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The differences between help desk specialists and 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 specialist and a support specialist. Additionally, a help desk specialist has an average salary of $51,065, which is higher than the $40,782 average annual salary of a support specialist.
The top three skills for a help desk specialist include customer service, troubleshoot and technical support. The most important skills for a support specialist are customer service, patients, and mental health.
| Help Desk Specialist | Support Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $51,065 | $40,782 |
| Hourly rate | $24.55 | $19.61 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 75,004 | 125,740 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 3 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 48% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
The primary role of help desk specialists is to maintain relationships between the company and its customers. Their duties and responsibilities include responding to guests' queries, providing technical computer support, and maintaining computer systems' performance. Help desk specialists are also responsible for following up with customers to resolve issues and train computer users. There are several requirements to be qualified for this position, which include having relevant customer service experience, problem-solving and analytical skills, and the ability to prioritize vital tasks.
A support specialist is responsible for assisting technical and administrative support, depending on the business need. Support specialists must have extensive knowledge of the services of the organization they work for to assist customers with their inquiries and resolve complaints efficiently. A support specialist maintains documents of issue resolution, providing recommendations to improve business strategies and procedures. Support specialists must be well-versed on technology systems, perform basic troubleshooting, and secure databases. They should also have impeccable customer service and communication skills to attend with customers' needs and requests.
Help desk specialists and support specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Help Desk Specialist | Support Specialist | |
| Average salary | $51,065 | $40,782 |
| Salary range | Between $35,000 And $73,000 | Between $25,000 And $64,000 |
| Highest paying City | New York, NY | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | Alaska | New York |
| Best paying company | Schulte Roth & Zabel | Microsoft |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a help desk specialist and a support specialist in terms of educational background:
| Help Desk Specialist | Support Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 48% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between help desk specialists' and support specialists' demographics:
| Help Desk Specialist | Support Specialist | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 79.4% Female, 20.6% | Male, 38.4% Female, 61.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 12.3% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.3% Asian, 11.6% White, 55.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 11.5% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 15.9% Asian, 10.4% White, 56.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |