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The differences between product support managers and product managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a product support manager, becoming a product manager takes usually requires 8-10 years. Additionally, a product manager has an average salary of $111,729, which is higher than the $96,155 average annual salary of a product support manager.
The top three skills for a product support manager include customer service, customer support and customer inquiries. The most important skills for a product manager are product management, QA, and product strategy.
| Product Support Manager | Product Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $96,155 | $111,729 |
| Hourly rate | $46.23 | $53.72 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 147,410 | 125,678 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 72% |
| Average age | 42 | 39 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 10 |
Product support managers are management professionals who are responsible for managing the activities related to product support for an organization. These managers must lead a team of professionals to meet all the objectives of the organization by ensuring product quality control and rectifying any potential issues. They are required to attend and participate in business meetings so that they can suggest innovative support strategies to increase the recognition of their products. Product support managers must also assist in resolving customer complaints by facilitating the communications between their clients and the organization.
A product manager is responsible for ensuring product development, providing the best marketing strategies, and effectively handling the sales and marketing team. Product managers' duties include monitoring the market trends and conditions, identifying business opportunities and plan initiatives, and collaborating the product launch process with the appropriate departments. A product manager is also responsible for generating ideas on improving product features, determining timetables and reasonable pricing, and analyzing product sales. A product manager must have excellent strategic and decision-making skills to contribute to its growth and profitability.
Product support managers and product managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Product Support Manager | Product Manager | |
| Average salary | $96,155 | $111,729 |
| Salary range | Between $68,000 And $134,000 | Between $81,000 And $152,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Apple | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Retail |
There are a few differences between a product support manager and a product manager in terms of educational background:
| Product Support Manager | Product Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 72% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | University of Georgia |
Here are the differences between product support managers' and product managers' demographics:
| Product Support Manager | Product Manager | |
| Average age | 42 | 39 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 80.2% Female, 19.8% | Male, 65.3% Female, 34.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.7% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.5% Asian, 11.3% White, 55.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 3.0% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 8.7% Asian, 8.2% White, 74.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 10% |