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The differences between help desk representatives and desktop support specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a help desk representative and a desktop support specialist. Additionally, a desktop support specialist has an average salary of $44,962, which is higher than the $37,449 average annual salary of a help desk representative.
The top three skills for a help desk representative include customer service, troubleshoot and technical support. The most important skills for a desktop support specialist are customer service, desktop support, and troubleshoot.
| Help Desk Representative | Desktop Support Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $37,449 | $44,962 |
| Hourly rate | $18.00 | $21.62 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 51,501 | 102,191 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 46% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A help desk representative mainly provides client support services through face-to-face interactions, aiming to resolve issues and concerns to ensure client satisfaction. Their responsibilities include answering inquiries, assisting clients in filling up forms, identifying their needs, providing detailed solutions, and referring them to other services as needed. Aside from face-to-face interactions, there are also instances where a help desk representative may provide services through calls and correspondence, troubleshoot problems, and provide step-by-step instructions according to the clients' needs.
A Desktop Support Specialist is focused on troubleshooting different software packages, hardware devices, and other peripherals. They monitor the performance of the company's desktop infrastructure.
Help desk representatives and desktop support specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Help Desk Representative | Desktop Support Specialist | |
| Average salary | $37,449 | $44,962 |
| Salary range | Between $29,000 And $48,000 | Between $33,000 And $59,000 |
| Highest paying City | Stow, OH | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | New York | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | City of Jacksonville | Cornerstone Research |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Finance |
There are a few differences between a help desk representative and a desktop support specialist in terms of educational background:
| Help Desk Representative | Desktop Support Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 46% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Most common major | Business | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Stanford University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between help desk representatives' and desktop support specialists' demographics:
| Help Desk Representative | Desktop Support Specialist | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 52.0% Female, 48.0% | Male, 87.6% Female, 12.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 12.0% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.1% Asian, 10.5% White, 55.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 11.2% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 15.9% Asian, 12.3% White, 54.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |