Network manager vs senior network administrator

The differences between network managers and senior network administrators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a network manager and a senior network administrator. Additionally, a network manager has an average salary of $97,578, which is higher than the $89,169 average annual salary of a senior network administrator.

The top three skills for a network manager include customer service, fault management and network infrastructure. The most important skills for a senior network administrator are switches, routers, and troubleshoot.

Network manager vs senior network administrator overview

	Network Manager	Senior Network Administrator
Yearly salary	$97,578	$89,169
Hourly rate	$46.91	$42.87
Growth rate	5%	5%
Number of jobs	36,831	110,027
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 63%	Bachelor's Degree, 58%
Average age	43	43
Years of experience	2	2

What does a network manager do?

A network manager is responsible for monitoring the efficient network connection of the company's technology systems, analyzing system designs, and overseeing installation processes and programs. Network managers inspect the efficiency of existing network management systems, upgrading network data to boost optimal performance and communication transportation. A network manager must have excellent knowledge of technology disciplines and should always be updated with the recent technology trends, guiding the network staff on their tasks and immediately resolving system defects and discrepancies.

What does a senior network administrator do?

Senior Network Administrators provide system and network solutions for their organizations. They supervise the functioning of networking equipment and follow strict maintenance standards.

Network manager vs senior network administrator salary

Network managers and senior network administrators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Network Manager	Senior Network Administrator
Average salary	$97,578	$89,169
Salary range	Between $71,000 And $132,000	Between $68,000 And $115,000
Highest paying City	Menlo Park, CA	San Mateo, CA
Highest paying state	California	California
Best paying company	Meta	Tesoro
Best paying industry	Technology	Finance

Differences between network manager and senior network administrator education

There are a few differences between a network manager and a senior network administrator in terms of educational background:

	Network Manager	Senior Network Administrator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 63%	Bachelor's Degree, 58%
Most common major	Business	Computer Science
Most common college	Stanford University	Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Network manager vs senior network administrator demographics

Here are the differences between network managers' and senior network administrators' demographics:

	Network Manager	Senior Network Administrator
Average age	43	43
Gender ratio	Male, 83.3% Female, 16.7%	Male, 91.7% Female, 8.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.0% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.7% Asian, 8.7% White, 64.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	Black or African American, 9.0% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.7% Asian, 10.1% White, 62.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between network manager and senior network administrator duties and responsibilities

Network manager example responsibilities.

Negotiate and manage customer SLA's.
Manage a remote nationwide team of database Sr.
Manage vendor for all PBX move add and changes.
Manage environment in support of define CDRL's and SLA's.
Lead the architecture design for PCI (payment card industry) compliance.
Manage iRules and VIP setup on F5's and juniper load balance.

Senior network administrator example responsibilities.

Lead IP management specialist and assist with management of DHCP scopes and reservations.
Establish and manage SharePoint base intranet for departmental and interdepartmental support.
Configure and manage SQL database archival requests for automate timely data submissions.
Configure and manage multiple data and application servers and maintain SQL relational databases.
Prioritize and manage servicing of customer trouble calls in locally develop tracking database.
Configure and manage company routers and switches in addition to VPN configuration and policy enforcement.

Network manager vs senior network administrator skills

Common network manager skills

Customer Service, 12%
Fault Management, 6%
Network Infrastructure, 5%
Switches, 4%
Network Hardware, 4%
Project Management, 4%

Common senior network administrator skills

Switches, 8%
Routers, 5%
Troubleshoot, 5%
Windows Server, 4%
Network Infrastructure, 4%
Lan Wan, 4%

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Network Manager vs Senior Network Administrator

Updated January 8, 2025

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