City clerk vs city recorder

The differences between city clerks and city recorders can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a city clerk and a city recorder. Additionally, a city clerk has an average salary of $58,166, which is higher than the $42,543 average annual salary of a city recorder.

The top three skills for a city clerk include meeting agendas, city ordinances and payroll taxes. The most important skills for a city recorder are financial reports, customer service, and property taxes.

City clerk vs city recorder overview

	City Clerk	City Recorder
Yearly salary	$58,166	$42,543
Hourly rate	$27.96	$20.45
Growth rate	-	-
Number of jobs	80,796	5,119
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 41%	Bachelor's Degree, 39%
Average age	49	49
Years of experience	4	4

City clerk vs city recorder salary

City clerks and city recorders have different pay scales, as shown below.

	City Clerk	City Recorder
Average salary	$58,166	$42,543
Salary range	Between $42,000 And $80,000	Between $24,000 And $73,000
Highest paying City	Lodi, CA	-
Highest paying state	New York	-
Best paying company	Icma-rc	-
Best paying industry	Government	-

Differences between city clerk and city recorder education

There are a few differences between a city clerk and a city recorder in terms of educational background:

	City Clerk	City Recorder
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 41%	Bachelor's Degree, 39%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	Stanford University

City clerk vs city recorder demographics

Here are the differences between city clerks' and city recorders' demographics:

	City Clerk	City Recorder
Average age	49	49
Gender ratio	Male, 16.1% Female, 83.9%	Male, 9.2% Female, 90.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.0% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 18.7% Asian, 4.7% White, 61.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%	Black or African American, 7.4% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 17.3% Asian, 5.1% White, 64.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%
LGBT Percentage	10%	10%

Differences between city clerk and city recorder duties and responsibilities

City clerk example responsibilities.

Demonstrate strong math skills in managing inmate s accounts and calmly and effectively deescalating outbursts of belligerent inmates.
Prepare grant applications for water, sewer, EDA and CBDG.
Collect, analyze, submit to NYS town relate data.
Record information into QuickBooks for payment of bills and to issue checks.
Prepare and submit various government reports, prepare various city contracts and act as notary public.
Process summons, court files, subpoenas, warrants, bonds, attorney correspondence and background checks.

City recorder example responsibilities.

Scan and manage documents on Laserfiche.
Maintain payroll records by entering changes in exemptions, insurance coverage and voluntary and involuntary deductions.
Handle cash transactions for licenses/billings and enter data into QuickBooks.

City clerk vs city recorder skills

Common city clerk skills

Meeting Agendas, 13%
City Ordinances, 10%
Payroll Taxes, 9%
Meeting Minutes, 7%
Utility Billing, 6%
Office Equipment, 5%

Common city recorder skills

Financial Reports, 29%
Customer Service, 26%
Property Taxes, 19%
City Ordinances, 14%
Meeting Minutes, 12%

Updated January 8, 2025

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