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What is a customer support technician and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
5 min read
Quoted expert
Kate Marek Ph.D.
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A customer support technician provides technical guidance to users or customers. Their primary responsibilities include troubleshooting and solving issues that customers face while using the product or service. They may assist customers via phone, email, chat, or in-person. Customer support technicians are knowledgeable about the product or service they support and use technical expertise to resolve issues. They may also document interactions and provide feedback. Above all, they strive to provide customer service and satisfaction.

What general advice would you give to a customer support technician?

Kate Marek Ph.D.Kate Marek Ph.D. LinkedIn profile

Director and Professor, Dominican University

Choose an organization in tune with one's values. Look for a job in growth areas, such as data asset management, data analysis, etc.
ScoreCustomer Support TechnicianUS Average
Salary
2.8

Avg. Salary $36,361

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level
6.7

Growth rate 10%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity
6.5
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.41%

Asian 10.61%

Black or African American 10.74%

Hispanic or Latino 16.20%

Unknown 5.38%

White 56.66%

Gender

female 33.85%

male 66.15%

Age - 41
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 41
Stress level
6.7

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level
6.5

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance
7.4

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

What are the pros and cons of being a customer support technician?

Pros

  • Possibility of career advancement within the company

  • Flexible schedules and remote work options may be available

  • Often a stable and secure job with benefits

  • Potential to earn bonuses or commissions based on performance

  • Opportunities for networking and building relationships with customers and colleagues

Cons

  • May have to work long hours or irregular shifts, including weekends and holidays

  • May have to deal with technical issues that are outside of your control

  • Burnout is common in this field due to the high volume of customer interactions

  • Limited opportunities for creativity or innovation in solving customer problems

  • Low pay and lack of recognition for the importance of the role in the company

Customer support technician career paths

Key steps to become a customer support technician

  1. Explore customer support technician education requirements

    Most common customer support technician degrees

    Bachelor's

    45.7 %

    Associate

    29.3 %

    High School Diploma

    11.9 %
  2. Start to develop specific customer support technician skills

    SkillsPercentages
    Customer Service12.41%
    Customer Support11.80%
    SQL8.90%
    Customer Inquiries7.65%
    Java7.25%
  3. Complete relevant customer support technician training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New customer support technicians learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a customer support technician based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real customer support technician resumes.
  4. Gain additional customer support technician certifications

    Customer support technician certifications can show employers you have a baseline of knowledge expected for the position. Certifications can also make you a more competitive candidate. Even if employers don't require a specific customer support technician certification, having one may help you stand out relative to other applicants.

    The most common certifications for customer support technicians include Certified Information Technology Professional (CITP) and IT Information Library Foundations Certification (ITIL).

    More About Certifications
  5. Research customer support technician duties and responsibilities

    • Manage and maintain TCP/IP database and inventory control on hospital peripherals (printers and scanners).
    • Manage backups, replications and disaster recovery plans of company mission critical servers and database files to ensure redundancy.
    • Install new IBM UNIX servers on site.
    • Maintain the performance of the SQL server for optical use and scanning.
  6. Prepare your customer support technician resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your customer support technician resume.

    You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a customer support technician resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose from 10+ customizable customer support technician resume templates

    Build a professional customer support technician resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your customer support technician resume.
    Customer Support Technician Resume
    Customer Support Technician Resume
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    Customer Support Technician Resume
    Customer Support Technician Resume
    Customer Support Technician Resume
    Customer Support Technician Resume
    Customer Support Technician Resume
    Customer Support Technician Resume
  7. Apply for customer support technician jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a customer support technician job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How did you land your first customer support technician job

Zippi

Are you a customer support technician?

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Average customer support technician salary

The average customer support technician salary in the United States is $36,361 per year or $17 per hour. Customer support technician salaries range between $23,000 and $56,000 per year.

Average customer support technician salary
$36,361 Yearly
$17.48 hourly

What am I worth?

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How do customer support technicians rate their job?

-/5

5 stars

4 stars

3 stars

2 stars

1 star

Customer support technician reviews

profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Nov 2023
Pros

You get to help a lot of people in many different ways as well as learning new things about technology

Cons

I have aids now due to the painfulness of sitting down all day


profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Jul 2020
Pros

I decided to go to technical support because I've been fascinated by technology all my life and I love working with the people as well. I want to use my technical know-how to solve directly the problems that customers have. I want to be the person who makes life easier and more enjoyable for people who have had a problem. This is what I like most as a technical Support.

Cons

I don't like sitting around being inactive. So I'll keep my self always busy


profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Apr 2020
Pros

I enjoy the challenges and learning new things . Technology is always evolving.

Cons

Customer is unwilling to provide you with necessary information in order to assist them.


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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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