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The differences between personal support workers and direct support professionals can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a personal support worker has an average salary of $37,301, which is higher than the $32,077 average annual salary of a direct support professional.
The top three skills for a personal support worker include CPR, meal preparation and home health. The most important skills for a direct support professional are direct support, developmental disabilities, and autism.
| Personal Support Worker | Direct Support Professional | |
| Yearly salary | $37,301 | $32,077 |
| Hourly rate | $17.93 | $15.42 |
| Growth rate | 36% | 36% |
| Number of jobs | 126,563 | 142,034 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | 4 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 46% | High School Diploma, 30% |
| Average age | 48 | 48 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
Personal support workers and direct support professionals have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Personal Support Worker | Direct Support Professional | |
| Average salary | $37,301 | $32,077 |
| Salary range | Between $25,000 And $54,000 | Between $18,000 And $54,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Santa Clara, CA |
| Highest paying state | - | California |
| Best paying company | - | Meta |
| Best paying industry | - | Government |
There are a few differences between a personal support worker and a direct support professional in terms of educational background:
| Personal Support Worker | Direct Support Professional | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 46% | High School Diploma, 30% |
| Most common major | Psychology | Psychology |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between personal support workers' and direct support professionals' demographics:
| Personal Support Worker | Direct Support Professional | |
| Average age | 48 | 48 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 28.7% Female, 71.3% | Male, 24.4% Female, 75.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 16.0% Asian, 8.3% White, 61.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1% | Black or African American, 9.7% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 8.3% White, 61.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |