Certified public accountant vs tax associate

The differences between certified public accountants and tax associates can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a certified public accountant has an average salary of $76,693, which is higher than the $62,466 average annual salary of a tax associate.

The top three skills for a certified public accountant include CPA, customer service and IRS. The most important skills for a tax associate are strong customer service, CPA, and tax planning.

Certified public accountant vs tax associate overview

	Certified Public Accountant	Tax Associate
Yearly salary	$76,693	$62,466
Hourly rate	$36.87	$30.03
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	78,792	42,019
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 69%	Bachelor's Degree, 56%
Average age	44	47
Years of experience	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 tax associate do?

Tax associates are responsible for helping businesses and individuals with state and federal income tax preparation and compliance. These professionals often work for accounting firms and financial services companies. They perform varied tasks that include reviewing income statements, financial records, and expenditures, interviewing clients about income and expenses, and minimizing their clients' tax liability. Tax associates also conduct research on tax issues and assist with tax audits, advise clients on compensation and tax information, and maintain accurate and current client records.

Certified public accountant vs tax associate salary

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

	Certified Public Accountant	Tax Associate
Average salary	$76,693	$62,466
Salary range	Between $49,000 And $119,000	Between $40,000 And $95,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	Las Vegas, NV
Highest paying state	New Jersey	Nevada
Best paying company	Applied Materials	Ropes & Gray
Best paying industry	Finance	Finance

Differences between certified public accountant and tax associate education

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

	Certified Public Accountant	Tax Associate
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 69%	Bachelor's Degree, 56%
Most common major	Accounting	Accounting
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Southern California

Certified public accountant vs tax associate demographics

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

	Certified Public Accountant	Tax Associate
Average age	44	47
Gender ratio	Male, 43.2% Female, 56.8%	Male, 36.4% Female, 63.6%
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, 9.6% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 18.2% Asian, 10.2% White, 57.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	7%	8%

Differences between certified public accountant and tax associate 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.

Tax associate example responsibilities.

Provide tax planning and preparation services for corporate, individual and high net-worth clients of this midsize CPA firm.
Implement process to identify and prepare the balances for W2 purposes at year end.
Prepare customer taxes from w-2's and other tax information, answer phones, print checks, filing
Resolve a major system problems with split process level errors so employee W2's and companies returns are correct.
Respond to inquiries from the IRS and other tax authorities regarding reconciliation of filings, liabilities, and other associate matters.
Advise clients on questions they have pertaining to their tax liabilities and ensure that they are compliant to the IRS regulations.

Certified public accountant vs tax associate 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 tax associate skills

Strong Customer Service, 26%
CPA, 13%
Tax Planning, 6%
Taxation, 5%
Tax Research, 4%
Local Tax Returns, 4%

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Certified Public Accountant vs Tax Associate

Updated January 8, 2025

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