Certified public accountant vs senior tax accountant

The differences between certified public accountants and senior tax accountants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a certified public accountant and a senior tax accountant. Additionally, a senior tax accountant has an average salary of $77,537, which is higher than the $76,693 average annual salary of a certified public accountant.

The top three skills for a certified public accountant include CPA, customer service and IRS. The most important skills for a senior tax accountant are CPA, state income, and tax research.

Certified public accountant vs senior tax accountant overview

	Certified Public Accountant	Senior Tax Accountant
Yearly salary	$76,693	$77,537
Hourly rate	$36.87	$37.28
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	78,792	57,686
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 69%	Bachelor's Degree, 74%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	4	4

What does a certified public accountant do?

A certified public accountant (CPA) acts as an advisor to small businesses and chief financial officers to Fortune 500 companies. They typically work for both small and large public accounting firms. They offer advice on many issues, such as accounting and taxation. They aid businesses and individuals to plan and achieve their financial goals. There are several requirements to become a CPA, including having a degree in accounting, passing the CPA examination, and obtaining a CPA license to practice.

What does a senior tax accountant do?

Senior Tax Accountants recommend tax strategies, as well as assist the preparation of federal, state, and local taxes. They contact clients to resolve minor tax issues and work with the senior tax manager to ensure compliance with federal, state, and local tax legislation.

Certified public accountant vs senior tax accountant salary

Certified public accountants and senior tax accountants have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Certified Public Accountant	Senior Tax Accountant
Average salary	$76,693	$77,537
Salary range	Between $49,000 And $119,000	Between $60,000 And $99,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	New Jersey	New York
Best paying company	Applied Materials	Riverbed Holdings, Inc.
Best paying industry	Finance	Professional

Differences between certified public accountant and senior tax accountant education

There are a few differences between a certified public accountant and a senior tax accountant in terms of educational background:

	Certified Public Accountant	Senior Tax Accountant
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 69%	Bachelor's Degree, 74%
Most common major	Accounting	Accounting
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Southern California

Certified public accountant vs senior tax accountant demographics

Here are the differences between certified public accountants' and senior tax accountants' demographics:

	Certified Public Accountant	Senior Tax Accountant
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 43.2% Female, 56.8%	Male, 50.6% Female, 49.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.5% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.8% Asian, 12.4% White, 64.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 8.4% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.7% Asian, 14.3% White, 62.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between certified public accountant and senior tax accountant duties and responsibilities

Certified public accountant example responsibilities.

Mentor highly skil accounting and tax management team to achieve establish objectives including conformity with GAAP compliance.
Maintain monthly client bookkeeping including bank reconciliations, account payable and prepare preliminary financial statements for CPA review.
Conduct bookkeeping, bank reconciliations and generate general ledgers as well as raise concerns about expenditure classifications and revenue recognition.
Prepare and review month-end close, including journal entries, general ledger account reconciliations, and financial statement supporting documentation.
Gain a working knowledge of audit objectives and procedures in compliance with GAAP and GAAS.
Prepare and monitor audit programs, assist management in design and monitoring of SOX compliance programs.

Senior tax accountant example responsibilities.

Research technical topics in taxation to present to the tax department and clients on areas of concern in the IRS code.
Participate in monthly accounting close with preparation and ownership of tax accrual journal entries and reconciliations.
Help implement, and maintain federal and state tax provision information into OneSource.
Work with internal and external resources to ensure implementation of CCH software on shopping cart is successful.
Assist and review the maintenance of the OneSource database relative to coding & mapping of the trial balance.
Conduct research with CCH and RIA on tax exposures, savings, refund, recovery, and credits.

Certified public accountant vs senior tax accountant skills

Common certified public accountant skills

CPA, 48%
Customer Service, 22%
IRS, 7%
State Tax Returns, 5%
Payroll Tax Returns, 2%
Financial Statement Preparation, 1%

Common senior tax accountant skills

CPA, 14%
State Income, 5%
Tax Research, 5%
Income Tax Returns, 4%
Tax Planning, 4%
Tax Compliance, 4%

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Certified Public Accountant vs Senior Tax Accountant

Updated January 8, 2025

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