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The differences between manufacturing technicians and product technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a manufacturing technician and a product technician. Additionally, a product technician has an average salary of $67,026, which is higher than the $37,853 average annual salary of a manufacturing technician.
The top three skills for a manufacturing technician include GMP, continuous improvement and hand tools. The most important skills for a product technician are customer service, troubleshoot, and product support.
| Manufacturing Technician | Product Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $37,853 | $67,026 |
| Hourly rate | $18.20 | $32.22 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 76,490 | 99,755 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 39% | High School Diploma, 33% |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A manufacturing technician, or often called a manufacturing production technician, is an individual who is responsible for setting and testing manufacturing machinery or equipment. To set up the machines, manufacturing technicians will use electronic, electrical, mechanical, or computer technologies. They are responsible for gathering data from their part in the manufacturing process and reporting it to their production or manufacturing engineers. When handling machines or equipment, manufacturing technicians must strictly follow their health and safety procedures and protocols.
Product technicians are skilled professionals who are responsible for evaluating manufactured goods to ensure quality and functionality before they are marketed to the general public. These technicians are required to perform equipment setup and adjustments while conducting minor preventative maintenance tasks to test for safety and productivity before they are put into production. By using their technical knowledge, they must identify problems such as mechanical issues and safety issues while providing potential solutions to the issues. Product technicians must also ensure that finished products conform to specifications and codes.
Manufacturing technicians and product technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Manufacturing Technician | Product Technician | |
| Average salary | $37,853 | $67,026 |
| Salary range | Between $27,000 And $52,000 | Between $36,000 And $123,000 |
| Highest paying City | Framingham, MA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Qorvo | PayPal |
| Best paying industry | Finance | - |
There are a few differences between a manufacturing technician and a product technician in terms of educational background:
| Manufacturing Technician | Product Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 39% | High School Diploma, 33% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between manufacturing technicians' and product technicians' demographics:
| Manufacturing Technician | Product Technician | |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 74.4% Female, 25.6% | Male, 85.8% Female, 14.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.5% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.9% Asian, 8.9% White, 59.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.6% Asian, 7.5% White, 60.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |