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The differences between application support specialists and desktop support specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both an application support specialist and a desktop support specialist. Additionally, an application support specialist has an average salary of $81,820, which is higher than the $44,962 average annual salary of a desktop support specialist.
The top three skills for an application support specialist include application support, customer service and troubleshoot. The most important skills for a desktop support specialist are customer service, desktop support, and troubleshoot.
| Application Support Specialist | Desktop Support Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $81,820 | $44,962 |
| Hourly rate | $39.34 | $21.62 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 118,322 | 102,191 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
An application support specialist's role is to utilize their technical expertise in responding to inquiries and addressing issues and concerns, resolving them promptly and effectively. They may communicate with clients through calls or correspondence, even arrange appointments when necessary. Moreover, one may work as a member of a company or independently. As an application support specialist in a company setting, it is essential to coordinate with different department personnel, all while adhering to the company's policies and regulations.
A Desktop Support Specialist is focused on troubleshooting different software packages, hardware devices, and other peripherals. They monitor the performance of the company's desktop infrastructure.
Application support specialists and desktop support specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Application Support Specialist | Desktop Support Specialist | |
| Average salary | $81,820 | $44,962 |
| Salary range | Between $52,000 And $127,000 | Between $33,000 And $59,000 |
| Highest paying City | Cupertino, CA | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Meta | Cornerstone Research |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Finance |
There are a few differences between an application support specialist and a desktop support specialist in terms of educational background:
| Application Support Specialist | Desktop Support Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Most common major | Business | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Stanford University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between application support specialists' and desktop support specialists' demographics:
| Application Support Specialist | Desktop Support Specialist | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 61.6% Female, 38.4% | Male, 87.6% Female, 12.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.6% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 15.9% Asian, 11.5% White, 55.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 11.2% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 15.9% Asian, 12.3% White, 54.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |