Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between irrigators and irrigation 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 irrigator and an irrigation technician. Additionally, an irrigation technician has an average salary of $35,472, which is higher than the $26,562 average annual salary of an irrigator.
The top three skills for an irrigator include harvest, sprinklers and GRASS. The most important skills for an irrigation technician are golf courses, trenchers, and sprinkler heads.
| Irrigator | Irrigation Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $26,562 | $35,472 |
| Hourly rate | $12.77 | $17.05 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 5,808 | 27,291 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 42% | High School Diploma, 42% |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
An irrigator usually works on farmland and is responsible for the management and production of crops. They spend most of their time working in fields or gardens; they plant crops, water the soil, apply fertilizer, and apply pest-control measures. They have a daily routine of duties at their farm. They operate an irrigation controller and other types of machinery. Their core duty is to keep the agricultural land healthy.
An irrigation technician is responsible for installing, testing, and maintaining irrigation equipment such as sprinklers, suction valves, and pumps. Typical duties for this position include operating heavy machinery for trenching, installing wiring systems for irrigation timers, and inspecting equipment for a day's work. In addition, an irrigation technician may be required to travel to the client's location to install, test, or perform preventative maintenance of irrigation equipment. You are also expected to dig trenches and install lines and pipes and troubleshoot and replace faulty parts.
Irrigators and irrigation technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Irrigator | Irrigation Technician | |
| Average salary | $26,562 | $35,472 |
| Salary range | Between $20,000 And $34,000 | Between $27,000 And $45,000 |
| Highest paying City | Brighton, CO | Concord, CA |
| Highest paying state | Massachusetts | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Ball | San Diego College of Continuing Education |
| Best paying industry | Hospitality | Construction |
There are a few differences between an irrigator and an irrigation technician in terms of educational background:
| Irrigator | Irrigation Technician | |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 42% | High School Diploma, 42% |
| Most common major | Criminal Justice | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between irrigators' and irrigation technicians' demographics:
| Irrigator | Irrigation Technician | |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 90.4% Female, 9.6% | Male, 96.1% Female, 3.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 7.3% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 41.5% Asian, 1.7% White, 43.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.4% | Black or African American, 9.0% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 26.0% Asian, 2.0% White, 57.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 3% | 3% |