Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between senior support technicians and software 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 senior support technician and a software support technician. Additionally, a software support technician has an average salary of $79,670, which is higher than the $74,459 average annual salary of a senior support technician.
The top three skills for a senior support technician include customer service, technical support and troubleshoot. The most important skills for a software support technician are customer service, troubleshoot, and java.
| Senior Support Technician | Software Support Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $74,459 | $79,670 |
| Hourly rate | $35.80 | $38.30 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 113,499 | 117,059 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 48% | Bachelor's Degree, 59% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A senior support technician is an individual specializing in diagnosing and resolving information technology (IT)-related problems in an organization, including virus issues, forgotten passwords, and software updates. The job requires knowledge about the installation, configuration, and testing of computer hardware and software. Possessing excellent customer service, listening, and problem-solving skills is also vital to qualify for the position. The job's education requirements include an associate or bachelor's degree in computer science, business, information technology, or a related field.
A software support technician is responsible for resolving software application issues, diagnosing related system failures, and writing resolution reports for reference. Software support technicians must be highly-familiarized with the system's infrastructure and interface to immediately diagnose malfunctions and identify maintenance techniques to prevent the reoccurrence of downtimes and delays. They also assist the system engineers in the configuration and optimization of networks, including the installment of upgrades and patch updates. A software support technician must have excellent organizational and communication skills, especially in navigating computer tools and applications to create support tickets and fix the customers' issues efficiently.
Senior support technicians and software support technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Support Technician | Software Support Technician | |
| Average salary | $74,459 | $79,670 |
| Salary range | Between $48,000 And $114,000 | Between $55,000 And $113,000 |
| Highest paying City | Durham, NC | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Pennsylvania | California |
| Best paying company | Pacira BioSciences | RSM US |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Finance |
There are a few differences between a senior support technician and a software support technician in terms of educational background:
| Senior Support Technician | Software Support Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 48% | Bachelor's Degree, 59% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between senior support technicians' and software support technicians' demographics:
| Senior Support Technician | Software Support Technician | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 78.4% Female, 21.6% | Male, 73.8% Female, 26.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.7% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.3% Asian, 11.1% White, 56.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 10.6% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.5% Asian, 12.4% White, 54.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |