Design technician vs engineering technician

The differences between design technicians and engineering technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 8-10 years to become a design technician, becoming an engineering technician takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a design technician has an average salary of $62,288, which is higher than the $60,273 average annual salary of an engineering technician.

The top three skills for a design technician include revit, civil 3d and aided design. The most important skills for an engineering technician are technical support, data collection, and test equipment.

Design technician vs engineering technician overview

	Design Technician	Engineering Technician
Yearly salary	$62,288	$60,273
Hourly rate	$29.95	$28.98
Growth rate	-	3%
Number of jobs	48,394	111,343
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 46%	Bachelor's Degree, 46%
Average age	45	45
Years of experience	10	4

What does a design technician do?

A design technician's role revolves around conducting extensive research and analysis to determine a company's needs. The technician will develop system plans and collaborate with fellow technicians and engineers. There are also instances where a design technician has to craft presentations and hand in proposals, revising them when necessary. Furthermore, a design technician must produce progress reports, abide by managers' directions, and adhere to the company's policies and regulations.

What does an engineering technician do?

An Engineering Technician's duties vary according to the industry or company, whether mechanical, industrial, civil, agricultural, or more. However, most of the time, the responsibilities often revolve around resolving technical issues, working with and assisting Engineers in building, assembling, designing, gathering and testing data, and conducting more manual activities. Furthermore, Engineering Technicians can specialize and work in various fields after a certain training period, closely mentored or monitored by an engineer or someone with extensive expertise.

Design technician vs engineering technician salary

Design technicians and engineering technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Design Technician	Engineering Technician
Average salary	$62,288	$60,273
Salary range	Between $37,000 And $104,000	Between $37,000 And $96,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	New Jersey	Washington
Best paying company	Meta	Western Digital
Best paying industry	-	Technology

Differences between design technician and engineering technician education

There are a few differences between a design technician and an engineering technician in terms of educational background:

	Design Technician	Engineering Technician
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 46%	Bachelor's Degree, 46%
Most common major	Drafting And Design	Electrical Engineering
Most common college	Carnegie Mellon University	Purdue University

Design technician vs engineering technician demographics

Here are the differences between design technicians' and engineering technicians' demographics:

	Design Technician	Engineering Technician
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 71.8% Female, 28.2%	Male, 85.9% Female, 14.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.6% Asian, 8.7% White, 59.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 9.5% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.7% Asian, 9.2% White, 59.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between design technician and engineering technician duties and responsibilities

Design technician example responsibilities.

Manage the life cycle of the product using PLM from creation to the top of production sample.
Lead team in Revit modeling and documentation including precise replication of intricate detention security hardware.
Job duties include but not limit to assisting professional engineers in designing HVAC and plumbing systems.
Experience in draft beer equipment (jockey box, taps, lines, etc . )
Assist customer with IP addressing.
Used Carlson plugin software with AutoCAD.

Engineering technician example responsibilities.

Used Microsoft SharePoint to manage projects, web base collaboration, alerts and for document management.
Achieve UL certification for thermal overload protection used in motor applications.
Manage equipment database and organize annual equipment calibration require by internal quality control and ISO standards.
Manage and distribute cad standards to contributing design consultants and assist with any design issues as necessary.
Maintain engineering lab equipment: troubleshoot and repair any faulty electronic or mechanical malfunctions, and calibrate test equipment.
Specialize in software and hardware engineering to military standards and project management of DoD contracts.

Design technician vs engineering technician skills

Common design technician skills

Revit, 8%
Civil 3D, 6%
Aided Design, 5%
Sketch, 4%
Auto CAD, 4%
Work Ethic, 4%

Common engineering technician skills

Technical Support, 5%
Data Collection, 4%
Test Equipment, 4%
Asphalt, 4%
Construction Projects, 4%
Construction Materials, 4%

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Design Technician
Design Technician vs Engineering Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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