Accounts payable clerk vs accounting clerk

The differences between accounts payable clerks and 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 accounts payable clerk and an accounting clerk. Additionally, an accounting clerk has an average salary of $38,683, which is higher than the $38,333 average annual salary of an accounts payable clerk.

The top three skills for an accounts payable clerk include customer service, data entry and purchase orders. The most important skills for an accounting clerk are data entry, customer service, and purchase orders.

Accounts payable clerk vs accounting clerk overview

	Accounts Payable Clerk	Accounting Clerk
Yearly salary	$38,333	$38,683
Hourly rate	$18.43	$18.60
Growth rate	-5%	-5%
Number of jobs	89,564	106,969
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 46%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Average age	51	51
Years of experience	6	6

What does an accounts payable clerk do?

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.

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.

Accounts payable clerk vs accounting clerk salary

Accounts payable clerks and accounting clerks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Accounts Payable Clerk	Accounting Clerk
Average salary	$38,333	$38,683
Salary range	Between $30,000 And $48,000	Between $29,000 And $51,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	Massachusetts	New York
Best paying company	Jane Street	Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker Llp
Best paying industry	Technology	Government

Differences between accounts payable clerk and accounting clerk education

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

	Accounts Payable Clerk	Accounting Clerk
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 46%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Most common major	Accounting	Accounting
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Accounts payable clerk vs accounting clerk demographics

Here are the differences between accounts payable clerks' and accounting clerks' demographics:

	Accounts Payable Clerk	Accounting Clerk
Average age	51	51
Gender ratio	Male, 17.2% Female, 82.8%	Male, 20.0% Female, 80.0%
Race ratio	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%	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%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between accounts payable clerk and accounting clerk duties and responsibilities

Accounts payable clerk example responsibilities.

Manage revenue ledger including other subsidiary ledgers and responsible for the reconciliation of various income accounts to ensure accuracy of postings.
Match, code, and process vendor payments via MAS90 accounting system - including check runs and ACH payments.
Perform duties in compliance with GAAP, company and department policies and procedures, internal controls, and Sarbanes-Oxley requirements.
Process division payroll in coordination with ADP payroll systems for semi-monthly and weekly union contract employees.
Scan and store documents daily, retrieve W2 and W9 information along with service provider agreements when or if need.
Print, review, research, edit, code and batch invoices for processing via the various ERP financial systems.

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.

Accounts payable clerk vs accounting clerk skills

Common accounts payable clerk skills

Customer Service, 13%
Data Entry, 10%
Purchase Orders, 8%
Expense Reports, 6%
Vendor Invoices, 6%
Vendor Statements, 5%

Common accounting clerk skills

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

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Accounts Payable Clerk
Accounts Payable Clerk vs Accounting Clerk

Updated January 8, 2025

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