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The differences between accounting managers and accounting consultants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-8 years to become an accounting manager, becoming an accounting consultant takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, an accounting manager has an average salary of $84,451, which is higher than the $62,830 average annual salary of an accounting consultant.
The top three skills for an accounting manager include reconciliations, CPA and GAAP. The most important skills for an accounting consultant are CPA, GAAP, and reconciliations.
| Accounting Manager | Accounting Consultant | |
| Yearly salary | $84,451 | $62,830 |
| Hourly rate | $40.60 | $30.21 |
| Growth rate | 17% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 92,089 | 74,894 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Average age | 46 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 8 | 4 |
An accounting manager is responsible for supervising and monitoring the overall accounting department operations. Duties of an accounting manager include reviewing account information and account statements, processing invoices, analyzing financial data, performing account reconciliations, assisting with tax processing and audit reports, and generating financial reports for presentation with the board. An accounting manager must have excellent knowledge of the accounting principles and legislation to assist the team with the company's financial goals. Accounting managers must have the outstanding analytical, critical thinking, and decision-making skills to develop the best competitive financial strategies.
An Accounting Consultant is a person tasked to assist the accounting department of a company. The consultant advises businesses concerning the accounting system used by the organization. It is also through the accounting consultant's help that improvements in the accounting process are proposed, the determination of problematic areas in the workflow, possible issues in the future, and everything that needs upgrading. The accounting consultant also helps businesses conform to legal policies set about by State and Federal legislation.
Accounting managers and accounting consultants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Accounting Manager | Accounting Consultant | |
| Average salary | $84,451 | $62,830 |
| Salary range | Between $60,000 And $117,000 | Between $45,000 And $86,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Vermont | California |
| Best paying company | Morgan Lewis | Jordan Company |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between an accounting manager and an accounting consultant in terms of educational background:
| Accounting Manager | Accounting Consultant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Most common major | Accounting | Accounting |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between accounting managers' and accounting consultants' demographics:
| Accounting Manager | Accounting Consultant | |
| Average age | 46 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 40.4% Female, 59.6% | Male, 49.3% Female, 50.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 7.7% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 14.8% Asian, 10.0% White, 63.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 8.5% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.8% Asian, 13.4% White, 63.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 7% |