Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between automotive service writers and service advisors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both an automotive service writer and a service advisor. Additionally, an automotive service writer has an average salary of $46,879, which is higher than the $46,308 average annual salary of a service advisor.
The top three skills for an automotive service writer include repair orders, service appointments and phone calls. The most important skills for a service advisor are customer service, product knowledge, and basic math.
| Automotive Service Writer | Service Advisor | |
| Yearly salary | $46,879 | $46,308 |
| Hourly rate | $22.54 | $22.26 |
| Growth rate | -4% | -4% |
| Number of jobs | 148,068 | 222,424 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4 |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 31% | Bachelor's Degree, 33% |
| Average age | 40 | 40 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
Automotive Service Writers act as a contact person between the customer and an automotive company. This person does estimations for clients and also help in drafting contracts. An Automotive Service Writer handles written orders for repairs. They receive and record request from clients and store it in a safe place. They are an essential part of the marketing department as it focuses on customer retention through constant, casual communication.
Service Advisors specialize in customer service in a car dealership or automotive shop. Acting as a front-desk representative, it is the Service Advisor's responsibility to greet clients and offer assistance, provide necessary and accurate information to customers regarding the automotive issues and needed repairs, respond to inquiries, and introduce the clients to the available mechanics. Moreover, Service Advisors must inform clients regarding the costs and warranties, keep the clients updated with the status of the repairs, coordinate with suppliers, and as well as manage the schedule of the mechanics.
Automotive service writers and service advisors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Automotive Service Writer | Service Advisor | |
| Average salary | $46,879 | $46,308 |
| Salary range | Between $30,000 And $72,000 | Between $26,000 And $79,000 |
| Highest paying City | New York, NY | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | New York | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | State Street | BP America Inc |
| Best paying industry | Automotive | Finance |
There are a few differences between an automotive service writer and a service advisor in terms of educational background:
| Automotive Service Writer | Service Advisor | |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 31% | Bachelor's Degree, 33% |
| Most common major | Automotive Technology | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between automotive service writers' and service advisors' demographics:
| Automotive Service Writer | Service Advisor | |
| Average age | 40 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 77.4% Female, 22.6% | Male, 69.4% Female, 30.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.5% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 20.5% Asian, 5.8% White, 57.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 10.8% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 21.1% Asian, 6.1% White, 56.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |