Clerk/assistant vs administrative office assistant

The differences between clerks/assistant and administrative office assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a clerk/assistant and an administrative office assistant. Additionally, an administrative office assistant has an average salary of $33,318, which is higher than the $32,674 average annual salary of a clerk/assistant.

The top three skills for a clerk/assistant include customer support, telephone calls and word processing. The most important skills for an administrative office assistant are customer service, data entry, and phone calls.

Clerk/assistant vs administrative office assistant overview

	Clerk/Assistant	Administrative Office Assistant
Yearly salary	$32,674	$33,318
Hourly rate	$15.71	$16.02
Growth rate	-5%	-8%
Number of jobs	114,718	81,528
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 39%	Bachelor's Degree, 46%
Average age	47	50
Years of experience	2	2

What does a clerk/assistant do?

A clerk is someone who performs administrative tasks assigned by a manager or by other employees. The job includes responsibilities like dealing with correspondence, data maintenance through manual or computer systems, filing, and related general office duties. It involves typing letters, reports, and any other business-related documents. Clerks sort and respond to emails or forward them to other employees. They need to develop skills in typing, administrative duties, customer service and relations, and attention to detail.

What does an administrative office assistant do?

An administrative office assistant is responsible for performing administrative duties to assist in daily management operations. These duties include taking calls and responding to client and customers' inquiries and concerns, scheduling meetings and conferences, organizing files and submitting required documents, sorting invoices for release, processing travel arrangements, receiving emails, forwarding reports to the appropriate department, and coordinating with company's events. An administrative assistant must be detail-oriented, as well as having excellent time-management and multi-tasking skills to perform duties even under minimal supervision.

Clerk/assistant vs administrative office assistant salary

Clerks/assistant and administrative office assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Clerk/Assistant	Administrative Office Assistant
Average salary	$32,674	$33,318
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $41,000	Between $25,000 And $43,000
Highest paying City	Long Beach, CA	Sacramento, CA
Highest paying state	Hawaii	Hawaii
Best paying company	United States Courts	Buckley King
Best paying industry	Finance	Government

Differences between clerk/assistant and administrative office assistant education

There are a few differences between a clerk/assistant and an administrative office assistant in terms of educational background:

	Clerk/Assistant	Administrative Office Assistant
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 39%	Bachelor's Degree, 46%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	Western Carolina University

Clerk/assistant vs administrative office assistant demographics

Here are the differences between clerks/assistant' and administrative office assistants' demographics:

	Clerk/Assistant	Administrative Office Assistant
Average age	47	50
Gender ratio	Male, 27.5% Female, 72.5%	Male, 14.7% Female, 85.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.8% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 22.7% Asian, 8.3% White, 52.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%	Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.1% Asian, 3.8% White, 66.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between clerk/assistant and administrative office assistant duties and responsibilities

Clerk/assistant example responsibilities.

Demonstrate strong math skills in managing inmate s accounts and calmly and effectively deescalating outbursts of belligerent inmates.
Create and present PowerPoint presentations for senior level staff.
Compose a weekly PowerPoint presentation regarding company highlights.
Review payroll to ensure accuracy, compile payroll records and distribute paychecks.
Schedule radiology procedures and appointments accurately, and in a timely manner.
Demonstrate administrative and customer service expertise with responsibility for resolving payroll relate questions.

Administrative office assistant example responsibilities.

Develop and manage external financial relationships between clients and the IRS.
Manage the receptionist area, including greeting visitors and responding to telephone and in-person requests for information.
Establish and maintain effective communications and cohesive working relationships with company associates, telephone and walk-in customers, and site visitors.
Dust offices and clean windows and doors.
Update information in CATT database, as well as make appointments for therapists and psychiatrists in Sharepoint.
Create electronic filing system to alleviate paper copies and recruit fellow co-workers to get on board with SharePoint.

Clerk/assistant vs administrative office assistant skills

Common clerk/assistant skills

Customer Support, 14%
Telephone Calls, 13%
Word Processing, 11%
Payroll, 7%
Purchase Orders, 5%
Office Machines, 5%

Common administrative office assistant skills

Customer Service, 14%
Data Entry, 13%
Phone Calls, 7%
Payroll, 5%
PowerPoint, 4%
Database Management, 4%

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Office and Administrative Industry
Clerk/Assistant
Clerk/Assistant vs Administrative Office Assistant

Updated January 8, 2025

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