Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between automotive service technicians and service mechanical technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become an automotive service technician, becoming a service mechanical technician takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a service mechanical technician has an average salary of $47,820, which is higher than the $43,077 average annual salary of an automotive service technician.
The top three skills for an automotive service technician include customer service, hand tools and dexterity. The most important skills for a service mechanical technician are customer service, diagnosis, and hydraulic systems.
| Automotive Service Technician | Service Mechanical Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $43,077 | $47,820 |
| Hourly rate | $20.71 | $22.99 |
| Growth rate | 1% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 177,784 | 146,216 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 35% | Associate Degree, 33% |
| Average age | 40 | 45 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 6 |
Automotive service technicians, often called service technicians, have a duty to inspect, maintain, and repair cars and even light trucks. It is their job as automotive service technicians to find problems, often by computerized diagnostic equipment. They do test parts and systems to guarantee that they work properly and follow checklists to ensure that every critical part is examined. Performing basic care and maintenance is also part of their main tasks, including changing oil, rotating tires, and checking fluid levels.
A service mechanical technician specializes in installing and repairing mechanical equipment and systems. Although the extent of their responsibilities differs upon their industry of employment, it typically includes working together with engineers in developing and testing equipment, troubleshooting problems, performing adjustments and calibrations, maintaining records, and performing regular maintenance checks to ensure the equipment's quality and capacity. Moreover, a service mechanical technician may also provide technical support to clients and co-workers, all while adhering to the company's safety standards and regulations.
Automotive service technicians and service mechanical technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Automotive Service Technician | Service Mechanical Technician | |
| Average salary | $43,077 | $47,820 |
| Salary range | Between $25,000 And $74,000 | Between $33,000 And $68,000 |
| Highest paying City | Alexandria, VA | Oxnard, CA |
| Highest paying state | Maryland | California |
| Best paying company | Cypress | State Street |
| Best paying industry | Health Care | Technology |
There are a few differences between an automotive service technician and a service mechanical technician in terms of educational background:
| Automotive Service Technician | Service Mechanical Technician | |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 35% | Associate Degree, 33% |
| Most common major | Automotive Technology | Automotive Technology |
| Most common college | - | SUNY College of Technology at Alfred |
Here are the differences between automotive service technicians' and service mechanical technicians' demographics:
| Automotive Service Technician | Service Mechanical Technician | |
| Average age | 40 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 95.6% Female, 4.4% | Male, 97.9% Female, 2.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 19.5% Asian, 5.0% White, 60.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% | Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.9% Asian, 7.4% White, 60.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 2% | 6% |