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The differences between alarm technicians and repair technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-12 months to become an alarm technician, becoming a repair technician takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, an alarm technician has an average salary of $42,630, which is higher than the $41,643 average annual salary of a repair technician.
The top three skills for an alarm technician include fire protection, work ethic and NFPA. The most important skills for a repair technician are customer service, hand tools, and customer satisfaction.
| Alarm Technician | Repair Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $42,630 | $41,643 |
| Hourly rate | $20.50 | $20.02 |
| Growth rate | 8% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 94,813 | 162,051 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 33% | Associate Degree, 38% |
| Average age | 44 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 4 |
An alarm technician installs, maintains, and troubleshoots security alarms that are used in a company or establishment. Security alarms serve to deter to thievery and break-ins. An alarm technician is responsible for ensuring that installed security alarms will always work as expected. This position requires experience as an electrician, knowledge of the common types of alarm systems, and a keen grasp of security practices.
A repair technician's role focuses on assessing the problem or damage of a device and implementing solutions for it to function again. Although the extent of a technician's tasks will depend on the device or industry of employment, most of it revolves around troubleshooting, providing technical support, installing and writing programs, detaching and re-attaching wirings, welding, and even thoroughly discussing problems and solutions to clients. Furthermore, there are instances when a repair technician must work in a team setting that requires coordination and communication.
Alarm technicians and repair technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Alarm Technician | Repair Technician | |
| Average salary | $42,630 | $41,643 |
| Salary range | Between $31,000 And $57,000 | Between $27,000 And $63,000 |
| Highest paying City | Fort Wayne, IN | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | Indiana | Hawaii |
| Best paying company | EMCOR Group | SoCalGas |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between an alarm technician and a repair technician in terms of educational background:
| Alarm Technician | Repair Technician | |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 33% | Associate Degree, 38% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between alarm technicians' and repair technicians' demographics:
| Alarm Technician | Repair Technician | |
| Average age | 44 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 95.8% Female, 4.2% | Male, 88.3% Female, 11.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.3% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 20.3% Asian, 4.3% White, 60.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 18.3% Asian, 4.6% White, 60.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 4% | 2% |