Quality assurance is a component of quality management that aims to instill trust in the fulfillment of quality requirements.   The quality assurance process instills confidence in two ways: internally, to management, and externally, to customers, government agencies, regulators, certifiers, and third parties.

Quality control is a component of quality management that specifically aims to meet quality standards.   Quality assurance pertains to the manner in which a process is executed or a product is manufactured, whereas quality control primarily focuses on the inspection component of quality management.