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The differences between information technology/support technicians and software support technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both an information technology/support technician and a software support technician. Additionally, a software support technician has an average salary of $79,670, which is higher than the $45,591 average annual salary of an information technology/support technician.
The top three skills for an information technology/support technician include customer service, troubleshoot and computer system. The most important skills for a software support technician are customer service, troubleshoot, and java.
| Information Technology/Support Technician | Software Support Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $45,591 | $79,670 |
| Hourly rate | $21.92 | $38.30 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 161,748 | 117,059 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 59% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
An information technology (IT) support technician is an individual who is responsible for providing support and troubleshoots software and hardware problems faced by customers. As for larger organizations that have their own IT department, technicians must work together internally with their IT staff members. IT support technicians are involved in inspecting and resolving minor local area network and wireless network issues, which include TCP/IP, DHCP, and VPN. They are also required to obtain an associate's degree in computer science or related field.
A software support technician is responsible for resolving software application issues, diagnosing related system failures, and writing resolution reports for reference. Software support technicians must be highly-familiarized with the system's infrastructure and interface to immediately diagnose malfunctions and identify maintenance techniques to prevent the reoccurrence of downtimes and delays. They also assist the system engineers in the configuration and optimization of networks, including the installment of upgrades and patch updates. A software support technician must have excellent organizational and communication skills, especially in navigating computer tools and applications to create support tickets and fix the customers' issues efficiently.
Information technology/support technicians and software support technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Information Technology/Support Technician | Software Support Technician | |
| Average salary | $45,591 | $79,670 |
| Salary range | Between $31,000 And $66,000 | Between $55,000 And $113,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Pennsylvania | California |
| Best paying company | Microsoft | RSM US |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Finance |
There are a few differences between an information technology/support technician and a software support technician in terms of educational background:
| Information Technology/Support Technician | Software Support Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 59% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Computer Science |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between information technology/support technicians' and software support technicians' demographics:
| Information Technology/Support Technician | Software Support Technician | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 85.4% Female, 14.6% | Male, 73.8% Female, 26.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.7% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.7% Asian, 13.2% White, 54.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 10.6% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.5% Asian, 12.4% White, 54.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |