IT Support Specialist Salary: Your 2024 Guide

IT support specialists hold diverse positions across various industries. Primarily, they analyze, troubleshoot, and evaluate technical issues. They may also teach team members, clients, or external customers how to use programs and applications via telephone or chat. Depending on the company, IT support roles may also include monitoring and managing IT systems. Differing responsibilities, qualifications, and areas of expertise can result in different salaries. Read on to learn more about how much you can earn as an IT support specialist and the factors that will influence your salary.

Read more: How to Become an IT Support Specialist: Your 2024 Guide

IT support specialist salary

According to Glassdoor, the average IT support specialist salary in the US is $65,000 per year [1]. This role may also earn between $7,000 and $12,000 in additional pay each year. Additional pay insights can represent commissions, bonuses, or profit-sharing.

Read more: Entry-Level IT Support Jobs Overview: Skills, Education, Salaries

Factors that influence technical support salaries

Your level of experience, the industry you work in, the location your company is based, your area of expertise, and your job title can all play a role in technical support specialist salaries. Gain insight into salary ranges based on these factors in the following sections. Keep in mind that while location can influence pay, the cost of living in a given area is an important consideration.

Read more: 10 Entry-Level IT Jobs and What You Need to Get Started

Average salary by level of experience

Fifty percent of technical support specialists have a bachelor's degree, 32 percent have an associate degree, seven percent have a high school diploma, and five percent have a master's degree [2]. The most common majors for technical support professionals to pursue include computer science, business, computer information systems, and information technology.

As you work and gain new knowledge and skills that may allow you to solve problems faster and more efficiently. This may help increase your salary:

• IT support specialist salary entry-level (0-1 year): $60,000 per year

• IT support specialist salary mid-level (1-3 years): $64,000 per year

• IT support specialist salary senior-level (4-6 years): $68,000 per year

Read more: Do I Need An Information Technology Degree? What to Consider

Average salary by technical support specialist tier

Your IT support specialist skills and training can also impact your earning potential. As you gain more skills and experience, you can advance to higher IT support tiers. The levels of IT support go from tier 0, which is self-help for the end user, to tier 4, which is third-party support for products an organization may sell but not service. 

Let’s review the non-self-service tiers within one organization—tiers 1 through 3. Here are their differences and the average IT support specialist salary by tier according to Glassdoor as of November 2024: 

• Tier 1 ($64,000): This is the first line of technical support, and their responsibilities include logging incidents and service requests, troubleshooting technical issues, helping users manage their accounts, and filtering out incidents for higher tier levels. 

• Tier 2 ($69,000): These representatives handle more advanced issues, such as managing data backup and recovery, backend issues, and troubleshooting problems and significant issues.

• Tier 3 ($78,000): The third tier of IT support specialists are the subject matter experts. They are responsible for monitoring support queues, solving problems and major incidents within their specialty areas, and providing knowledge articles for other support agents to refer to. 

Average salary by certification

Certifications and certificates can represent a specialized skill set or area of expertise. You may also use them to fill gaps in your resume if you're transitioning from another field or an entry-level employee. Although the following certifications are not specific to IT support, they are aligned with potential career paths for IT support specialists. The list below outlines five of the highest paying IT certifications in the United States, according to a study by SkillSoft [3].

• Amazon Web Services (AWS) Certified Security: $203,597

• Google Cloud Professional Cloud Architect: $190,204

• Nutanix Certified Professional Multicloud Infrastructure (NCP-MCI):$175,409

• CCSP Certified Cloud Security Professional: $171,524

• CISSP Certified Information Systems Security Professional: $168,060

Read more: Free IT Certifications and Courses to Elevate Your Career

Average salary by industry

Your salary can also fluctuate depending on the industry you work in, let’s review five of the highest-paying industries for technical support specialists in the United States [1]:

• Financial Services: $78,000 per year

• Aerospace and Defense: $77,000 per year

• Government & Public Administration: $75,000 per year

• Legal: $73,000 per year

• Pharmaceutical & Biotechnology: $71,000 per year

Average salary by United States location

Location is another factor that can affect salaries, as companies will often compensate for varying costs of living, local demand for talent in certain roles, and even local income taxes. Here are a few of the highest-paying states for technical support specialists [4]:

• New York: $63,781 per year

• District of Columbia: $61,810 per year

• Louisiana: $54,861 per year

• Delaware: $58,423 per year

• Utah: $56,619 per year

Keep in mind, if you live in a location with a high cost of living, you’ll require a higher salary than you would in a location with a lower cost of living to afford the same lifestyle.

Average salary by job title

IT support specialist is one of several roles that fall under the broader umbrella of technical support. Here’s a list of similar jobs to consider, their responsibilities, and average annual salaries:

Help desk technician

A help desk agent or technician is another name for IT support specialist. These titles are extremely similar and often used interchangeably. Their main goal is to help solve end users’ technical problems. According to Glassdoor as of November 2024, the average salary for help desk technicians in the US is $56,000 per year.

Read more: How to Become a Help Desk Technician in 3 Steps

Computer support specialist

A computer support specialist, similar to an IT support specialist, provides technical help and expertise to users. They may also install, test, and upgrade computer systems, as well as monitor and maintain them. According to Glassdoor as of November 2024, the average salary for computer support specialists in the US is $58,000 per year.

Read more: What is a Computer Support Specialist? 2024 Career Guide

Systems support specialist

These specialists can work via chat and telephone but also perform on-site work for more complex issues. In addition to technical support, their responsibilities include hardware and software installation and upgrades, cable repair and installation, data backup and recovery, malware removal, and staff training. According to Glassdoor as of November 2024, the average salary for help desk technicians in the US is $83,000 per year.

IT support specialist outlook

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) expects demand for computer support specialists to remain relatively strong, growing at a rate of 6 percent between 2023 and 2033 [5]. This is about 49,300 job openings per year which is faster than other occupations in the US.

Read more: How to Find Entry-Level Help Desk Jobs in 2024

Earn IT support credentials with Coursera

Gain AI training and hands-on experience with core IT support technologies by enrolling to earn Google's IT Support Professional Certificate. You'll learn to perform day-to-day IT support tasks like wireless networking, program installation, and customer service in just six months, no prior experience required.