Accounting administrator vs accounting technician

The differences between accounting administrators and accounting technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both an accounting administrator and an accounting technician. Additionally, an accounting administrator has an average salary of $48,068, which is higher than the $41,337 average annual salary of an accounting technician.

The top three skills for an accounting administrator include customer service, data entry and reconciliations. The most important skills for an accounting technician are customer service, financial reports, and payroll.

Accounting administrator vs accounting technician overview

	Accounting Administrator	Accounting Technician
Yearly salary	$48,068	$41,337
Hourly rate	$23.11	$19.87
Growth rate	-5%	-5%
Number of jobs	97,934	39,972
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 53%	Bachelor's Degree, 51%
Average age	51	51
Years of experience	6	6

What does an accounting administrator do?

An accounting administrator is responsible for reviewing and analyzing account statements, managing deposits, and resolving bank discrepancies and financial disputes. Accounting administrators handle the efficient and accurate cash flow within an organization, including payroll release and filing of petty cash. They maintain an organized record of payments and billing statements for reference and audit purposes to generate reports for the management. An accounting administrator must have extensive knowledge of the accounting principles, as well as excellent communication and analytical skills to perform duties effectively, even under minimal supervision.

What does an accounting technician do?

An accounting technician is responsible for evaluating financial information procedures to support accounting and taxation tasks, verifying the accuracy of account statements for the reference of accountants. Accounting technicians manage the payroll processes, generate invoices, perform account reconciliations, analyze account receivables, prepare budget reports, and monitor the company's financial transactions. Accounting technicians should always adhere to taxation legislation, comply with accounting disciplines, and coordinate with the account management for any findings and concerns, requiring them to have excellent communication and analytical skills.

Accounting administrator vs accounting technician salary

Accounting administrators and accounting technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Accounting Administrator	Accounting Technician
Average salary	$48,068	$41,337
Salary range	Between $32,000 And $70,000	Between $31,000 And $53,000
Highest paying City	Clifton, NJ	Oakland, CA
Highest paying state	New Jersey	California
Best paying company	Cambridge Associates	W. R. Berkley
Best paying industry	Technology	Government

Differences between accounting administrator and accounting technician education

There are a few differences between an accounting administrator and an accounting technician in terms of educational background:

	Accounting Administrator	Accounting Technician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 53%	Bachelor's Degree, 51%
Most common major	Accounting	Accounting
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Accounting administrator vs accounting technician demographics

Here are the differences between accounting administrators' and accounting technicians' demographics:

	Accounting Administrator	Accounting Technician
Average age	51	51
Gender ratio	Male, 16.9% Female, 83.1%	Male, 22.7% Female, 77.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 6.7% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 6.5% White, 68.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 6.7% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 6.5% White, 68.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between accounting administrator and accounting technician duties and responsibilities

Accounting administrator example responsibilities.

Manage cash flow; online banking, initiates ACH transactions, deposits and transfer of funds.
Manage revenue ledger including other subsidiary ledgers and responsible for the reconciliation of various income accounts to ensure accuracy of postings.
Monitor and resolve accounts overdue, return ACH and collection calls.
Import time into the ADP batch and process any expenses or miscellaneous reimbursements.
Work directly with the owners & CPA providing weekly/monthly financial reporting and year end tax preparation.
Record dividends and loan payments, also consult with CPA and business owners for tax preparation.

Accounting technician example responsibilities.

Develop expertise in use of PeopleSoft system to manage balance accounts for quarterly investment portfolio.
Reconcile the agency SPCC statement each month
Audit includes reviewing SPCC invoices and receipts to ensure appropriate tax exemptions are follow.
Analyze cases to determine if ICD-9 and CPT codes are covered benefits according to insurance's medical policy.
Apply GAAP following applicable federal regulations.
Maintain adherence to university accounting and GAAP standards.

Accounting administrator vs accounting technician skills

Common accounting administrator skills

Customer Service, 13%
Data Entry, 9%
Reconciliations, 7%
Purchase Orders, 6%
Journal Entries, 5%
Credit Card Payments, 4%

Common accounting technician skills

Customer Service, 12%
Financial Reports, 10%
Payroll, 8%
Purchase Orders, 7%
Data Entry, 6%
Reconciliations, 5%

Accounting Administrator vs. similar jobs

Accounting Administrator related careers

Accounting Administrator related jobs

What similar roles do

Zippia Careers
Office and Administrative Industry
Accounting Administrator
Accounting Administrator vs Accounting Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse office and administrative jobs