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The differences between tool technicians and instrument technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a tool technician, becoming an instrument technician takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, an instrument technician has an average salary of $56,918, which is higher than the $42,908 average annual salary of a tool technician.
The top three skills for a tool technician include grinders, hand tools and CNC. The most important skills for an instrument technician are patients, surgical instruments, and cleanliness.
| Tool Technician | Instrument Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $42,908 | $56,918 |
| Hourly rate | $20.63 | $27.36 |
| Growth rate | 1% | - |
| Number of jobs | 78,258 | 45,965 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 33% | Associate Degree, 48% |
| Average age | 54 | 50 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 12 |
Tool technicians are skilled professionals who are responsible for repairing a variety of pneumatic and hand tools as well as disassemble defective electrical equipment in a manufacturing firm using these hand tools. These technicians are required to coordinate with other areas of the company to schedule and perform preventive maintenance duties. They must provide support for CNC operators by setting up the caliper and micrometer of all the CNC machines. Tool technicians must also assist coworkers in ordering materials and purchasing machine parts.
An instrument technician is an individual who is responsible for testing, repairing, and inspecting all manufacturing equipment to ensure proper operations of the machines. Instrument technicians collaborate with engineers to develop and produce equipment design and provide advice to process technicians about equipment operation. They remove defective equipment so that they can decontaminate and replace the damaged ones with new machines. They are also required by their employer to obtain certification in the field of instrumentation technology.
Tool technicians and instrument technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Tool Technician | Instrument Technician | |
| Average salary | $42,908 | $56,918 |
| Salary range | Between $29,000 And $61,000 | Between $38,000 And $83,000 |
| Highest paying City | Fort Wayne, IN | Palo Alto, CA |
| Highest paying state | Indiana | Hawaii |
| Best paying company | Rivian | Phillips 66 |
| Best paying industry | Energy | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between a tool technician and an instrument technician in terms of educational background:
| Tool Technician | Instrument Technician | |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 33% | Associate Degree, 48% |
| Most common major | Business | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | - | Northeastern University |
Here are the differences between tool technicians' and instrument technicians' demographics:
| Tool Technician | Instrument Technician | |
| Average age | 54 | 50 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 92.0% Female, 8.0% | Male, 83.4% Female, 16.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 2.4% Unknown, 2.8% Hispanic or Latino, 6.5% Asian, 2.7% White, 84.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% | Black or African American, 6.3% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 10.4% Asian, 8.0% White, 70.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 3% | 8% |