Accounts payable clerk vs accounting technician

The differences between accounts payable clerks and accounting technicians 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 technician. Additionally, an accounting technician has an average salary of $41,337, 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 technician are customer service, financial reports, and payroll.

Accounts payable clerk vs accounting technician overview

	Accounts Payable Clerk	Accounting Technician
Yearly salary	$38,333	$41,337
Hourly rate	$18.43	$19.87
Growth rate	-5%	-5%
Number of jobs	89,564	39,972
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 46%	Bachelor's Degree, 51%
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 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.

Accounts payable clerk vs accounting technician salary

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

	Accounts Payable Clerk	Accounting Technician
Average salary	$38,333	$41,337
Salary range	Between $30,000 And $48,000	Between $31,000 And $53,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	Oakland, CA
Highest paying state	Massachusetts	California
Best paying company	Jane Street	W. R. Berkley
Best paying industry	Technology	Government

Differences between accounts payable clerk and accounting technician education

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

	Accounts Payable Clerk	Accounting Technician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 46%	Bachelor's Degree, 51%
Most common major	Accounting	Accounting
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Accounts payable clerk vs accounting technician demographics

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

	Accounts Payable Clerk	Accounting Technician
Average age	51	51
Gender ratio	Male, 17.2% Female, 82.8%	Male, 22.7% Female, 77.3%
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, 6.7% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 6.5% White, 68.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between accounts payable clerk and accounting technician 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 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.

Accounts payable clerk vs accounting technician 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 technician skills

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

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Office and Administrative Industry
Accounts Payable Clerk
Accounts Payable Clerk vs Accounting Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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