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The differences between repair technicians and machines technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a repair technician, becoming a machines technician takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a repair technician has an average salary of $41,643, which is higher than the $39,754 average annual salary of a machines technician.
The top three skills for a repair technician include customer service, hand tools and customer satisfaction. The most important skills for a machines technician are CNC, hand tools, and calipers.
| Repair Technician | Machines Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $41,643 | $39,754 |
| Hourly rate | $20.02 | $19.11 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 14% |
| Number of jobs | 162,051 | 106,175 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 38% | High School Diploma, 34% |
| Average age | 47 | 48 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 2 |
A repair technician's role focuses on assessing the problem or damage of a device and implementing solutions for it to function again. Although the extent of a technician's tasks will depend on the device or industry of employment, most of it revolves around troubleshooting, providing technical support, installing and writing programs, detaching and re-attaching wirings, welding, and even thoroughly discussing problems and solutions to clients. Furthermore, there are instances when a repair technician must work in a team setting that requires coordination and communication.
A machine technician can often be seen in a manufacturing company, factories, processing centers, and machine shops. They typically work as the apprentice of machine engineers that are responsible for ensuring that all machinery and machine tools are working properly. A technician operates, installs, maintains, inspects, and repairs equipment depending on what industry they are working in, whether it may be an industrial or automotive setup. They must be keen on detail and keep the machines or equipment to the highest quality standard at all times.
Repair technicians and machines technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Repair Technician | Machines Technician | |
| Average salary | $41,643 | $39,754 |
| Salary range | Between $27,000 And $63,000 | Between $30,000 And $52,000 |
| Highest paying City | New York, NY | Los Angeles, CA |
| Highest paying state | Hawaii | Alaska |
| Best paying company | SoCalGas | ABB |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Automotive |
There are a few differences between a repair technician and a machines technician in terms of educational background:
| Repair Technician | Machines Technician | |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 38% | High School Diploma, 34% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between repair technicians' and machines technicians' demographics:
| Repair Technician | Machines Technician | |
| Average age | 47 | 48 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 88.3% Female, 11.7% | Male, 85.1% Female, 14.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 18.3% Asian, 4.6% White, 60.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% | Black or African American, 8.5% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 15.9% Asian, 3.4% White, 67.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% |
| LGBT Percentage | 2% | 2% |