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The differences between applications technicians and software support technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both an applications technician and a software support technician. Additionally, an applications technician has an average salary of $87,091, which is higher than the $79,670 average annual salary of a software support technician.
The top three skills for an applications technician include troubleshoot, technical support and customer satisfaction. The most important skills for a software support technician are customer service, troubleshoot, and java.
| Applications Technician | Software Support Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $87,091 | $79,670 |
| Hourly rate | $41.87 | $38.30 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 88,812 | 117,059 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 48% | Bachelor's Degree, 59% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
Applications technicians are professionals who are responsible for providing technical support to the team that is involved in developing business systems applications. These technicians must possess understanding and knowledge in software applications so that they can help users by conducting software training and compiling training manuals. They are required to perform troubleshooting procedures for the propriety business applications and services of the company. Applications technicians must also conduct testing for development trials of their applications.
A software support technician is responsible for resolving software application issues, diagnosing related system failures, and writing resolution reports for reference. Software support technicians must be highly-familiarized with the system's infrastructure and interface to immediately diagnose malfunctions and identify maintenance techniques to prevent the reoccurrence of downtimes and delays. They also assist the system engineers in the configuration and optimization of networks, including the installment of upgrades and patch updates. A software support technician must have excellent organizational and communication skills, especially in navigating computer tools and applications to create support tickets and fix the customers' issues efficiently.
Applications technicians and software support technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Applications Technician | Software Support Technician | |
| Average salary | $87,091 | $79,670 |
| Salary range | Between $59,000 And $126,000 | Between $55,000 And $113,000 |
| Highest paying City | Sunnyvale, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | California |
| Best paying company | Occidental Petroleum | RSM US |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Finance |
There are a few differences between an applications technician and a software support technician in terms of educational background:
| Applications Technician | Software Support Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 48% | Bachelor's Degree, 59% |
| Most common major | Business | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between applications technicians' and software support technicians' demographics:
| Applications Technician | Software Support Technician | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 67.7% Female, 32.3% | Male, 73.8% Female, 26.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.4% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.6% Asian, 10.6% White, 56.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 10.6% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.5% Asian, 12.4% White, 54.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |