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The differences between accounting assistants and accounting and administrative assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become an accounting assistant, becoming an accounting and administrative assistant takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, an accounting assistant has an average salary of $39,569, which is higher than the $38,192 average annual salary of an accounting and administrative assistant.
The top three skills for an accounting assistant include data entry, customer service and reconciliations. The most important skills for an accounting and administrative assistant are data entry, customer service, and financial statements.
| Accounting Assistant | Accounting And Administrative Assistant | |
| Yearly salary | $39,569 | $38,192 |
| Hourly rate | $19.02 | $18.36 |
| Growth rate | -5% | -8% |
| Number of jobs | 63,945 | 73,060 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 55% | Bachelor's Degree, 48% |
| Average age | 51 | 50 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 2 |
An accounting assistant is responsible for supporting the daily operations of the business' accounting department, from reviewing financial transactions to the submission of financial reports. Accounting assistants' duties include performing data entry and clerical tasks, maintaining a safe record of account statements, updating and analyzing transactions, verifying the accuracy of financial records, and managing customers and vendors' inquiries as immediate as possible. An accounting assistant must have a broad knowledge of the accounting principles and processes, as well as excellent communication and time-management skills, especially on meeting strict deadlines and doing complex tasks as needed.
An accounting administrative assistant is responsible for supporting the operations of the accounting department of an organization by performing administrative duties to maintain efficient and accurate services. Accounting administrative assistants conduct bookkeeping functions, as well as creating financial reports, analyzing account statements, updating account information on the database, processing invoices, and managing account receivables. They must have basic knowledge of the accounting disciplines, as well as excellent analytical and communication skills, especially on receiving clients' inquiries and concerns and administering payment procedures.
Accounting assistants and accounting and administrative assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Accounting Assistant | Accounting And Administrative Assistant | |
| Average salary | $39,569 | $38,192 |
| Salary range | Between $30,000 And $50,000 | Between $29,000 And $48,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New York | Hawaii |
| Best paying company | Los Alamos National Laboratory | Ernst & Young |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Technology |
There are a few differences between an accounting assistant and an accounting and administrative assistant in terms of educational background:
| Accounting Assistant | Accounting And Administrative Assistant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 55% | Bachelor's Degree, 48% |
| Most common major | Accounting | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between accounting assistants' and accounting and administrative assistants' demographics:
| Accounting Assistant | Accounting And Administrative Assistant | |
| Average age | 51 | 50 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 20.1% Female, 79.9% | Male, 10.0% Female, 90.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.8% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 6.6% White, 67.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.5% Asian, 3.9% White, 65.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 6% |