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The differences between chief accountants and fixed asset 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 chief accountant and a fixed asset accountant. Additionally, a chief accountant has an average salary of $61,481, which is higher than the $59,691 average annual salary of a fixed asset accountant.
The top three skills for a chief accountant include external auditors, reconciliations and general ledger accounts. The most important skills for a fixed asset accountant are fixed assets, reconciliations, and asset system.
| Chief Accountant | Fixed Asset Accountant | |
| Yearly salary | $61,481 | $59,691 |
| Hourly rate | $29.56 | $28.70 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 52,287 | 42,860 |
| Job satisfaction | 4 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 69% | Bachelor's Degree, 77% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
Chief accountants develop financial strategies, oversee the accounting department, make investment decisions, and develop financial strategies. They provide assistance to departments with their reviews and budgets, tax studies, and internal control. It is part of their job to respond to the accounting questions from time management. They take charge of monitoring and recording financial transactions based on corporate regulations and policies. Also, they recommend changes to the procedures of accounting.
A fixed asset accountant is responsible for processing statement reports for the company's assets, organizing account records, and handling bank reconciliations and disputes. Fixed asset accountants must have excellent knowledge of the accounting principles to determine and track the assets dispositions in various accounting systems for reference. They also ensure the accurate balance and calculate the value of all fixed assets for reports. A fixed asset accountant should be highly analytical to measure asset obligations and provide recommendations for asset acquisition.
Chief accountants and fixed asset accountants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Chief Accountant | Fixed Asset Accountant | |
| Average salary | $61,481 | $59,691 |
| Salary range | Between $43,000 And $87,000 | Between $46,000 And $76,000 |
| Highest paying City | New York, NY | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | New York | New York |
| Best paying company | IBM | Apple |
| Best paying industry | Retail | Energy |
There are a few differences between a chief accountant and a fixed asset accountant in terms of educational background:
| Chief Accountant | Fixed Asset Accountant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 69% | Bachelor's Degree, 77% |
| Most common major | Accounting | Accounting |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between chief accountants' and fixed asset accountants' demographics:
| Chief Accountant | Fixed Asset Accountant | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 57.0% Female, 43.0% | Male, 43.8% Female, 56.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.2% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.5% Asian, 15.3% White, 61.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 8.4% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.7% Asian, 13.0% White, 63.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |