Maybe you have heard about these job titles in the past, but what exactly is the difference between them? Some people claim that it mostly depends on your education and on what you have achieved; in some way, this may be true, but some others claim that sometimes the company you are working for decides if you are a programmer, a developer or other, making it merely a job title. Let’s take a closer look at this.
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Difference between a coder, programmer, developer, and software engineer
1. Coder
A Coder is a person in charge of writing the code that makes most of our apps run properly. Those who are coders have the ability to create software that can be used not only in apps but also in video games, social media platforms, and many others. Coders sometimes cannot do all the phases required in the making of software, like designing or testing, they mostly take part only in the phase of writing the base code. In some cases, there are people who may get offended If you call them a coder.
2. Programmer
A programmer is a bit more specialized person. They are able to create computer software in any primary computer language, like Java, Python, Lisp, etc. Programmers are said to go beyond coders, they may specialize themselves in one area or may even write instructions for a wide variety of systems.
They also understand quite well algorithms. Programmers can be similar to Developers but the ones who implement are not the same as the ones who can design or do a well class structure within the software. They can take care of many details.
Read: How to become a good programmer?
3. Developer
A Developer can write and create a complete computer software out of nowhere taking care of the design and other features. They are key for the development of any software application; they are also experts in at least one programming language. Some people consider them true professionals that can take care of all the generals. Developers can sometimes be more general when it comes to the development of software, unlike Programmers.
Read: How to become a good app developer?
4. Software Engineer
A Software Engineer is an individual that applies the principles and techniques of computer science or software engineering to everything regarding the development of new independent software; from analyzing what the particular needs of the user are, going through the design, maintenance, and testing, and even the final evaluation of the software.
They are able to create software for any kind of system as operating systems software, network distribution, compilers, and so on. They often have a college degree and can prove things theoretically. With the amazing skillset of software engineers, they are known as one of the jobs with high pay. The salary rate of a software engineer can go up to $120K annually.
Another way for understanding the differences between a Coder, a Programmer, a Developer, and a Software Engineer is seeing them as a hierarchy or as a stair, where the Coder can be found in the low section of the stair and the Software Engineer can be found at the top. Maybe to you, all these job titles may mean the same because you once knew a Developer that could do everything a Software Engineer can, but there are really some differences between them that are worth knowing.
If some companies take special attention to the name of their employees or not, it is not such a big deal to worry about; what really matters is knowing what you can do and how well you can do it.
