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The differences between information technology/support technicians and technical support engineers 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 technical support engineer. Additionally, a technical support engineer has an average salary of $85,716, 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 technical support engineer are technical support, customer service, and troubleshoot.
| Information Technology/Support Technician | Technical Support Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $45,591 | $85,716 |
| Hourly rate | $21.92 | $41.21 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 161,748 | 184,542 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| 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 technical support engineer is responsible for responding to customer issues, providing immediate resolutions to their system issues through remote assistance. Technical support engineers must have strong knowledge of software and hardware applications to diagnose system defects and process troubleshooting. They also assist customers with the installation of programs and updates to improve system performance, escalating high-level concerns to appropriate internal technology teams. A technical support engineer must have strong command with technical systems, as well as excellent communication and time-management skills to understand clients' issues while documenting procedures.
Information technology/support technicians and technical support engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Information Technology/Support Technician | Technical Support Engineer | |
| Average salary | $45,591 | $85,716 |
| Salary range | Between $31,000 And $66,000 | Between $61,000 And $119,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Pennsylvania | Washington |
| Best paying company | Microsoft | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between an information technology/support technician and a technical support engineer in terms of educational background:
| Information Technology/Support Technician | Technical Support Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between information technology/support technicians' and technical support engineers' demographics:
| Information Technology/Support Technician | Technical Support Engineer | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 85.4% Female, 14.6% | Male, 83.3% Female, 16.7% |
| 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, 9.8% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 15.0% White, 54.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |