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The differences between shipping specialists and shipping associates can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a shipping specialist and a shipping associate. Additionally, a shipping specialist has an average salary of $33,465, which is higher than the $33,137 average annual salary of a shipping associate.
The top three skills for a shipping specialist include logistics, shipping receiving and pallet jack. The most important skills for a shipping associate are pallets, customer service, and phone calls.
| Shipping Specialist | Shipping Associate | |
| Yearly salary | $33,465 | $33,137 |
| Hourly rate | $16.09 | $15.93 |
| Growth rate | -3% | -3% |
| Number of jobs | 181,523 | 171,689 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 32% | High School Diploma, 40% |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
A shipping specialist is a person who packages, manifests, and tracks all the items requested by the customers - external and internal. They keep strict item handling practices as per the recommended business practices and accurately update the needed tracking systems such as external data sources, spreadsheets, and modules. Besides filing and maintaining shipping document records as per the departmental guidelines, shipping specialists also make it easy to trace shipments by creating or printing identifying labels. Moreover, shipping specialists maintain excellent customer relationships and give timely updates relating to shipments to origin and destination.
Shipping associates prepare, package, and ship items ordered through digital channels. They must ensure goods are packaged to minimize risk of damages. They maintain ingoing and outgoing shipments and prepare shipping labels.
Shipping specialists and shipping associates have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Shipping Specialist | Shipping Associate | |
| Average salary | $33,465 | $33,137 |
| Salary range | Between $26,000 And $42,000 | Between $26,000 And $40,000 |
| Highest paying City | Puyallup, WA | Seattle, WA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | Washington |
| Best paying company | Los Alamos National Laboratory | Nestlé |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Technology |
There are a few differences between a shipping specialist and a shipping associate in terms of educational background:
| Shipping Specialist | Shipping Associate | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 32% | High School Diploma, 40% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between shipping specialists' and shipping associates' demographics:
| Shipping Specialist | Shipping Associate | |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 67.7% Female, 32.3% | Male, 75.3% Female, 24.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.1% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 19.5% Asian, 7.4% White, 58.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 10.7% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 18.8% Asian, 7.4% White, 58.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |