Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between maintenance technicians and preventive maintenance technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a maintenance technician and a preventive maintenance technician. Additionally, a maintenance technician has an average salary of $43,293, which is higher than the $40,935 average annual salary of a preventive maintenance technician.
The top three skills for a maintenance technician include plumbing, HVAC and hand tools. The most important skills for a preventive maintenance technician are customer service, hand tools, and HVAC.
| Maintenance Technician | Preventive Maintenance Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $43,293 | $40,935 |
| Hourly rate | $20.81 | $19.68 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 178,450 | 170,517 |
| Job satisfaction | 4.25 | - |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 34% | Associate Degree, 31% |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
Maintenance technicians are technicians who specialize in the preservation of office facilities. They have in-depth knowledge of how various office equipment or fixtures work so that they can immediately identify how to repair them in case of breakdowns. Maintenance technicians perform diagnostics and routine maintenance activities to ensure that everything in the office is running well. They immediately repair problems in fixtures or equipment to avoid any further damages or safety concerns. They should be familiar with occupational safety and health standards to ensure that the office is a safe place to work.
A preventive maintenance technician performs routine facility maintenance to prevent possible mechanical failure. The technicians change worn out machine parts before they can cause mechanical damage. They keep the facility operating. It is their job to conduct quality assessments, maintain inventory, and schedule repairs. Also, they see to it that machines are up and running at all times. They are expected to be equipped with skills in customer service, problem-solving, reading comprehension, business operation, and mechanical aptitude.
Maintenance technicians and preventive maintenance technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Maintenance Technician | Preventive Maintenance Technician | |
| Average salary | $43,293 | $40,935 |
| Salary range | Between $31,000 And $59,000 | Between $31,000 And $52,000 |
| Highest paying City | Richmond, CA | Owatonna, MN |
| Highest paying state | Rhode Island | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Anheuser-Busch | Kiewit |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Automotive |
There are a few differences between a maintenance technician and a preventive maintenance technician in terms of educational background:
| Maintenance Technician | Preventive Maintenance Technician | |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 34% | Associate Degree, 31% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering Technology | Automotive Technology |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between maintenance technicians' and preventive maintenance technicians' demographics:
| Maintenance Technician | Preventive Maintenance Technician | |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 95.7% Female, 4.3% | Male, 91.8% Female, 8.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.4% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 18.2% Asian, 4.6% White, 60.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% | Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 19.4% Asian, 4.6% White, 59.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 2% | 2% |