Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between professional technicians and desktop support 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 professional technician and a desktop support technician. Additionally, a professional technician has an average salary of $81,726, which is higher than the $41,792 average annual salary of a desktop support technician.
The top three skills for a professional technician include customer service, cloud and project management. The most important skills for a desktop support technician are customer service, desktop support, and troubleshoot.
| Professional Technician | Desktop Support Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $81,726 | $41,792 |
| Hourly rate | $39.29 | $20.09 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 123,659 | 108,944 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 1 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 46% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A professional technician is responsible for handling the complexities of technical and mechanical systems, repair defective components, and recommend technical solutions to enhance the company's productivity and efficiency in delivering high-quality deliverables. Professional technicians must be highly skilled in analyzing schematics and blueprints to assemble components and perform troubleshooting. They also manage the adequacy of inventories, create purchase requests, and identify costs and expenses for repairs and installations. A professional technician must be highly communicative and organization, especially in handling tasks with utmost adherence to safety protocols and regulations.
A desktop support technician is responsible for troubleshooting defective computer systems, affecting its performance and efficiency. Desktop support technicians must be highly familiar with the technology systems and programming codes to navigate system applications and locate the discrepancy of the system. They keep documentation of the ticket issue and the resolution for reference and quality improvement. A desktop support technician also configures and updates computer systems and networks for better optimization, as well as conducting regular inspections and monitoring the efficiency of installed programs and patches.
Professional technicians and desktop support technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Professional Technician | Desktop Support Technician | |
| Average salary | $81,726 | $41,792 |
| Salary range | Between $64,000 And $104,000 | Between $32,000 And $54,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Philadelphia, PA |
| Highest paying state | California | Pennsylvania |
| Best paying company | Microsoft | NTT Data International L.L.C. |
| Best paying industry | Energy | Finance |
There are a few differences between a professional technician and a desktop support technician in terms of educational background:
| Professional Technician | Desktop Support Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 46% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Computer Information Systems |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between professional technicians' and desktop support technicians' demographics:
| Professional Technician | Desktop Support Technician | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 72.1% Female, 27.9% | Male, 89.8% Female, 10.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.0% Asian, 12.8% White, 54.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 11.6% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 11.7% White, 54.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |