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The differences between software development engineers lead and software architects 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 development engineer lead and a software architect. Additionally, a software development engineer lead has an average salary of $119,557, which is higher than the $114,406 average annual salary of a software architect.
The top three skills for a software development engineer lead include java, API and python. The most important skills for a software architect are java, architecture, and cloud.
| Software Development Engineer Lead | Software Architect | |
| Yearly salary | $119,557 | $114,406 |
| Hourly rate | $57.48 | $55.00 |
| Growth rate | 21% | 21% |
| Number of jobs | 343,868 | 319,594 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 71% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Average age | 39 | 39 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
Lead software development engineers take responsibility for providing technical mentorship and guidance to a team consisting of software engineers. The engineers implement codes with high quality in a test-driven and agile environment. They develop software development plans and assign related tasks to their team members. It is their job to lead different aspects regarding application development such as requirements application, and database design, implementation, and gathering. Also, they develop access/usage and sales analytic reports.
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.
Software development engineers lead and software architects have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Software Development Engineer Lead | Software Architect | |
| Average salary | $119,557 | $114,406 |
| Salary range | Between $91,000 And $155,000 | Between $82,000 And $158,000 |
| Highest paying City | Seattle, WA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | California |
| Best paying company | PitchBook Data | Aspiration |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Health Care |
There are a few differences between a software development engineer lead and a software architect in terms of educational background:
| Software Development Engineer Lead | Software Architect | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 71% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Harvard University | Harvard University |
Here are the differences between software development engineers lead' and software architects' demographics:
| Software Development Engineer Lead | Software Architect | |
| Average age | 39 | 39 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 83.8% Female, 16.2% | Male, 93.8% Female, 6.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 8.1% Asian, 30.0% White, 52.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | 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% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 8% |