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The differences between software engineers lead and staff software engineers 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 engineer lead and a staff software engineer. Additionally, a staff software engineer has an average salary of $136,653, which is higher than the $125,565 average annual salary of a software engineer lead.
The top three skills for a software engineer lead include java, python and software development. The most important skills for a staff software engineer are java, python, and software development.
| Software Engineer Lead | Staff Software Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $125,565 | $136,653 |
| Hourly rate | $60.37 | $65.70 |
| Growth rate | 21% | 21% |
| Number of jobs | 342,462 | 371,213 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 69% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Average age | 39 | 39 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A Software Engineer Lead is focused on developing and testing software programs. They manage a team of software engineers that design enterprise software products and operating systems.
A Staff Software Engineer is responsible for developing, maintaining, and repairing company software for maximum efficiency and usability. They instruct and mentor their team members in software development techniques and cloud development.
Software engineers lead and staff software engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Software Engineer Lead | Staff Software Engineer | |
| Average salary | $125,565 | $136,653 |
| Salary range | Between $93,000 And $168,000 | Between $100,000 And $186,000 |
| Highest paying City | Seattle, WA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Meta | Airbnb |
| Best paying industry | Automotive | Retail |
There are a few differences between a software engineer lead and a staff software engineer in terms of educational background:
| Software Engineer Lead | Staff Software Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 69% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Harvard University | Harvard University |
Here are the differences between software engineers lead' and staff software engineers' demographics:
| Software Engineer Lead | Staff Software Engineer | |
| Average age | 39 | 39 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 86.7% Female, 13.3% | Male, 83.0% Female, 17.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.5% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 8.3% Asian, 29.9% White, 52.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 4.6% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 8.4% Asian, 33.5% White, 48.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 8% |