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The differences between support analysts 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 support analyst and a desktop support specialist. Additionally, a support analyst has an average salary of $75,989, which is higher than the $44,962 average annual salary of a desktop support specialist.
The top three skills for a support analyst include customer service, troubleshoot and technical support. The most important skills for a desktop support specialist are customer service, desktop support, and troubleshoot.
| Support Analyst | Desktop Support Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $75,989 | $44,962 |
| Hourly rate | $36.53 | $21.62 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 107,039 | 102,191 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 62% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
The role of support analysts is to resolve problems with hardware, computer programs, and peripherals. They may focus on a particular aspect of the information technology (IT) department or give technical support to end-users. They mainly detect issues with IT equipment and software and devise solutions to resolve these issues. Also, they are responsible for answering queries from users, preparing service records, and handling escalations. Support analysts also support the company's IT operations and best practices by creating and distributing relevant IT documents.
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.
Support analysts and desktop support specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Support Analyst | Desktop Support Specialist | |
| Average salary | $75,989 | $44,962 |
| Salary range | Between $50,000 And $114,000 | Between $33,000 And $59,000 |
| Highest paying City | Jersey City, NJ | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | The Citadel | Cornerstone Research |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Finance |
There are a few differences between a support analyst and a desktop support specialist in terms of educational background:
| Support Analyst | Desktop Support Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 62% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Most common major | Business | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Stanford University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between support analysts' and desktop support specialists' demographics:
| Support Analyst | Desktop Support Specialist | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 63.1% Female, 36.9% | Male, 87.6% Female, 12.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 12.2% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 14.9% Asian, 12.9% White, 54.3% 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% |