Accounting technician vs accountant

The differences between accounting technicians and accountants 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 technician, becoming an accountant takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, an accountant has an average salary of $54,890, which is higher than the $41,337 average annual salary of an accounting technician.

The top three skills for an accounting technician include customer service, financial reports and payroll. The most important skills for an accountant are reconciliations, general ledger accounts, and account reconciliations.

Accounting technician vs accountant overview

	Accounting Technician	Accountant
Yearly salary	$41,337	$54,890
Hourly rate	$19.87	$26.39
Growth rate	-5%	6%
Number of jobs	39,972	60,073
Job satisfaction	-	3
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 51%	Bachelor's Degree, 71%
Average age	51	44
Years of experience	6	4

What does an accounting technician do?

An accounting technician is responsible for evaluating financial information procedures to support accounting and taxation tasks, verifying the accuracy of account statements for the reference of accountants. Accounting technicians manage the payroll processes, generate invoices, perform account reconciliations, analyze account receivables, prepare budget reports, and monitor the company's financial transactions. Accounting technicians should always adhere to taxation legislation, comply with accounting disciplines, and coordinate with the account management for any findings and concerns, requiring them to have excellent communication and analytical skills.

What does an accountant do?

An accountant is an individual whose primary task is to prepare, keep, examine, and interpret financial records. Most accountants are in charge of a wide scope of finance-related tasks, either for private individuals or for large-scale businesses and organizations they are employed with. They make sure that financial statements and records are accurate and comply with laws and regulations. They also compute for taxes, prepare tax returns, and ensure being paid properly and on time. As they keep track and record the flow of money, they can offer guidance on how to reduce costs, enhance revenue, and help in profit maximization.

Accounting technician vs accountant salary

Accounting technicians and accountants have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Accounting Technician	Accountant
Average salary	$41,337	$54,890
Salary range	Between $31,000 And $53,000	Between $41,000 And $72,000
Highest paying City	Oakland, CA	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	California	New York
Best paying company	W. R. Berkley	Meta
Best paying industry	Government	Technology

Differences between accounting technician and accountant education

There are a few differences between an accounting technician and an accountant in terms of educational background:

	Accounting Technician	Accountant
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 51%	Bachelor's Degree, 71%
Most common major	Accounting	Accounting
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Accounting technician vs accountant demographics

Here are the differences between accounting technicians' and accountants' demographics:

	Accounting Technician	Accountant
Average age	51	44
Gender ratio	Male, 22.7% Female, 77.3%	Male, 38.2% Female, 61.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 6.7% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 6.5% White, 68.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 8.6% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.9% Asian, 15.0% White, 61.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between accounting technician and accountant duties and responsibilities

Accounting technician example responsibilities.

Develop expertise in use of PeopleSoft system to manage balance accounts for quarterly investment portfolio.
Reconcile the agency SPCC statement each month
Audit includes reviewing SPCC invoices and receipts to ensure appropriate tax exemptions are follow.
Analyze cases to determine if ICD-9 and CPT codes are covered benefits according to insurance's medical policy.
Apply GAAP following applicable federal regulations.
Maintain adherence to university accounting and GAAP standards.

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Accountant example responsibilities.

Manage preparation of the statutory financial statements and financial aggregates in compliance with IFRS and local applicable norms.
Manage personnel financial matters including salaries, taxation procedures and other relate issues.
Manage and monitor accounting procedures for compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley and coordinate and facilitate external audit requirements.
Reconstruct and improve many balance sheet account reconciliations for easier reading and interpretation by senior level management.
Perform complex general accounting functions, including preparation of journal entries, account analysis and balance sheet reconciliations.
Maintain general ledgers and preparation of monthly and other periodic financial reports in accordance with GAAP and international accounting standards.

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Accounting technician vs accountant skills

Common accounting technician skills

Customer Service, 12%
Financial Reports, 10%
Payroll, 8%
Purchase Orders, 7%
Data Entry, 6%
Reconciliations, 5%

Common accountant skills

Reconciliations, 14%
General Ledger Accounts, 6%
Account Reconciliations, 6%
GAAP, 5%
Payroll Tax Returns, 5%
Customer Service, 5%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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