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The differences between product support representatives and product technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a product support representative and a product technician. Additionally, a product technician has an average salary of $67,026, which is higher than the $36,865 average annual salary of a product support representative.
The top three skills for a product support representative include customer service, technical support and product knowledge. The most important skills for a product technician are customer service, troubleshoot, and product support.
| Product Support Representative | Product Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $36,865 | $67,026 |
| Hourly rate | $17.72 | $32.22 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 125,112 | 99,755 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | High School Diploma, 33% |
| Average age | 42 | 45 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
Product support representatives are skilled employees who are responsible for performing tasks related to product support services. These representatives must provide excellent customer service as well as technical and product support by responding to phone calls and emails of their customers. They must advise their customers on preventative maintenance and configurations that may negatively affect product performance. Product support representatives are also required to document all activities and communications about problems related to product support services and report them with the development team for solutions.
Product technicians are skilled professionals who are responsible for evaluating manufactured goods to ensure quality and functionality before they are marketed to the general public. These technicians are required to perform equipment setup and adjustments while conducting minor preventative maintenance tasks to test for safety and productivity before they are put into production. By using their technical knowledge, they must identify problems such as mechanical issues and safety issues while providing potential solutions to the issues. Product technicians must also ensure that finished products conform to specifications and codes.
Product support representatives and product technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Product Support Representative | Product Technician | |
| Average salary | $36,865 | $67,026 |
| Salary range | Between $24,000 And $56,000 | Between $36,000 And $123,000 |
| Highest paying City | Trenton, NJ | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Rhode Island | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Kronos Incorporated | PayPal |
| Best paying industry | - | - |
There are a few differences between a product support representative and a product technician in terms of educational background:
| Product Support Representative | Product Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | High School Diploma, 33% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between product support representatives' and product technicians' demographics:
| Product Support Representative | Product Technician | |
| Average age | 42 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 65.0% Female, 35.0% | Male, 85.8% Female, 14.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 10.0% White, 56.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.6% Asian, 7.5% White, 60.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 6% |