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The differences between accountant assistants and tax accountants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both an accountant assistant and a tax accountant. Additionally, a tax accountant has an average salary of $62,142, which is higher than the $40,537 average annual salary of an accountant assistant.
The top three skills for an accountant assistant include customer service, data entry and payroll taxes. The most important skills for a tax accountant are CPA, tax audits, and income tax returns.
| Accountant Assistant | Tax Accountant | |
| Yearly salary | $40,537 | $62,142 |
| Hourly rate | $19.49 | $29.88 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 63,247 | 57,919 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 57% | Bachelor's Degree, 72% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
An accountant assistant is responsible for assisting the operations of a finance department, performing administrative and clerical tasks as advised. Accountant assistants create budget reports, process invoices, and manage accounts receivable. They also document purchase orders, monitor the payroll release, complete bank reconciliations, update the company's account statements and escalate discrepancies, assist with audit preparations, and sort financial documents. An accountant assistant must be familiar with the accounting processes and financial industry, as well as have strong analytical and time-management skills to perform tasks under minimal supervision.
A tax accountant is an individual who works with clients to produce tax return documents that follow tax laws and regulations while keeping them updated on their return information. Tax accountants must determine tax strategies for their clients that may minimize or eliminate tax payments while arranging audits with taxation authorities. They prepare tax documents for different clients, including private companies, non-profit organizations, and private individuals. Tax accountants are also required to obtain a bachelor's degree in accounting and should understand business concepts.
Accountant assistants and tax accountants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Accountant Assistant | Tax Accountant | |
| Average salary | $40,537 | $62,142 |
| Salary range | Between $28,000 And $58,000 | Between $45,000 And $83,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | New York |
| Best paying company | Rodeo Realty | Pacific Investment Management Company LLC |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Finance |
There are a few differences between an accountant assistant and a tax accountant in terms of educational background:
| Accountant Assistant | Tax Accountant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 57% | Bachelor's Degree, 72% |
| Most common major | Accounting | Accounting |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between accountant assistants' and tax accountants' demographics:
| Accountant Assistant | Tax Accountant | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 24.9% Female, 75.1% | Male, 47.3% Female, 52.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 7.8% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.1% Asian, 16.8% White, 60.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 8.2% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.5% Asian, 15.5% White, 61.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |