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The differences between service desk specialists and help desk analysts can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a service desk specialist and a help desk analyst. Additionally, a service desk specialist has an average salary of $48,332, which is higher than the $37,318 average annual salary of a help desk analyst.
The top three skills for a service desk specialist include service desk, customer service and troubleshoot. The most important skills for a help desk analyst are customer service, troubleshoot, and technical support.
| Service Desk Specialist | Help Desk Analyst | |
| Yearly salary | $48,332 | $37,318 |
| Hourly rate | $23.24 | $17.94 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 100,806 | 87,591 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 50% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A service desk specialist is responsible for assisting the end-users' technical issues, resolving concerns usually through remote communication. Service desk specialists should have excellent knowledge of the technology industry, including system and server navigation, to identify the problem source and write resolutions for reference to avoid reoccurrence. They assist in developing strategic techniques to improve the system's performance by upgrading and updating its features. A service desk specialist records the observations of the database and develops other alternative resources to assess troubleshooting processes.
Help Desk Analysts generally provide technical support by assisting customers with their system issues. These analysts are expected to be highly knowledgeable about application processes and basic troubleshooting. Help Desk Analysts usually communicate with end-users through phone calls or e-mail and are required to attend on customers technical issues promptly. Depending on the expertise, the Help Desk Analysts are often categorized to support levels wherein the most complex issues are often handle by the highest tier. The Help Desk Analysts must have critical-thinking skills on solving network problems and document specific concerns and progress.
Service desk specialists and help desk analysts have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Service Desk Specialist | Help Desk Analyst | |
| Average salary | $48,332 | $37,318 |
| Salary range | Between $35,000 And $65,000 | Between $26,000 And $52,000 |
| Highest paying City | Sacramento, CA | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | Pennsylvania | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Capgemini | Pacific Investment Management Company LLC |
| Best paying industry | Health Care | Government |
There are a few differences between a service desk specialist and a help desk analyst in terms of educational background:
| Service Desk Specialist | Help Desk Analyst | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 50% |
| Most common major | Business | Computer Information Systems |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between service desk specialists' and help desk analysts' demographics:
| Service Desk Specialist | Help Desk Analyst | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 62.4% Female, 37.6% | Male, 71.8% Female, 28.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.2% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 16.3% Asian, 11.4% White, 55.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 12.5% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 11.1% White, 55.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |