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The differences between technical support representatives and technical support engineers 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 representative and a technical support engineer. Additionally, a technical support engineer has an average salary of $85,716, which is higher than the $34,758 average annual salary of a technical support representative.
The top three skills for a technical support representative include customer calls, smartphones and technical support calls. The most important skills for a technical support engineer are technical support, customer service, and troubleshoot.
| Technical Support Representative | Technical Support Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $34,758 | $85,716 |
| Hourly rate | $16.71 | $41.21 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 212,082 | 184,542 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 40% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
Technical Support Representatives specialize in customer support through calls or correspondence. Among the primary responsibilities of a Technical Support Representative involves receiving and making calls, address and troubleshoot issues raised by the client, assist when navigating through complicated applications, provide suggestions or recommendations, or elevate the problem to personnel with higher expertise when necessary. Furthermore, a Technical Support Representative must coordinate with supervisors at all times, remain patient and proactive, and as well as maintain and organize records of each handled calls.
A technical support engineer is responsible for responding to customer issues, providing immediate resolutions to their system issues through remote assistance. Technical support engineers must have strong knowledge of software and hardware applications to diagnose system defects and process troubleshooting. They also assist customers with the installation of programs and updates to improve system performance, escalating high-level concerns to appropriate internal technology teams. A technical support engineer must have strong command with technical systems, as well as excellent communication and time-management skills to understand clients' issues while documenting procedures.
Technical support representatives and technical support engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Technical Support Representative | Technical Support Engineer | |
| Average salary | $34,758 | $85,716 |
| Salary range | Between $27,000 And $44,000 | Between $61,000 And $119,000 |
| Highest paying City | Boston, MA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Maryland | Washington |
| Best paying company | HP | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a technical support representative and a technical support engineer in terms of educational background:
| Technical Support Representative | Technical Support Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 40% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Most common major | Business | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between technical support representatives' and technical support engineers' demographics:
| Technical Support Representative | Technical Support Engineer | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 61.5% Female, 38.5% | Male, 83.3% Female, 16.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.4% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.8% Asian, 10.6% White, 56.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 9.8% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 15.0% White, 54.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |