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The differences between senior support engineers and software 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 senior support engineer, becoming a software support engineer takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a senior support engineer has an average salary of $107,037, which is higher than the $87,968 average annual salary of a software support engineer.
The top three skills for a senior support engineer include java, customer service and troubleshoot. The most important skills for a software support engineer are java, software support, and customer service.
| Senior Support Engineer | Software Support Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $107,037 | $87,968 |
| Hourly rate | $51.46 | $42.29 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 21% |
| Number of jobs | 215,312 | 364,072 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Average age | 42 | 39 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 4 |
A senior support engineer specializes in providing technical support to clients. They are typically in charge of working on complicated technical issues, resolving them promptly and efficiently. Their responsibilities include communicating with clients, addressing their needs, troubleshooting, and providing step by step solutions. They may also arrange repair appointments or refer clients to other services. Furthermore, as a senior support engineer, it is essential to lead and serve as a mentor to junior engineers, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
Working closely with a company's software development team, a software support engineer specializes in handling complex software issues and providing technical assistance to customers. Among their responsibilities include answering calls and correspondence, addressing problems and concerns, troubleshooting, providing step by step solutions, and referring clients to other services when necessary. Moreover, a software support engineer may also take part in software development procedures by creating test structures, identifying and eliminating bugs to ensure the quality and efficiency of software and applications.
Senior support engineers and software support engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Support Engineer | Software Support Engineer | |
| Average salary | $107,037 | $87,968 |
| Salary range | Between $83,000 And $137,000 | Between $67,000 And $114,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | California |
| Best paying company | Amazon | Apple |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a senior support engineer and a software support engineer in terms of educational background:
| Senior Support Engineer | Software Support Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Computer Science |
| Most common college | California State University - Long Beach | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
Here are the differences between senior support engineers' and software support engineers' demographics:
| Senior Support Engineer | Software Support Engineer | |
| Average age | 42 | 39 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 88.1% Female, 11.9% | Male, 80.5% Female, 19.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.9% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.2% Asian, 15.2% White, 53.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 4.4% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 8.1% Asian, 30.0% White, 52.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 8% |