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The differences between product support managers and product support engineers 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 support engineer takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a product support manager has an average salary of $96,155, which is higher than the $90,379 average annual salary of a product support engineer.
The top three skills for a product support manager include customer service, customer support and customer inquiries. The most important skills for a product support engineer are product support, technical support, and troubleshoot.
| Product Support Manager | Product Support Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $96,155 | $90,379 |
| Hourly rate | $46.23 | $43.45 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 147,410 | 201,554 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Average age | 42 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 6 |
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 support engineer is responsible for resolving technical issues of end-users regarding the products and services offered by the company. Product support engineers conduct troubleshooting operations for system failures and write resolution reports for reference. They also support the product analysts in improving the product's features and processes to prevent the reoccurrence of defects and maintain optimal performance. A product support engineer designs automation procedures and runs multiple diagnostic tests to ensure high-quality outputs and avoid operational delays.
Product support managers and product support engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Product Support Manager | Product Support Engineer | |
| Average salary | $96,155 | $90,379 |
| Salary range | Between $68,000 And $134,000 | Between $67,000 And $121,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Apple | Apple |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a product support manager and a product support engineer in terms of educational background:
| Product Support Manager | Product Support Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Most common major | Business | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between product support managers' and product support engineers' demographics:
| Product Support Manager | Product Support Engineer | |
| Average age | 42 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 80.2% Female, 19.8% | Male, 80.7% Female, 19.3% |
| 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, 3.4% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 9.4% Asian, 13.0% White, 69.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 5% |