Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between accounting assistants and accounts payable clerks 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 assistant and an accounts payable clerk. Additionally, an accounting assistant has an average salary of $39,569, which is higher than the $38,333 average annual salary of an accounts payable clerk.
The top three skills for an accounting assistant include data entry, customer service and reconciliations. The most important skills for an accounts payable clerk are customer service, data entry, and purchase orders.
| Accounting Assistant | Accounts Payable Clerk | |
| Yearly salary | $39,569 | $38,333 |
| Hourly rate | $19.02 | $18.43 |
| Growth rate | -5% | -5% |
| Number of jobs | 63,945 | 89,564 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 55% | Bachelor's Degree, 46% |
| Average age | 51 | 51 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
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 accounts payable clerk is responsible for supporting the accounting department by performing clerical duties to file financial reports timely and accurately. Accounts payable clerks manage and verify invoices documents, reconcile balance spreadsheets, process payments for suppliers and vendors, resolve billing discrepancies, confirm and post account statements, record outstanding credits, and maintain an organized record of transactions. An accounts payable clerk must have excellent knowledge of the accounting principles to deliver high-quality services and help the business minimize excessive financial loss.
Accounting assistants and accounts payable clerks have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Accounting Assistant | Accounts Payable Clerk | |
| Average salary | $39,569 | $38,333 |
| Salary range | Between $30,000 And $50,000 | Between $30,000 And $48,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | New York | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Los Alamos National Laboratory | Jane Street |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Technology |
There are a few differences between an accounting assistant and an accounts payable clerk in terms of educational background:
| Accounting Assistant | Accounts Payable Clerk | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 55% | Bachelor's Degree, 46% |
| Most common major | Accounting | Accounting |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between accounting assistants' and accounts payable clerks' demographics:
| Accounting Assistant | Accounts Payable Clerk | |
| Average age | 51 | 51 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 20.1% Female, 79.9% | Male, 17.2% Female, 82.8% |
| 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, 6.9% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.7% Asian, 6.6% White, 67.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |