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The differences between technical support agents and desk 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 technical support agent and a desk support technician. Additionally, a desk support technician has an average salary of $40,715, which is higher than the $30,389 average annual salary of a technical support agent.
The top three skills for a technical support agent include customer service, email clients and technical support issues. The most important skills for a desk support technician are customer service, technical support, and troubleshoot.
| Technical Support Agent | Desk Support Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $30,389 | $40,715 |
| Hourly rate | $14.61 | $19.57 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 177,918 | 130,485 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 33% | Bachelor's Degree, 48% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A technical support agent specializes in providing computer and system support through calls and correspondence, ensuring optimal customer satisfaction. They are primarily responsible for assisting customers in troubleshooting and evaluating systems to figure out the cause of technical issues and talk them through its corresponding solution. Moreover, an agent must make follow-up calls to ensure that the problem no longer persists or forward them to higher authority personnel when necessary.
A desktop support technician is responsible for assisting end-users with their network issues, grant authorization requests, and create user accounts. Desktop support technicians maintain the safety and security of networks, preventing unauthorized access and illegal dissemination of database information. They also handle the software configurations and upgrading the network infrastructure to avoid system downtimes and operational delays. A desktop support technician must have excellent communication and technical skills to monitor systems performance and enhance network navigation.
Technical support agents and desk support technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Technical Support Agent | Desk Support Technician | |
| Average salary | $30,389 | $40,715 |
| Salary range | Between $23,000 And $40,000 | Between $26,000 And $62,000 |
| Highest paying City | El Cajon, CA | South San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New York | California |
| Best paying company | HP | BNY Mellon |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a technical support agent and a desk support technician in terms of educational background:
| Technical Support Agent | Desk Support Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 33% | Bachelor's Degree, 48% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between technical support agents' and desk support technicians' demographics:
| Technical Support Agent | Desk Support Technician | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 57.7% Female, 42.3% | Male, 82.6% Female, 17.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.2% Asian, 10.6% White, 56.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.3% Asian, 11.7% White, 55.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |