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The differences between senior technical support specialists and desktop support specialists 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 technical support specialist and a desktop support specialist. Additionally, a senior technical support specialist has an average salary of $72,587, which is higher than the $44,962 average annual salary of a desktop support specialist.
The top three skills for a senior technical support specialist include customer service, printers and phone calls. The most important skills for a desktop support specialist are customer service, desktop support, and troubleshoot.
| Senior Technical Support Specialist | Desktop Support Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $72,587 | $44,962 |
| Hourly rate | $34.90 | $21.62 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 157,012 | 102,191 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 55% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A Senior Technical Support Specialist recommends, develops, and implements workplace endpoint technology initiatives. They also help troubleshoot problems within information technology system operations.
A Desktop Support Specialist is focused on troubleshooting different software packages, hardware devices, and other peripherals. They monitor the performance of the company's desktop infrastructure.
Senior technical support specialists and desktop support specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Technical Support Specialist | Desktop Support Specialist | |
| Average salary | $72,587 | $44,962 |
| Salary range | Between $48,000 And $108,000 | Between $33,000 And $59,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Mateo, CA | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | Delaware | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | SAS Institute | Cornerstone Research |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Finance |
There are a few differences between a senior technical support specialist and a desktop support specialist in terms of educational background:
| Senior Technical Support Specialist | Desktop Support Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 55% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Most common major | Business | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Stanford University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between senior technical support specialists' and desktop support specialists' demographics:
| Senior Technical Support Specialist | Desktop Support Specialist | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 81.9% Female, 18.1% | Male, 87.6% Female, 12.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.2% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.0% Asian, 11.4% White, 55.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 11.2% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 15.9% Asian, 12.3% White, 54.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |