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The differences between computer support technicians and customer 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 a computer support technician and a customer support technician. Additionally, a computer support technician has an average salary of $41,852, which is higher than the $36,361 average annual salary of a customer support technician.
The top three skills for a computer support technician include customer service, technical support and computer support. The most important skills for a customer support technician are customer service, customer support, and SQL.
| Computer Support Technician | Customer Support Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $41,852 | $36,361 |
| Hourly rate | $20.12 | $17.48 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 121,180 | 117,102 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 46% | Bachelor's Degree, 46% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A computer support technician is responsible for diagnosing and resolving computer and network issues, identifying the source of malfunctions, and improving infrastructure to avoid downtimes and operational delays. Computer support technicians manage the efficiency of all equipment and peripherals for the computers, assist in installing components, and keeping adequate resources or alternatives for defective items. They also recommend minimal costs technology materials and create troubleshooting manuals for reference, ensuring that the network processes adhere to internal guidelines and regulations.
A customer support technician is responsible for resolving customer complaints with their network issues through remote communication, providing the customers with a step-by-step procedure to fix their systems. Customer support technicians assist the customers in setting up their programs and applications, guiding them with the instructional manuals, and responding to the inquiries and concerns they have. They also escalate high-level complaints to the immediate supervisor as needed while monitoring system solutions and creating technical tickets.
Computer support technicians and customer support technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Computer Support Technician | Customer Support Technician | |
| Average salary | $41,852 | $36,361 |
| Salary range | Between $34,000 And $51,000 | Between $23,000 And $56,000 |
| Highest paying City | Lompoc, CA | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | California | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory | Adobe |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Technology |
There are a few differences between a computer support technician and a customer support technician in terms of educational background:
| Computer Support Technician | Customer Support Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 46% | Bachelor's Degree, 46% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between computer support technicians' and customer support technicians' demographics:
| Computer Support Technician | Customer Support Technician | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 83.2% Female, 16.8% | Male, 66.1% Female, 33.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.7% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.6% Asian, 11.7% White, 55.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 10.7% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.2% Asian, 10.6% White, 56.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |