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The differences between direct support professionals and direct care aides can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a direct support professional has an average salary of $32,077, which is higher than the $30,429 average annual salary of a direct care aide.
The top three skills for a direct support professional include direct support, developmental disabilities and autism. The most important skills for a direct care aide are home health, foster care, and CPR.
| Direct Support Professional | Direct Care Aide | |
| Yearly salary | $32,077 | $30,429 |
| Hourly rate | $15.42 | $14.63 |
| Growth rate | 36% | 36% |
| Number of jobs | 142,034 | 178,038 |
| Job satisfaction | 4 | - |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 30% | High School Diploma, 35% |
| Average age | 48 | 48 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
Direct support professionals and direct care aides have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Direct Support Professional | Direct Care Aide | |
| Average salary | $32,077 | $30,429 |
| Salary range | Between $18,000 And $54,000 | Between $22,000 And $41,000 |
| Highest paying City | Santa Clara, CA | Springfield, MA |
| Highest paying state | California | Vermont |
| Best paying company | Meta | Univ Of Colorado-Colorado Spgs |
| Best paying industry | Government | Energy |
There are a few differences between a direct support professional and a direct care aide in terms of educational background:
| Direct Support Professional | Direct Care Aide | |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 30% | High School Diploma, 35% |
| Most common major | Psychology | Nursing |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between direct support professionals' and direct care aides' demographics:
| Direct Support Professional | Direct Care Aide | |
| Average age | 48 | 48 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 24.4% Female, 75.6% | Male, 20.8% Female, 79.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.7% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 8.3% White, 61.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1% | Black or African American, 12.1% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 13.3% Asian, 8.0% White, 61.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |