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The differences between instrument technicians and electricians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both an instrument technician and an electrician. Additionally, an instrument technician has an average salary of $56,918, which is higher than the $48,850 average annual salary of an electrician.
The top three skills for an instrument technician include patients, surgical instruments and cleanliness. The most important skills for an electrician are hand tools, electrical equipment, and run conduit.
| Instrument Technician | Electrician | |
| Yearly salary | $56,918 | $48,850 |
| Hourly rate | $27.36 | $23.49 |
| Growth rate | - | 7% |
| Number of jobs | 45,965 | 17,245 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 3.86 |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 48% | High School Diploma, 32% |
| Average age | 50 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
An instrument technician is an individual who is responsible for testing, repairing, and inspecting all manufacturing equipment to ensure proper operations of the machines. Instrument technicians collaborate with engineers to develop and produce equipment design and provide advice to process technicians about equipment operation. They remove defective equipment so that they can decontaminate and replace the damaged ones with new machines. They are also required by their employer to obtain certification in the field of instrumentation technology.
An electrician is a skilled tradesman in charge of wirings and systems which provide electric power to a facility. They are trained to design, install, maintain, and troubleshoot electrical wiring systems. There are four basic types of an electrician - residential wiremen, inside wiremen, telecommunications electrician, and outside linemen. Some work on a standard 40-hour week shift while others are on-call duty. In some cases, traveling is also a vital key to their role where they would work for a few days before moving to another location.
Instrument technicians and electricians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Instrument Technician | Electrician | |
| Average salary | $56,918 | $48,850 |
| Salary range | Between $38,000 And $83,000 | Between $32,000 And $73,000 |
| Highest paying City | Palo Alto, CA | Seattle, WA |
| Highest paying state | Hawaii | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Phillips 66 | PBF Energy |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Automotive |
There are a few differences between an instrument technician and an electrician in terms of educational background:
| Instrument Technician | Electrician | |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 48% | High School Diploma, 32% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Electrical Engineering Technology |
| Most common college | Northeastern University | - |
Here are the differences between instrument technicians' and electricians' demographics:
| Instrument Technician | Electrician | |
| Average age | 50 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 83.4% Female, 16.6% | Male, 95.6% Female, 4.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.3% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 10.4% Asian, 8.0% White, 70.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% | Black or African American, 8.5% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 20.5% Asian, 2.2% White, 63.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 3% |