Urban planner vs city planner

The differences between urban planners and city planners can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both an urban planner and a city planner. Additionally, an urban planner has an average salary of $65,316, which is higher than the $64,562 average annual salary of a city planner.

The top three skills for an urban planner include GIS, infrastructure and visualization. The most important skills for a city planner are planning commission, GIS, and regional planning.

Urban planner vs city planner overview

	Urban Planner	City Planner
Yearly salary	$65,316	$64,562
Hourly rate	$31.40	$31.04
Growth rate	4%	4%
Number of jobs	13,883	18,747
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 64%	Bachelor's Degree, 62%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	2	2

Urban planner vs city planner salary

Urban planners and city planners have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Urban Planner	City Planner
Average salary	$65,316	$64,562
Salary range	Between $47,000 And $89,000	Between $47,000 And $88,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	California	California
Best paying company	Mapbox	Citi
Best paying industry	Construction	Government

Differences between urban planner and city planner education

There are a few differences between an urban planner and a city planner in terms of educational background:

	Urban Planner	City Planner
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 64%	Bachelor's Degree, 62%
Most common major	Urban Planning	Urban Planning
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Urban planner vs city planner demographics

Here are the differences between urban planners' and city planners' demographics:

	Urban Planner	City Planner
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 66.6% Female, 33.4%	Male, 64.7% Female, 35.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 4.6% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.3% Asian, 9.3% White, 67.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 4.8% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 12.7% Asian, 9.5% White, 67.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage	13%	13%

Differences between urban planner and city planner duties and responsibilities

Urban planner example responsibilities.

Manage all aspects of production plan in direct compliance with MRP and master schedule.
Guide production planning activities ranging from developing and revising production schedules, forecasting trends and customer demand, and managing logistics.
Coordinate allocation of CDBG funds for community development and maintenance including demolition and asbestos abatement.
Assess compliance with NIST and DoD policies and procedures.
Prepare conceptual and design lot layouts and site plans using freehand and AutoCAD.
Coordinate with the FAA on all obstructions to airspace and for temporary crane waivers.

City planner example responsibilities.

Guide production planning activities ranging from developing and revising production schedules, forecasting trends and customer demand, and managing logistics.
Utilize planning relate software and GIS applications; and basic statistics and mathematical calculations.
Direct inbound or outbound logistics operations, such as transportation or warehouse activities, safety performance, or logistics quality management.
Construct engaging PowerPoint presentations for clients.

Urban planner vs city planner skills

Common urban planner skills

GIS, 11%
Infrastructure, 6%
Visualization, 5%
ArcGIS, 5%
Sketch, 5%
Community Development, 4%

Common city planner skills

Planning Commission, 9%
GIS, 7%
Regional Planning, 6%
City Planning, 6%
Community Development, 5%
City Ordinances, 5%

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Urban Planner vs City Planner

Updated January 8, 2025

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