Accounting clerk vs senior accounting clerk

The differences between accounting clerks and senior accounting 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 clerk and a senior accounting clerk. Additionally, a senior accounting clerk has an average salary of $46,531, which is higher than the $38,683 average annual salary of an accounting clerk.

The top three skills for an accounting clerk include data entry, customer service and purchase orders. The most important skills for a senior accounting clerk are data entry, general ledger accounts, and reconciliations.

Accounting clerk vs senior accounting clerk overview

	Accounting Clerk	Senior Accounting Clerk
Yearly salary	$38,683	$46,531
Hourly rate	$18.60	$22.37
Growth rate	-5%	-5%
Number of jobs	106,969	82,627
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 49%	Bachelor's Degree, 47%
Average age	51	51
Years of experience	6	6

What does an accounting clerk do?

Accounting clerks are employees assigned to manage administrative and clerical tasks in the accounting department. Accounting clerks handle office accounting records and ensure that files are properly labeled and stored. They validate records and check whether these are updated. They also sort through documents to ensure that they are in their proper storage bins. Aside from document handling, they also help with creating and validating financial statements and bookkeeping. As such, accounting clerks should have a strong background in accounting to manage their tasks better.

What does a senior accounting clerk do?

Senior Accounting Clerks lead in a complex set of work staff and are responsible for performing governmental fund accounting that involves reporting and financial record keeping. They are responsible for resolving discrepancies, verifying and auditing financial reports, and inputting data into their financial accounting system. They must know methods of verifying and reconciling accounting records, accounts payable and receivable, and how to familiarize themselves with their firm's financial accounting software. They must also be skilled in handling large sums of cash with integrity and making manual arithmetical calculations with speed and accuracy.

Accounting clerk vs senior accounting clerk salary

Accounting clerks and senior accounting clerks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Accounting Clerk	Senior Accounting Clerk
Average salary	$38,683	$46,531
Salary range	Between $29,000 And $51,000	Between $33,000 And $64,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	San Jose, CA
Highest paying state	New York	California
Best paying company	Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker Llp	Encore Capital Group
Best paying industry	Government	Finance

Differences between accounting clerk and senior accounting clerk education

There are a few differences between an accounting clerk and a senior accounting clerk in terms of educational background:

	Accounting Clerk	Senior Accounting Clerk
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 49%	Bachelor's Degree, 47%
Most common major	Accounting	Accounting
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Accounting clerk vs senior accounting clerk demographics

Here are the differences between accounting clerks' and senior accounting clerks' demographics:

	Accounting Clerk	Senior Accounting Clerk
Average age	51	51
Gender ratio	Male, 20.0% Female, 80.0%	Male, 18.0% Female, 82.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 6.9% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 6.6% White, 67.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 6.8% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.4% Asian, 6.6% White, 67.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between accounting clerk and senior accounting clerk duties and responsibilities

Accounting clerk example responsibilities.

Manage revenue ledger including other subsidiary ledgers and responsible for the reconciliation of various income accounts to ensure accuracy of postings.
Perform balance sheet reconciliations and resolve open items by notifying employees and vendors of transaction discrepancies.
Assist in monthly financial close process by analyzing preliminary departmental expense reports and making necessary adjustments and accruals.
Develop a spreadsheet that pulls all data relate to project hours by operation from the ERP system.
Process all incoming payments receive via ACH, EFT, or the web; ensure accounts are accurately balance and reconcile.
Digitize proof of delivery receipts into ERP system (AS400) serving as an easy backup for employees to verify occurrence.

Senior accounting clerk example responsibilities.

Manage payroll general ledger accounts including account reconciliations and monthly accruals.
Implement premium accounting statistical reports of all monies collect, including return items and general accounting from bank reconciliations.
Process ACH payments in accordance with company deadlines.
Cross train on many functions within the ACH department.
Monitor and clear holding accounts daily using PeopleSoft; prepare journals as necessary.
Assist with monthly, quarterly, and yearly closing processes, including accruals.

Accounting clerk vs senior accounting clerk skills

Common accounting clerk skills

Data Entry, 15%
Customer Service, 10%
Purchase Orders, 9%
Reconciliations, 6%
Vendor Invoices, 6%
QuickBooks, 3%

Common senior accounting clerk skills

Data Entry, 10%
General Ledger Accounts, 9%
Reconciliations, 8%
Senior Accounting, 7%
Purchase Orders, 7%
Credit Card Payments, 5%

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Accounting Clerk
Accounting Clerk vs Senior Accounting Clerk

Updated January 8, 2025

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