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The differences between service desk specialists and information technology/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 service desk specialist and an information technology/support technician. Additionally, a service desk specialist has an average salary of $48,332, which is higher than the $45,591 average annual salary of an information technology/support technician.
The top three skills for a service desk specialist include service desk, customer service and troubleshoot. The most important skills for an information technology/support technician are customer service, troubleshoot, and computer system.
| Service Desk Specialist | Information Technology/Support Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $48,332 | $45,591 |
| Hourly rate | $23.24 | $21.92 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 100,806 | 161,748 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 51% |
| 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.
An information technology (IT) support technician is an individual who is responsible for providing support and troubleshoots software and hardware problems faced by customers. As for larger organizations that have their own IT department, technicians must work together internally with their IT staff members. IT support technicians are involved in inspecting and resolving minor local area network and wireless network issues, which include TCP/IP, DHCP, and VPN. They are also required to obtain an associate's degree in computer science or related field.
Service desk specialists and information technology/support technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Service Desk Specialist | Information Technology/Support Technician | |
| Average salary | $48,332 | $45,591 |
| Salary range | Between $35,000 And $65,000 | Between $31,000 And $66,000 |
| Highest paying City | Sacramento, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Pennsylvania | Pennsylvania |
| Best paying company | Capgemini | Microsoft |
| Best paying industry | Health Care | Technology |
There are a few differences between a service desk specialist and an information technology/support technician in terms of educational background:
| Service Desk Specialist | Information Technology/Support Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 51% |
| Most common major | Business | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Stanford University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between service desk specialists' and information technology/support technicians' demographics:
| Service Desk Specialist | Information Technology/Support Technician | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 62.4% Female, 37.6% | Male, 85.4% Female, 14.6% |
| 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, 10.7% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.7% Asian, 13.2% White, 54.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |