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The differences between staff software engineers and software quality 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 staff software engineer and a software quality engineer. Additionally, a staff software engineer has an average salary of $136,653, which is higher than the $99,902 average annual salary of a software quality engineer.
The top three skills for a staff software engineer include java, python and software development. The most important skills for a software quality engineer are software quality, java, and python.
| Staff Software Engineer | Software Quality Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $136,653 | $99,902 |
| Hourly rate | $65.70 | $48.03 |
| Growth rate | 21% | - |
| Number of jobs | 371,213 | 279,437 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Average age | 39 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
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.
A Software Quality Engineer ensures that the software of a company meets all quality standards. They are responsible for software development, inspection, implementation, testing, and verification.
Staff software engineers and software quality engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Staff Software Engineer | Software Quality Engineer | |
| Average salary | $136,653 | $99,902 |
| Salary range | Between $100,000 And $186,000 | Between $73,000 And $136,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Alaska | California |
| Best paying company | Airbnb | Apple |
| Best paying industry | Retail | Technology |
There are a few differences between a staff software engineer and a software quality engineer in terms of educational background:
| Staff Software Engineer | Software Quality Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Harvard University | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
Here are the differences between staff software engineers' and software quality engineers' demographics:
| Staff Software Engineer | Software Quality Engineer | |
| Average age | 39 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 83.0% Female, 17.0% | Male, 67.3% Female, 32.7% |
| Race ratio | 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% | 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% |