Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between test managers and automation test 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 test manager and an automation test engineer. Additionally, a test manager has an average salary of $92,297, which is higher than the $85,353 average annual salary of an automation test engineer.
The top three skills for a test manager include QA, project management and java. The most important skills for an automation test engineer are java, python, and jenkins.
| Test Manager | Automation Test Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $92,297 | $85,353 |
| Hourly rate | $44.37 | $41.04 |
| Growth rate | - | - |
| Number of jobs | 27,489 | 125,816 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 71% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A test manager is responsible for supervising the content of test activities and ensuring that the scope meets the test requirements. Test managers monitor the test process and determine the accurate strategies to establish efficient methods for the success of test deliveries. They also identify the resources according to quality standards and budget limitations. A test manager oversees the technical controls of the test processes and measures the quality of tools and applications for optimal automation.
Automation Test Engineers are licensed professionals who work with clients on various IT or engineering-related activities. They are part of the growing automation industry. They create software solutions related to the automation of processes, and they work with clients to identify automation opportunities based on the existing software, hardware, and other processes. They have to understand their clients' needs and find the appropriate software solutions based on the clients' needs. Automation test engineers help design these software solutions. The majority of their work is related to testing these software solutions. They conduct quality checks to ensure that the software solution is working properly. They also check whether the software solution truly addresses the clients' needs.
Test managers and automation test engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Test Manager | Automation Test Engineer | |
| Average salary | $92,297 | $85,353 |
| Salary range | Between $71,000 And $119,000 | Between $64,000 And $112,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Mateo, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Meta | Apple |
| Best paying industry | Automotive | Technology |
There are a few differences between a test manager and an automation test engineer in terms of educational background:
| Test Manager | Automation Test Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 71% |
| Most common major | Business | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Stanford University | California State University - Long Beach |
Here are the differences between test managers' and automation test engineers' demographics:
| Test Manager | Automation Test Engineer | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 71.7% Female, 28.3% | Male, 73.8% Female, 26.2% |
| 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, 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 | 11% | 11% |