The most important question people ask, “Is the salary of a software tester, same as that of a software developer?”
The world is transforming continuously. The demand for digital products is also very high. Software testing and development are the only industries, people would love to know because of the rising demand for testers and developers in the market.
SALARY OF A SOFTWARE TESTER AND A SOFTWARE DEVELOPER
Some of the most important questions we hear from the people are as follows:
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- A tester or a developer? What should I become?
- How will my career be in IT industry as a tester?
- Why should I choose QA or software testing industry?
- How will I become a Good Tester?
Is it true that ‘the testing is only for Non-technical people’ and ‘Testers don’t need much skills as Developer do’? - Will I get enough Recognition as a Tester?
But don’t panic! We are going to answer all these questions right here and will also discuss the salary of a software tester and a developer! Do you know the difference between software development and software testing?
SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT:
According to the Wikipedia, ‘Software development’ is a process of conceiving, specifying, designing, programming, documenting, testing, and additional bug fixes in creating and maintaining applications, frameworks, or other software components.
In short, software development refers to activities involving computer programming. It also includes conducting research, developing, prototyping, modifying, engineering, re-engineering, and maintenance, which are necessary to manifest a software product.
WHO IS A SOFTWARE DEVELOPER?
A Software Developer is a person who will analyze, design, create, maintain and finally, upgrade programs for users across many platforms like a computer, mobile, laptop, tablet, etc.
Types of software developers:
There are two types of software developers, namely, Application Software Developers and System Software Developers.
Application Software Developers are the developers who design custom software products for both businesses as well as for the other end user.
The System Software Developers are the persons who develop the system which takes care of the basic functioning and also the performance of computers.
E.g., Computers run on Operating Systems. These operating systems are known as system software. System Software Developers will build an interface and thus allows users to interact with other computers.
SKILLS AND QUALIFICATIONS OF A SOFTWARE DEVELOPER:
To become a software developer the person should have the following qualifications:
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- He/She should additionally possess a bachelor degree or masters in computer science or software engineering or in any other field.
- Should have strong analytical, communication, and also problem-solving skills.
- Finally, he/she should be creative, innovative, and expert in database management, program testing & other related software.
SOFTWARE TESTING:
Software testing, on the other hand, is a process of making software free from bugs and errors and thus making it better before releasing the product to the end-user.
In other words, software testing is a set of activities performed with the intent of finding errors in the software.
Software testing, on the other hand, is a process of making software free from bugs and errors and thus making it better before releasing the product to the end-user. In other words, software testing is a set of activities performed with the intent of finding errors in the software.
Software, once created and ready to release for the end users, will be tested with the requirements with an intention of finding bugs.
The ultimate goal of software testing is to detect errors and bugs and also to verify whether the software is performing as per the specifications.
In other words, testing is a process done through operating the software under a controlled environment, to check whether the actual results of the software, match with the expected results
WHO IS A SOFTWARE TESTER?
Software tester tests the software products. Tester’s job is to run a software, analyze it and also to find errors and bugs in the software through various techniques. Thus, testers are responsible to check whether the code, written by the developers is working as it is intended to.
Software tester tests the software products the developers have created. Tester’s most important job is to run a software, analyze it and find errors & bugs in the software through various techniques. So, Testers are responsible to check whether the code, written by the developers is working as it is intended to.
QUALIFICATIONS AND SKILLS REQUIRED TO BECOME A SOFTWARE TESTER
Generally, there is a myth that software tester need not have any qualification to test the software. But that is not true. To become a pro Software Tester you need to do some certifications and also should satisfy the following requirements:
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- Should have a bachelor degree either in computer science or mathematics or engineering or in any other related field.
- He /she must have expertise on UNIX, Linux or Windows.
- Should be an excellent communicator, be it either verbal or non-verbal . Furthermore, he/she should also be able to perform multiple tasks in less time.
- He/she should know programming languages such as Java, JavaScript, C#, C++, Python, etc.
COMPARISON: SALARY OF A SOFTWARE TESTER VS THE SALARY OF A SOFTWARE DEVELOPER
The salary of a Software Tester and a Software developer differs from person to person, country to country and also from a company to company.
The average compensation includes bonus, incentives, overtime, and other allowances.
AVERAGE SALARY OF A SOFTWARE DEVELOPER:
The average annual salary of a software developer based on the experience is as follows: (source: www.payscale.com)

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- Experience of 0-5 years – average salary- $67,000
- 5-10 years – average salary – $ 80,000
- 10-20 years – average salary – $ 90,000
- Experience > 20 years – average salary – $ 97,000.
We can observe a positive trend in salary with growing experience. A software developer should have java, C++ programming language, and javascript, to get paid above the average. Skills like SQL and C# language are also in demand, but compared to the above-mentioned skills, these pay less than the market rate.
AVERAGE SALARY OF A SOFTWARE TESTER:
The average annual salary of a software tester based on experience is as follows: (source:www.payscale.com).

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- Experience of 0-5 years – average salary- $47,000
- 5-10 years – average salary – $ 68,000
- 10-20 years – average salary – $ 75,000
- > 20 years – average salary – $ 82,000.
With the increase in the numbers of years of experience, the average salary is also increasing.
By comparing the average salary of a Software Developer and the average salary of a Software Tester, we can see that the developers are earning little more when compared to Testers.
Conclusion:
But some testers are earning more than what a developer with similar experience is making. A Software Tester should acquire negotiation skills along with the certifications in order to get pay higher than the market average.
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