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The differences between customer support engineers and support analysts can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a customer support engineer and a support analyst. Additionally, a customer support engineer has an average salary of $82,674, which is higher than the $75,989 average annual salary of a support analyst.
The top three skills for a customer support engineer include customer support, technical support and customer service. The most important skills for a support analyst are customer service, troubleshoot, and technical support.
| Customer Support Engineer | Support Analyst | |
| Yearly salary | $82,674 | $75,989 |
| Hourly rate | $39.75 | $36.53 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 138,641 | 107,039 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 62% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A customer support engineer is responsible for providing the highest customer service by responding to the customers' inquiries and concerns and resolving their complaints regarding the technical products of the company. Customer support engineers handle escalated requests, determine technical solutions, and write resolution reports for reference. They also manage the installation and upgrades of network systems based on clients' specifications to ensure that their systems work with maximum performance. A customer support engineer must have excellent communication and technical skills, especially in recommending improvements to prevent system failures and minimize customers' complaints.
The role of support analysts is to resolve problems with hardware, computer programs, and peripherals. They may focus on a particular aspect of the information technology (IT) department or give technical support to end-users. They mainly detect issues with IT equipment and software and devise solutions to resolve these issues. Also, they are responsible for answering queries from users, preparing service records, and handling escalations. Support analysts also support the company's IT operations and best practices by creating and distributing relevant IT documents.
Customer support engineers and support analysts have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Customer Support Engineer | Support Analyst | |
| Average salary | $82,674 | $75,989 |
| Salary range | Between $59,000 And $114,000 | Between $50,000 And $114,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Jersey City, NJ |
| Highest paying state | Washington | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Nokia | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Finance |
There are a few differences between a customer support engineer and a support analyst in terms of educational background:
| Customer Support Engineer | Support Analyst | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 62% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Business |
| Most common college | California State University - Long Beach | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between customer support engineers' and support analysts' demographics:
| Customer Support Engineer | Support Analyst | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 85.8% Female, 14.2% | Male, 63.1% Female, 36.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.7% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 14.9% Asian, 15.0% White, 54.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 12.2% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 14.9% Asian, 12.9% White, 54.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |