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The differences between accounting managers and senior accountants 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 a senior accountant takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, an accounting manager has an average salary of $84,451, which is higher than the $71,967 average annual salary of a senior accountant.
The top three skills for an accounting manager include reconciliations, CPA and GAAP. The most important skills for a senior accountant are reconciliations, CPA, and GAAP.
| Accounting Manager | Senior Accountant | |
| Yearly salary | $84,451 | $71,967 |
| Hourly rate | $40.60 | $34.60 |
| Growth rate | 17% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 92,089 | 76,816 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 78% |
| 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.
A senior accountant is responsible for organizing financial reports, analyzing cost estimates, reviewing budget goals regularly, and making adjustments with the company's account statements as necessary. Senior accountants' duties also include managing account reconciliations, preparing tax documents, maintaining audit records and balance sheets, generating invoices, and providing recommendations to minimize possible financial loss. A senior accountant must have excellent analytical and critical-thinking skills and extensive knowledge of accounting and financial principles.
Accounting managers and senior accountants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Accounting Manager | Senior Accountant | |
| Average salary | $84,451 | $71,967 |
| Salary range | Between $60,000 And $117,000 | Between $55,000 And $92,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | Vermont | New York |
| Best paying company | Morgan Lewis | |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Finance |
There are a few differences between an accounting manager and a senior accountant in terms of educational background:
| Accounting Manager | Senior Accountant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 78% |
| Most common major | Accounting | Accounting |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between accounting managers' and senior accountants' demographics:
| Accounting Manager | Senior Accountant | |
| Average age | 46 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 40.4% Female, 59.6% | Male, 46.9% Female, 53.1% |
| 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, 14.5% White, 61.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 7% |