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Lead help desk technician vs help desk specialist

The differences between lead help desk technicians and help desk specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a lead help desk technician and a help desk specialist. Additionally, a lead help desk technician has an average salary of $59,992, which is higher than the $51,065 average annual salary of a help desk specialist.

The top three skills for a lead help desk technician include printers, technical support and phone calls. The most important skills for a help desk specialist are customer service, troubleshoot, and technical support.

Lead help desk technician vs help desk specialist overview

Lead Help Desk TechnicianHelp Desk Specialist
Yearly salary$59,992$51,065
Hourly rate$28.84$24.55
Growth rate10%10%
Number of jobs83,47975,004
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 50%Bachelor's Degree, 48%
Average age4242
Years of experience22

Lead help desk technician vs help desk specialist salary

Lead help desk technicians and help desk specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.

Lead Help Desk TechnicianHelp Desk Specialist
Average salary$59,992$51,065
Salary rangeBetween $45,000 And $79,000Between $35,000 And $73,000
Highest paying City-New York, NY
Highest paying state-Alaska
Best paying company-Schulte Roth & Zabel
Best paying industry-Technology

Differences between lead help desk technician and help desk specialist education

There are a few differences between a lead help desk technician and a help desk specialist in terms of educational background:

Lead Help Desk TechnicianHelp Desk Specialist
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 50%Bachelor's Degree, 48%
Most common majorBusinessComputer Science
Most common collegeUniversity of PennsylvaniaUniversity of Pennsylvania

Lead help desk technician vs help desk specialist demographics

Here are the differences between lead help desk technicians' and help desk specialists' demographics:

Lead Help Desk TechnicianHelp Desk Specialist
Average age4242
Gender ratioMale, 80.9% Female, 19.1%Male, 79.4% Female, 20.6%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 12.5% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.5% Asian, 10.5% White, 55.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%Black or African American, 12.3% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.3% Asian, 11.6% White, 55.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage11%11%

Differences between lead help desk technician and help desk specialist duties and responsibilities

Lead help desk technician example responsibilities.

  • Manage user application access through Citrix.
  • Utilize remedy ticket system to create trouble tickets
  • Enter, troubleshoot, update and route trouble tickets for residential internet support customers.
  • Used SQL to test updates to the software.
  • Used active directory to reset VPN passwords.
  • Administer weekly patching of workstations and servers.
  • Show more

Help desk specialist example responsibilities.

  • Manage network software deployment, imaging/backup and unattend OS installations
  • Develop, implement, and support customized manage VPN solutions for customers.
  • Work as tier II/III technical support representative helping customers troubleshoot hardware/software problems in high volume call center.
  • Support CITRIX by resolving connectivity issues when problems are reported.
  • Assist clients with Cisco VoIP, or Cisco AnyConnect troubleshooting, and escalation to higher tiers, as necessary.
  • Repair PCs and printers install software supervise interns
  • Show more

Lead help desk technician vs help desk specialist skills

Common lead help desk technician skills
  • Printers, 9%
  • Technical Support, 7%
  • Phone Calls, 4%
  • Desk Support, 4%
  • Remote Desktop, 4%
  • Customer Service, 4%
Common help desk specialist skills
  • Customer Service, 13%
  • Troubleshoot, 8%
  • Technical Support, 6%
  • Desk Support, 6%
  • Phone Calls, 5%
  • Client Facing, 4%

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