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The differences between hvac-r technicians and service technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a hvac-r technician, becoming a service technician takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a hvac-r technician has an average salary of $53,354, which is higher than the $40,379 average annual salary of a service technician.
The top three skills for a hvac-r technician include HVAC/R, ventilation and plumbing. The most important skills for a service technician are plumbing, customer service, and preventative maintenance.
| Hvac-R Technician | Service Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $53,354 | $40,379 |
| Hourly rate | $25.65 | $19.41 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 8% |
| Number of jobs | 85,555 | 254,533 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 34% | Associate Degree, 29% |
| Average age | 40 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 12 |
HVAC-R Technicians are responsible for the repair, maintenance, and installation of heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration (HVAC-R) systems. Their duties include repairing, maintaining, and installing HVAC-R equipment and systems, inspect equipment maintenance risks, diagnose mechanical and electrical faults, adjusting and cleaning systems, and carrying out warranty services. They maintain accurate maintenance records, assist with customer inquiries, give technical direction, provide mentorship to the junior technicians as well as ensure work complies with service, appliance, and safety standards.
Service technicians are assigned in the field to address the concerns of their clients. Service technicians are responsible for the installation, maintenance, or repair of different units or items related to their company's products or services. They should be familiar with their company's products so that they can properly install, maintain, or repair them. They conduct diagnostics and analysis to assess the condition of the unit they are servicing and properly address problems. They also do routine maintenance check-ups. Service technicians are expected to be trustworthy, have good analytical skills, and have good decision-making skills.
Hvac-r technicians and service technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Hvac-R Technician | Service Technician | |
| Average salary | $53,354 | $40,379 |
| Salary range | Between $35,000 And $79,000 | Between $28,000 And $57,000 |
| Highest paying City | Lynnwood, WA | Richmond, CA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | Hawaii |
| Best paying company | Better | IBM |
| Best paying industry | Health Care | Technology |
There are a few differences between a hvac-r technician and a service technician in terms of educational background:
| Hvac-R Technician | Service Technician | |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 34% | Associate Degree, 29% |
| Most common major | Heating And Air Conditioning | Business |
| Most common college | Dunwoody College of Technology | - |
Here are the differences between hvac-r technicians' and service technicians' demographics:
| Hvac-R Technician | Service Technician | |
| Average age | 40 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 97.4% Female, 2.6% | Male, 89.2% Female, 10.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.3% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 18.9% Asian, 2.7% White, 65.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 5.1% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 15.8% Asian, 1.7% White, 72.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 2% | 1% |