Office helper vs office support specialist

The differences between office helpers and office support specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both an office helper and an office support specialist. Additionally, an office support specialist has an average salary of $36,549, which is higher than the $31,661 average annual salary of an office helper.

The top three skills for an office helper include data entry, customer service and office equipment. The most important skills for an office support specialist are customer service, data entry, and phone calls.

Office helper vs office support specialist overview

	Office Helper	Office Support Specialist
Yearly salary	$31,661	$36,549
Hourly rate	$15.22	$17.57
Growth rate	-5%	-5%
Number of jobs	49,356	130,301
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 34%	Bachelor's Degree, 45%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	2	2

Office helper vs office support specialist salary

Office helpers and office support specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Office Helper	Office Support Specialist
Average salary	$31,661	$36,549
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $38,000	Between $29,000 And $45,000
Highest paying City	-	Billerica, MA
Highest paying state	-	Massachusetts
Best paying company	-	Anne Arundel County Public Schools
Best paying industry	-	Finance

Differences between office helper and office support specialist education

There are a few differences between an office helper and an office support specialist in terms of educational background:

	Office Helper	Office Support Specialist
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 34%	Bachelor's Degree, 45%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	Western Carolina University

Office helper vs office support specialist demographics

Here are the differences between office helpers' and office support specialists' demographics:

	Office Helper	Office Support Specialist
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 21.8% Female, 78.2%	Male, 17.8% Female, 82.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.5% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 19.0% Asian, 7.9% White, 57.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%	Black or African American, 10.2% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 18.3% Asian, 6.8% White, 59.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between office helper and office support specialist duties and responsibilities

Office helper example responsibilities.

Manage operational FedEx relationship through order fulfillment, shipment tracking, and communication with parties involve in shipment transaction.
Write checks, write permits, run errands, scan and file paperwork, certify payroll, pay bills.
Verify and submit payroll bi-weekly.
Develop innovative PowerPoint presentations used by different departments within the company to promote growth of the company.
Demonstrate ability to maintain composure and work efficiently in a fast-pace environment while following HIPAA guidelines.

Office support specialist example responsibilities.

Manage and maintain patients' medical records by utilizing computer applications management database processing system to ensure county compliance.
Create PowerPoint presentations to train employees on new software.
Add new documents and update calendars to the SharePoint website for team collaboration.
Conduct payroll accountability & evaluate for accuracy.
Process bi-weekly payroll for part-time civil service personnel.
Update SharePoint website regularly with new employee information.

Office helper vs office support specialist skills

Common office helper skills

Data Entry, 28%
Customer Service, 17%
Office Equipment, 10%
Scheduling Appointments, 6%
Payroll, 6%
Front Desk, 5%

Common office support specialist skills

Customer Service, 18%
Data Entry, 10%
Phone Calls, 7%
Office Equipment, 6%
Human Resources, 5%
Word Processing, 5%

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Office and Administrative Industry
Office Helper
Office Helper vs Office Support Specialist

Updated January 8, 2025

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