How To Become A Budget Manager: What It Is and Career Path

What is a budget manager and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Budget managers are those responsible for ensuring that the accounts managed do not exceed the unit's allocated budget. They are accountable for requesting budget changes, submitting transfers, approving transactions, and demanding payments. They analyze the company's financial information (such as cash supervision, expendituresÙ«, and revenues), ensuring that its financial operations do not exceed funds limits.

Typically, you need to possess a bachelor's degree in business, finance, accounting, or a similar subject and often demand a master's degree in related fields. Also, good practical experience with financial, accounting, and statistical software is preferred.

The applicants who address this field end up laying claim to annual earnings at $79,376. The current median pay for a budget manager ranges from $75,377 to $85,348 in the U.S. However, this number can vary significantly depending upon your knowledge, skills, or organization.

ScoreBudget ManagerUS Average

Salary

6.0

Avg. Salary $76,243

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

9.5

Growth rate 17%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.4

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.34%

Asian 8.97%

Black or African American 7.77%

Hispanic or Latino 14.95%

Unknown 4.11%

White 63.86%

Gender

female 40.85%

male 59.15%

Age - 46

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 46

Stress level

9.5

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

9.3

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.9

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a budget manager

Explore budget manager education requirements

Most common budget manager degrees

Bachelor's

70.9 %

Master's

20.6 %

Associate

6.5 %

Start to develop specific budget manager skills

Skills	Percentages
Financial Analysis	6.71%
Budget Management	5.91%
Financial Management	5.90%
Budget Development	4.72%
Payroll	4.28%

Complete relevant budget manager training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New budget managers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a budget manager based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real budget manager resumes.

Research budget manager duties and responsibilities

Manage senior financial analysts responsible for evaluating the financial risks of a portfolio of large property and casualty insurance programs.
Prepare financial statements in accordance with GAAP.
Assist controller in developing and maintaining accounting policies and procedures to comply with GAAP and , 10Q & 10K filing.
Process payroll for community assistants in residence halls.

Prepare your budget manager resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your budget manager resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a budget manager resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable budget manager resume templates

Build a professional budget manager resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your budget manager resume.