52.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 4.7% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 8.4% Asian, 29.7% White, 52.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 8% |