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The differences between field technicians and installation technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an installation technician has an average salary of $38,043, which is higher than the $37,520 average annual salary of a field technician.
The top three skills for a field technician include customer service, ladders and test equipment. The most important skills for an installation technician are customer service, ladders, and hand tools.
| Field Technician | Installation Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $37,520 | $38,043 |
| Hourly rate | $18.04 | $18.29 |
| Growth rate | 8% | 8% |
| Number of jobs | 123,149 | 129,534 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 40% | High School Diploma, 32% |
| Average age | 44 | 45 |
| Years of experience | 12 | - |
A field technician is responsible for providing technical and maintenance support for the customers by area visits. Field technicians' duties include diagnosing technical problems, replacing malfunction components, upgrading systems for efficiency, running equipment tests to ensure stability, creating draft reports of performed processes, utilizing vehicles and other tools safely, following client's specifications on operating equipment, and adhering to the safety standards. A field technician must have excellent communication and decision-making skills, as well as extensive knowledge of the technological industry.
Installation technicians are responsible for handling and installing all types of electronic systems and equipment. An installation technician should be well-knowledgeable about the equipment complexity to conduct troubleshooting for system malfunction or provide necessary instructions for the customers. In some cases, installation technicians are required to conduct regular checks and maintenance to ensure that the system functions properly, upgrading, or replacing equipment for improvement. Installation technicians usually handle customer queries for the system and are expected to resolve issues through remote work or area visit.
Field technicians and installation technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Field Technician | Installation Technician | |
| Average salary | $37,520 | $38,043 |
| Salary range | Between $28,000 And $48,000 | Between $29,000 And $49,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | Seattle, WA |
| Highest paying state | Connecticut | Washington |
| Best paying company | DCP Midstream | Pella |
| Best paying industry | Energy | Finance |
There are a few differences between a field technician and an installation technician in terms of educational background:
| Field Technician | Installation Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 40% | High School Diploma, 32% |
| Most common major | Business | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | - | New York University |
Here are the differences between field technicians' and installation technicians' demographics:
| Field Technician | Installation Technician | |
| Average age | 44 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 88.5% Female, 11.5% | Male, 95.6% Female, 4.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.5% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 17.8% Asian, 1.7% White, 71.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 12.4% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 18.2% Asian, 6.3% White, 57.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 1% | 6% |