Side-by-side distribution
Plant Manager
$136,075
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 45.2%
- Live roles
- 442
Quality Assurance
$108,000
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 31.1%
- Live roles
- 858
Highest-paying jobs
Plant Manager (Arizona)
Senior Manager, Software Development – Meta Factory
Senior Manager Engineering – Meta Factory
Factory Manager
Staff Product Manager, AI Factory
Senior Manager, Software Engineering, Plant Control
Manager, ML Solutions Architecture - Token Factory
Senior Engineering Manager, Factory Core
Manager Subsystem Factory Test Design Section 3
Sr. Manager - Factory Automation
Highest-paying jobs
QA/QC Manager (Construction)
QA/QC Manager
Software Quality Assurance Manager 2
Software Quality Assurance Specialist/Applications Tester – TS/SCI w/ Poly
Manager, QA Method Validation
Sr. Quality Manager - Process Assurance
Sr. Quality Manager - Customer Assurance
Sr. Quality Manager - Design Assurance
Senior Manager Quality Assurance, Medical Device (Sustaining)
Software Quality Assurance Specialist/Applications Tester
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| JC J.Crew | $45,604 | 63 |
Heidelberg Materials
|
$128,273 | 11 |
Niagara Bottling
|
$143,397 | 5 |
Kraft Heinz
|
$184,700 | 4 |
|
Nebius
|
$202,500 | 3 |
Greif
|
$161,200 | 3 |
| PG Procter & Gamble | $137,650 | 3 |
TreeHouse Foods
|
$127,448 | 3 |
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
|
Regeneron
|
$98,050 | 17 |
Bristol Myers Squibb
|
$112,467 | 12 |
Cardinal Health
|
$92,425 | 10 |
Gilead Sciences
|
$122,948 | 9 |
|
GDIT
|
$165,672 | 7 |
Abbott
|
$149,000 | 6 |
| NO Novartis | $128,000 | 5 |
CACI
|
$139,400 | 4 |
Plant Manager salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles | $159,860 | 5 |
| New York | $130,361 | 3 |
| Chicago | $102,150 | 3 |
Quality Assurance salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $151,500 | 3 |
| Chicago | $129,438 | 7 |
| Atlanta | $113,633 | 5 |
| New York | $113,100 | 7 |
| Toronto | $100,000 | 5 |
| Los Angeles | $92,500 | 3 |
Plant Manager vs Quality Assurance: which pays more?
The median for Plant Manager is $136,075 per year (typically $112,891–$172,788), versus $108,000 for Quality Assurance ($82,637–$137,125). That puts Plant Manager about 26% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so Plant Manager and Quality Assurance are compared on equal terms regardless of the currency each role was originally posted in. Only roles that publish a salary range feed the medians; numbers refresh every few hours as new roles post and older ones close, so this comparison reflects the market right now rather than a fixed survey. Use it as a directional benchmark when weighing one path against the other.