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The differences between field support technicians and desk support technicians 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 technician and a desk support technician. Additionally, a field support technician has an average salary of $42,440, which is higher than the $40,715 average annual salary of a desk support technician.
The top three skills for a field support technician include customer service, user support and troubleshoot. The most important skills for a desk support technician are customer service, technical support, and troubleshoot.
| Field Support Technician | Desk Support Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $42,440 | $40,715 |
| Hourly rate | $20.40 | $19.57 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 161,037 | 130,485 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 41% | Bachelor's Degree, 48% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A field service technician is working on-call to provide emergency services and test equipment devices for safety purposes and quality control. They are responsible for working with clients to prevent, troubleshoot, and repair issues. They help clients on how to install, maintain, and diagnose equipment for repair. They also present to clients how to properly use their equipment. It is also part of their job to provide training to clients in line with safety standards and regulations.
A desktop support technician is responsible for assisting end-users with their network issues, grant authorization requests, and create user accounts. Desktop support technicians maintain the safety and security of networks, preventing unauthorized access and illegal dissemination of database information. They also handle the software configurations and upgrading the network infrastructure to avoid system downtimes and operational delays. A desktop support technician must have excellent communication and technical skills to monitor systems performance and enhance network navigation.
Field support technicians and desk support technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Field Support Technician | Desk Support Technician | |
| Average salary | $42,440 | $40,715 |
| Salary range | Between $28,000 And $62,000 | Between $26,000 And $62,000 |
| Highest paying City | Bridgewater, NJ | South San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Delaware | California |
| Best paying company | HP | BNY Mellon |
| Best paying industry | Pharmaceutical | Technology |
There are a few differences between a field support technician and a desk support technician in terms of educational background:
| Field Support Technician | Desk Support Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 41% | Bachelor's Degree, 48% |
| Most common major | Computer Information Systems | Business |
| Most common college | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between field support technicians' and desk support technicians' demographics:
| Field Support Technician | Desk Support Technician | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 89.5% Female, 10.5% | Male, 82.6% Female, 17.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 10.5% White, 55.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.3% Asian, 11.7% White, 55.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |