Collection agent vs accounts receivable specialist

The differences between collection agents and accounts receivable specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a collection agent and an accounts receivable specialist. Additionally, an accounts receivable specialist has an average salary of $39,873, which is higher than the $32,689 average annual salary of a collection agent.

The top three skills for a collection agent include customer service, payment arrangements and delinquent accounts. The most important skills for an accounts receivable specialist are customer service, patients, and data entry.

Collection agent vs accounts receivable specialist overview

	Collection Agent	Accounts Receivable Specialist
Yearly salary	$32,689	$39,873
Hourly rate	$15.72	$19.17
Growth rate	-8%	-8%
Number of jobs	47,837	61,988
Job satisfaction	-	4.5
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 34%	Bachelor's Degree, 45%
Average age	46	46
Years of experience	12	12

What does a collection agent do?

A collections agent is responsible for communicating with clients to collect payment for their overdue bills and outstanding balances. Collections agents monitor and update a customer's account information in the system, offer repayment plans, manage billing disputes, negotiate sales terms, and maintain records of account resolution. They must evaluate customers' credit reports and delinquency levels to skip tracing priorities. A collections agent must have excellent communication and customer service skills to listen to customers' requests and initiate payment procedures.

What does an accounts receivable specialist do?

Accounts receivable specialists are members of the organization's finance or accounting department. They are responsible for managing the collection of payments for the company. They prepare official receipts and coordinate with account payable specialists from other companies with pending payables. They ensure that clients pay on time, and they also follow up on payments when necessary. They are responsible for checking whether the clients have already paid in full. Accounts receivable specialists are in charge of updating accounting records as well to ensure that client records are up to date.

Collection agent vs accounts receivable specialist salary

Collection agents and accounts receivable specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Collection Agent	Accounts Receivable Specialist
Average salary	$32,689	$39,873
Salary range	Between $22,000 And $48,000	Between $31,000 And $50,000
Highest paying City	Livingston, NJ	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	New Jersey	Connecticut
Best paying company	JM Family Enterprises	InfosysPublicService
Best paying industry	Finance	Technology

Differences between collection agent and accounts receivable specialist education

There are a few differences between a collection agent and an accounts receivable specialist in terms of educational background:

	Collection Agent	Accounts Receivable Specialist
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 34%	Bachelor's Degree, 45%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Collection agent vs accounts receivable specialist demographics

Here are the differences between collection agents' and accounts receivable specialists' demographics:

	Collection Agent	Accounts Receivable Specialist
Average age	46	46
Gender ratio	Male, 37.3% Female, 62.7%	Male, 18.2% Female, 81.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.3% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 19.5% Asian, 3.6% White, 60.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 12.9% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 19.0% Asian, 3.9% White, 59.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between collection agent and accounts receivable specialist duties and responsibilities

Collection agent example responsibilities.

Manage patient focuse reports, collection modules, provider/facility A/R, collections, patient discharge letters.
Used computer GPS to locate vehicles.
Input assignments and update clients via computer programs (RDN and PRIOS).
Demonstrate professionalism and customer support while following FDCPA guidelines.
Assist in preventing impending losses and increase profitability through negotiation and enforcement of schedule collection campaigns.
Utilize effective negotiation skills by collecting payments from debtors of unpaid accounts via telephone and written communication.

Accounts receivable specialist example responsibilities.

Manage profitable accounts receivable ledgers for existing and new clientele maintaining accuracy of monies enter to appropriate relate account.
Perform accounts reconciliations, complex invoice research, statement reconciliations, complex invoice research, statement reconciliation and journal entries.
Follow company's standard operating procedures in cooperation with Medicare, Medicaid and private insurance providers to resolve billing issues.
Cash and credit allocation of customer payments in ROSS ERP system.
Prepare PowerPoint presentations, word documents, letters and spreadsheets while meeting deadlines.
Reconcile direct billing accounts and adjust product pricing utilizing JD Edwards EnterpriseONE ERP system.

Collection agent vs accounts receivable specialist skills

Common collection agent skills

Customer Service, 20%
Payment Arrangements, 19%
Delinquent Accounts, 7%
Debt Repayment, 6%
Past Due Accounts, 5%
Debt Collection, 3%

Common accounts receivable specialist skills

Customer Service, 15%
Patients, 9%
Data Entry, 5%
Credit Card Payments, 4%
Reconciliations, 4%
Accounts Receivables, 3%

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Office and Administrative Industry
Collection Agent
Collection Agent vs Accounts Receivable Specialist

Updated January 8, 2025

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