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The differences between field support engineers and customer support engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a field support engineer and a customer support engineer. Additionally, a field support engineer has an average salary of $96,499, which is higher than the $82,674 average annual salary of a customer support engineer.
The top three skills for a field support engineer include technical support, troubleshoot and customer satisfaction. The most important skills for a customer support engineer are customer support, technical support, and customer service.
| Field Support Engineer | Customer Support Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $96,499 | $82,674 |
| Hourly rate | $46.39 | $39.75 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 174,765 | 138,641 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 56% | Bachelor's Degree, 61% |
| Average age | 43 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
Field support engineers are information technology (IT) professionals who are responsible for providing on-site functions for the network systems of clients. These engineers must assist their clients in solving complex technical issues to reduce the occurrence of network connectivity issues. They must perform routine maintenance checkups to ensure that the network systems of their clients are operating consistently and efficiently. Field support engineers are also required to offer guidance and training to the client personnel to educate them about the operation of the product as well as maintenance procedures.
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.
Field support engineers and customer support engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Field Support Engineer | Customer Support Engineer | |
| Average salary | $96,499 | $82,674 |
| Salary range | Between $65,000 And $142,000 | Between $59,000 And $114,000 |
| Highest paying City | Sacramento, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | Washington |
| Best paying company | Apple | Nokia |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Technology |
There are a few differences between a field support engineer and a customer support engineer in terms of educational background:
| Field Support Engineer | Customer Support Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 56% | Bachelor's Degree, 61% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | California State University - Long Beach | California State University - Long Beach |
Here are the differences between field support engineers' and customer support engineers' demographics:
| Field Support Engineer | Customer Support Engineer | |
| Average age | 43 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 90.6% Female, 9.4% | Male, 85.8% Female, 14.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.9% Asian, 9.3% White, 63.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | 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% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 11% |