Accounts payable clerk vs finance clerk

The differences between accounts payable clerks and finance 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 a finance clerk. Additionally, a finance clerk has an average salary of $39,225, 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 a finance clerk are data entry, purchase orders, and HR.

Accounts payable clerk vs finance clerk overview

	Accounts Payable Clerk	Finance Clerk
Yearly salary	$38,333	$39,225
Hourly rate	$18.43	$18.86
Growth rate	-5%	-5%
Number of jobs	89,564	143,372
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 46%	Bachelor's Degree, 44%
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 a finance clerk do?

Finance clerks are financial professionals who are responsible for performing various administrative tasks such as keeping financial records, preparing bills, and delivering excellent customer service. These clerks are required to process bills, checks, receipts, and other documents to ensure that they are all properly signed and distributed. They must verify financial and other data so that they can enter those data into the database and maintain updated records. Finance clerks must also assist with account reconciliations and should report the status of accounts and discrepancies to the management.

Accounts payable clerk vs finance clerk salary

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

	Accounts Payable Clerk	Finance Clerk
Average salary	$38,333	$39,225
Salary range	Between $30,000 And $48,000	Between $27,000 And $56,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	New York, NY
Highest paying state	Massachusetts	New York
Best paying company	Jane Street	United States Courts
Best paying industry	Technology	Government

Differences between accounts payable clerk and finance clerk education

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

	Accounts Payable Clerk	Finance Clerk
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 46%	Bachelor's Degree, 44%
Most common major	Accounting	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Accounts payable clerk vs finance clerk demographics

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

	Accounts Payable Clerk	Finance Clerk
Average age	51	51
Gender ratio	Male, 17.2% Female, 82.8%	Male, 26.2% Female, 73.8%
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, 14.7% Asian, 6.6% White, 67.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between accounts payable clerk and finance 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.

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Finance clerk example responsibilities.

Manage resident's private information for insurance verification, billing, and eligibility to apply for Medicaid.
Collaborate with insurance company representatives, case managers and physicians to obtain treatment authorization for potential kidney and kidney/pancreas transplant patients.
Write checks in the QuickBooks software to vendors and to reimburse employees.
Establish customer files in QuickBooks, write and test work instructions for clients, log and close complete files.
Produce PowerPoint presentations in order to brief the command team of the on goings within the company.
Used an automate information system (PeopleSoft) to edit, modify, and verify customers personal and payment information.

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Accounts payable clerk vs finance 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 finance clerk skills

Data Entry, 16%
Purchase Orders, 9%
HR, 5%
Bank Statements, 5%
Bank Deposits, 5%
Credit Card, 4%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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