Account planner vs account manager

The differences between account planners and account managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become an account planner, becoming an account manager takes usually requires 6-8 years. Additionally, an account planner has an average salary of $71,823, which is higher than the $68,535 average annual salary of an account manager.

The top three skills for an account planner include digital marketing, media sales and nielsen. The most important skills for an account manager are customer service, account management, and healthcare.

Account planner vs account manager overview

	Account Planner	Account Manager
Yearly salary	$71,823	$68,535
Hourly rate	$34.53	$32.95
Growth rate	19%	5%
Number of jobs	82,798	152,261
Job satisfaction	-	4
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 82%	Bachelor's Degree, 70%
Average age	37	46
Years of experience	6	8

What does an account planner do?

An account planner is someone who works primarily with clients on how to improve their accounts, sales strategy, and marketing. The account planner creates, develops, and maintains clients' accounts to increase sales and make them profitable. Included in an account planner's task is to monitor competition, determine problems in the actual marketing campaign, provide insight into the market's status, and offer suggestions on how to improve. The account planner also communicates directly with the client and actively works with them to achieve success.

What does an account manager do?

Account managers are employees who act as the bridge between the company they represent and the client of the company. They are assigned to handle specific clients so that the company will be able to tailor-fit any product or service according to the clients' requirements. Account managers are responsible for maintaining a harmonious relationship between the two parties by ensuring that any agreement made is amenable to both the company and the client. They are also responsible for ensuring that the company will be able to provide the needs of the client within any limitation that the client may have. Account managers also ensure that the company's reputation and well-being are always considered in any dealings.

Account planner vs account manager salary

Account planners and account managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Account Planner	Account Manager
Average salary	$71,823	$68,535
Salary range	Between $48,000 And $107,000	Between $42,000 And $110,000
Highest paying City	Harrison, NY	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Delaware	Washington
Best paying company	Google	NVIDIA
Best paying industry	Professional	Technology

Differences between account planner and account manager education

There are a few differences between an account planner and an account manager in terms of educational background:

	Account Planner	Account Manager
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 82%	Bachelor's Degree, 70%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Georgia	University of Southern California

Account planner vs account manager demographics

Here are the differences between account planners' and account managers' demographics:

	Account Planner	Account Manager
Average age	37	46
Gender ratio	Male, 38.6% Female, 61.4%	Male, 54.8% Female, 45.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 5.0% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 12.0% Asian, 13.2% White, 64.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%	Black or African American, 3.2% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 9.8% Asian, 4.1% White, 78.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	10%	7%

Differences between account planner and account manager duties and responsibilities

Account planner example responsibilities.

Guide production planning activities ranging from developing and revising production schedules, forecasting trends and customer demand, and managing logistics.
Direct inbound or outbound logistics operations, such as transportation or warehouse activities, safety performance, or logistics quality management.
Coordinate the quality control for clients' letters and mailings as well as ran data pulls and file selects for clients.

Account manager example responsibilities.

Manage financial departments with responsibility for managing payroll, bank re-consolidations, bank deposits, budgeting and cost control.
Manage $4 million territory encompassing three Mid-Atlantic states.
Manage new business and renewals for leading Saas legal solution.
Manage an inside sales territory of multiple states with Avaya technology solutions.
Negotiate and manage all contracts and pricing for IDN's in the territory.
Manage customers' accounts utilizing laptop and internet base CMS reporting software and ADM field guide.

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Account planner vs account manager skills

Common account planner skills

Digital Marketing, 27%
Media Sales, 11%
Nielsen, 9%
Account Executives, 9%
PowerPoint, 4%
Creative Strategy, 3%

Common account manager skills

Customer Service, 19%
Account Management, 8%
Healthcare, 6%
CRM, 6%
Product Knowledge, 5%
PowerPoint, 5%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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