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The differences between software testers 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 tester and a software engineer-consultant. Additionally, a software engineer-consultant has an average salary of $113,987, which is higher than the $78,580 average annual salary of a software tester.
The top three skills for a software tester include test results, regression and test scripts. The most important skills for a software engineer-consultant are java, python, and architecture.
| Software Tester | Software Engineer-Consultant | |
| Yearly salary | $78,580 | $113,987 |
| Hourly rate | $37.78 | $54.80 |
| Growth rate | - | 21% |
| Number of jobs | 208,853 | 317,033 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 71% |
| Average age | 44 | 39 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
The responsibility of software testers involves the quality assurance of software development and deployment. Software testers conduct manual and automated tests to make sure that the software is developed for its purpose. They remove the issues and bugs within a product before deployment to users. Their responsibilities include software and systems analysis, risk mitigation, and software-related issue prevention. They should have skills in automation, programming, social networking, logical thinking, and mobile and web technology.
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 testers and software engineers-consultant have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Software Tester | Software Engineer-Consultant | |
| Average salary | $78,580 | $113,987 |
| Salary range | Between $61,000 And $100,000 | Between $85,000 And $152,000 |
| Highest paying City | Sunnyvale, CA | Foster City, CA |
| Highest paying state | New Hampshire | California |
| Best paying company | Nordstrom | Advent Software |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Insurance |
There are a few differences between a software tester and a software engineer-consultant in terms of educational background:
| Software Tester | Software Engineer-Consultant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 71% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | Harvard University |
Here are the differences between software testers' and software engineers-consultant' demographics:
| Software Tester | Software Engineer-Consultant | |
| Average age | 44 | 39 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 62.1% Female, 37.9% | Male, 86.1% Female, 13.9% |
| Race ratio | 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% | 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 | 11% | 8% |