General sales associate vs hardware sales associate

The differences between general sales associates and hardware sales associates can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a hardware sales associate has an average salary of $37,604, which is higher than the $29,328 average annual salary of a general sales associate.

The top three skills for a general sales associate include POS, work ethic and food preparation. The most important skills for a hardware sales associate are sales floor, plumbing, and customer service.

General sales associate vs hardware sales associate overview

	General Sales Associate	Hardware Sales Associate
Yearly salary	$29,328	$37,604
Hourly rate	$14.10	$18.08
Growth rate	-	-
Number of jobs	383,009	289,185
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 36%	Bachelor's Degree, 37%
Average age	41	41
Years of experience	-	-

General sales associate vs hardware sales associate salary

General sales associates and hardware sales associates have different pay scales, as shown below.

	General Sales Associate	Hardware Sales Associate
Average salary	$29,328	$37,604
Salary range	Between $21,000 And $39,000	Between $25,000 And $54,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	-
Highest paying state	Hawaii	-
Best paying company	Kaufman Dolowich & Voluck	-
Best paying industry	Automotive	-

Differences between general sales associate and hardware sales associate education

There are a few differences between a general sales associate and a hardware sales associate in terms of educational background:

	General Sales Associate	Hardware Sales Associate
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 36%	Bachelor's Degree, 37%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

General sales associate vs hardware sales associate demographics

Here are the differences between general sales associates' and hardware sales associates' demographics:

	General Sales Associate	Hardware Sales Associate
Average age	41	41
Gender ratio	Male, 60.2% Female, 39.8%	Male, 79.1% Female, 20.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 18.5% Asian, 7.2% White, 58.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 19.6% Asian, 7.0% White, 57.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between general sales associate and hardware sales associate duties and responsibilities

General sales associate example responsibilities.

Supervise women's department, manage jewelry department, assist customers on finalizing purchases
Exhibit rudimentary math skills and advance communication skills when efficiently cashiering in a fast pace environment.
Perform minor repairs on Kohl's jewelry like changing watch batteries and removing watch links.

Hardware sales associate example responsibilities.

Supervise women's department, manage jewelry department, assist customers on finalizing purchases
Handle POS register and cash handling.
Use of POS and handheld stocking devices.
Maintain aisles and run the key cutting station.
Mix paint, stock shelves, run register, sell hunting/fishing licenses.
Work in multiple departments including: lawn and garden, electrical, plumbing, hardware and paint.

General sales associate vs hardware sales associate skills

Common general sales associate skills

POS, 15%
Work Ethic, 14%
Food Preparation, 11%
PowerPoint, 10%
Customer Service, 10%
Lead Generation, 9%

Common hardware sales associate skills

Sales Floor, 27%
Plumbing, 19%
Customer Service, 10%
Pallets, 10%
Cleanliness, 7%
Safety Policies, 6%

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General Sales Associate
General Sales Associate vs Hardware Sales Associate

Updated January 8, 2025

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