Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between guides and security guards can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a guide has an average salary of $34,479, which is higher than the $31,983 average annual salary of a security guard.
The top three skills for a guide include brand awareness, product knowledge and safety rules. The most important skills for a security guard are customer service, patrol, and ladders.
| Guide | Security Guard | |
| Yearly salary | $34,479 | $31,983 |
| Hourly rate | $16.58 | $15.38 |
| Growth rate | 28% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 1,195 | 101,728 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | High School Diploma, 42% |
| Average age | 34 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 2 | - |
A guide is an expert on a location's history and gives guided tours to tourists at historic sites, nature and scenic attractions, and other travel destinations. Manuals are usually residents in the area hired by visitors' bureaus and travel companies. The tour guides provide visitors relevant and exciting information about the places they visit and keep the tour safe, organized, and productive. Their primary duties include a brief meeting with the tour manager to know the tourist's interests and needs. They plan itineraries, arrange, and organize transportation between destinations. At certain times, they are in charge of collecting fees, sell souvenirs, and promote gift shops.
Security guards are responsible for maintaining and ensuring the peace and safety of the building they are assigned to. They ensure that everyone who enters the building has official business to be done in the building. They are also in charge of patrolling and monitoring activities within the area. Security guards are also tasked to immobilize anyone who seems to pose a threat to the peace and safety of the building. They are also responsible for preventing any untoward incidences or crimes that may happen in the area. Security guards must be observant and alert to be able to succeed in their roles.
Guides and security guards have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Guide | Security Guard | |
| Average salary | $34,479 | $31,983 |
| Salary range | Between $17,000 And $68,000 | Between $25,000 And $40,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Lakewood, WA |
| Highest paying state | Alaska | Hawaii |
| Best paying company | Salesforce | Basin Electric Power Cooperative |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Utilities |
There are a few differences between a guide and a security guard in terms of educational background:
| Guide | Security Guard | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | High School Diploma, 42% |
| Most common major | Business | Criminal Justice |
| Most common college | Stanford University | - |
Here are the differences between guides' and security guards' demographics:
| Guide | Security Guard | |
| Average age | 34 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 49.3% Female, 50.7% | Male, 72.0% Female, 28.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.5% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 10.4% Asian, 9.9% White, 67.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 12.7% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 21.0% Asian, 5.3% White, 54.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 6% |