Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between account associates and bookkeepers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both an account associate and a bookkeeper. Additionally, an account associate has an average salary of $48,927, which is higher than the $40,337 average annual salary of a bookkeeper.
The top three skills for an account associate include customer service, work ethic and develop leads. The most important skills for a bookkeeper are payroll tax returns, customer service, and reconciliations.
| Account Associate | Bookkeeper | |
| Yearly salary | $48,927 | $40,337 |
| Hourly rate | $23.52 | $19.39 |
| Growth rate | -5% | -5% |
| Number of jobs | 98,235 | 38,481 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 46% |
| Average age | 51 | 51 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
An account associate is responsible for supporting the accounting and finance department in performing accounting operations, bookkeeping functions, and other related clerical tasks. Account associates analyze and sort financial statements accordingly, assist on payroll processing, evaluate account reconciliations and receivables, create financial reports, and updating recent account information on the database. They also handle clients' inquiries and concerns, routing calls to the appropriate accounting staff or department. An account associate must have excellent analytical and communication skills, as well as comprehensive knowledge of the accounting principles.
Bookkeepers are employees who are in charge of the company's general ledger. They are well-versed in basic accounting principles, and they apply these in their work. Bookkeepers manage the entry of items in the general ledger, assign items into their proper categories, and ensure that the entries are balanced. They also act as auditors by checking the accuracy and veracity of the receipts or vouchers in their possession before entering them into the system. Bookkeepers ensure that their files are up to date and free of errors.
Account associates and bookkeepers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Account Associate | Bookkeeper | |
| Average salary | $48,927 | $40,337 |
| Salary range | Between $35,000 And $67,000 | Between $30,000 And $52,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | California | New York |
| Best paying company | Pacific Investment Management Company LLC | NTT Data International L.L.C. |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between an account associate and a bookkeeper in terms of educational background:
| Account Associate | Bookkeeper | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 46% |
| Most common major | Business | Accounting |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between account associates' and bookkeepers' demographics:
| Account Associate | Bookkeeper | |
| Average age | 51 | 51 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 38.9% Female, 61.1% | Male, 15.4% Female, 84.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.9% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 6.6% White, 67.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 6.8% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.4% Asian, 6.6% White, 67.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |