Collision repair technician vs refinish technician

The differences between collision repair technicians and refinish technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a refinish technician has an average salary of $45,014, which is higher than the $43,760 average annual salary of a collision repair technician.

The top three skills for a collision repair technician include body shop, collision repair and ASE. The most important skills for a refinish technician are paint brushes, body shop, and stencils.

Collision repair technician vs refinish technician overview

	Collision Repair Technician	Refinish Technician
Yearly salary	$43,760	$45,014
Hourly rate	$21.04	$21.64
Growth rate	3%	3%
Number of jobs	45,740	28,813
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 32%	High School Diploma, 37%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	-	-

Collision repair technician vs refinish technician salary

Collision repair technicians and refinish technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Collision Repair Technician	Refinish Technician
Average salary	$43,760	$45,014
Salary range	Between $29,000 And $65,000	Between $31,000 And $65,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between collision repair technician and refinish technician education

There are a few differences between a collision repair technician and a refinish technician in terms of educational background:

	Collision Repair Technician	Refinish Technician
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 32%	High School Diploma, 37%
Most common major	Automotive Technology	Automotive Technology
Most common college	-	-

Collision repair technician vs refinish technician demographics

Here are the differences between collision repair technicians' and refinish technicians' demographics:

	Collision Repair Technician	Refinish Technician
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 95.0% Female, 5.0%	Male, 94.7% Female, 5.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.6% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 19.1% Asian, 1.8% White, 66.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 7.6% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 19.4% Asian, 1.8% White, 66.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	4%	4%

Differences between collision repair technician and refinish technician duties and responsibilities

Collision repair technician example responsibilities.

Provide consistent sheet metal reconstruction, repair, rust and car component removal to OEM.
Develop acute attention to detail and high level of dexterity require for repair of intricate mechanisms common in photographic equipment.
Enter invoices electronically using CCC one and store invoices inside their specific file.

Refinish technician example responsibilities.

Apply all primers, sealers, basecoats and top coats as required.
Compose written reports of data collect from patient evaluation and present to department chief for thorough analysis of patient diagnosis.
Experience with both PPG and DuPont paint mixing systems, their applications, and all paint prep processes.

Collision repair technician vs refinish technician skills

Common collision repair technician skills

Body Shop, 22%
Collision Repair, 16%
ASE, 16%
Auto Body Repair, 7%
Repair Vehicles, 6%
Repair Procedures, 4%

Common refinish technician skills

Paint Brushes, 38%
Body Shop, 20%
Stencils, 16%
I-Car, 9%
OEM, 8%
Coats, 3%

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Installation, Maintenance and Repair Industry
Collision Repair Technician
Collision Repair Technician vs Refinish Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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