Echo technician vs sonographer

The differences between echo technicians and sonographers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both an echo technician and a sonographer. Additionally, a sonographer has an average salary of $85,898, which is higher than the $75,952 average annual salary of an echo technician.

The top three skills for an echo technician include patients, BLS and echocardiography. The most important skills for a sonographer are patients, sonography, and ARDMS.

Echo technician vs sonographer overview

	Echo Technician	Sonographer
Yearly salary	$75,952	$85,898
Hourly rate	$36.52	$41.30
Growth rate	10%	10%
Number of jobs	14,522	14,117
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 54%	Associate Degree, 57%
Average age	45	43
Years of experience	2	2

What does an echo technician do?

An echo technician is responsible for operating specialized equipment to develop ultrasound images of patients' hearts, diagnosing possible illnesses, and monitoring their conditions. Echo technicians carefully explain the process to the patients, assist the physicians in data interpretation, and ensuring that the image document was stored and developed properly for reference. They also inspect the machine and equipment's efficiency for operations and immediately call for repairs for any defects and malfunctions that may cause inaccuracies in the results.

What does a sonographer do?

A Sonographer performs diagnostic procedures using sonographic equipment. Their duties include preparing patients, explaining the exam, and performing the procedure.

Echo technician vs sonographer salary

Echo technicians and sonographers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Echo Technician	Sonographer
Average salary	$75,952	$85,898
Salary range	Between $49,000 And $117,000	Between $58,000 And $125,000
Highest paying City	Springfield, OR	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	California	California
Best paying company	University of Maryland Medical System	Medical City Arlington
Best paying industry	Health Care	Technology

Differences between echo technician and sonographer education

There are a few differences between an echo technician and a sonographer in terms of educational background:

	Echo Technician	Sonographer
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 54%	Associate Degree, 57%
Most common major	Medical Technician	Medical Technician
Most common college	Duke University	Duke University

Echo technician vs sonographer demographics

Here are the differences between echo technicians' and sonographers' demographics:

	Echo Technician	Sonographer
Average age	45	43
Gender ratio	Male, 32.4% Female, 67.6%	Male, 15.0% Female, 85.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.6% Unknown, 3.3% Hispanic or Latino, 12.8% Asian, 13.9% White, 58.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 4.2% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 10.4% Asian, 8.8% White, 72.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	8%	6%

Differences between echo technician and sonographer duties and responsibilities

Echo technician example responsibilities.

Assist with placement and manage intra-aortic balloon pumps.
Perform cardiac defibrillation, CPR, and initiate invasive procedures on patients in cardiac arrest.
Utilize 2D , 3D, m-mode, and color Doppler.
Perform EKG's and treadmill stress testing.
Perform stress echo's, dobutamine stress echo's and bubble studies.
Assist physician with echo stress tests as well as treadmill only studies.

Sonographer example responsibilities.

Manage and operate the daily operations and supervision of the radiology ultrasound departments.
Explain ultrasound procedures to patients, record relevant medical history, reconcile and collect required data.
Perform all ultrasound exams, ie: Abd, OB/Gyn, small parts and vascular.
Pass ARDMS vascular exam at Oct.
Experience with ICAVL guidelines and requirements.
Maintain equipment, treadmill room and supply inventory.

Echo technician vs sonographer skills

Common echo technician skills

Patients, 19%
BLS, 10%
Echocardiography, 10%
Echocardiogram, 9%
Patient Care, 8%
Cardiology, 6%

Common sonographer skills

Patients, 19%
Sonography, 11%
ARDMS, 11%
Patient Care, 10%
Ultrasound Equipment, 6%
Ultrasound Procedures, 4%

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Echo Technician
Echo Technician vs Sonographer

Updated January 8, 2025

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