Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between control accountants and project 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 control accountant and a project accountant. Additionally, a control accountant has an average salary of $66,563, which is higher than the $60,467 average annual salary of a project accountant.
The top three skills for a control accountant include reconciliations, general ledger accounts and payroll taxes. The most important skills for a project accountant are reconciliations, project management, and contract terms.
| Control Accountant | Project Accountant | |
| Yearly salary | $66,563 | $60,467 |
| Hourly rate | $32.00 | $29.07 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 75,702 | 43,672 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 72% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A Control Accountant is in charge of managing a company's accounting records and spearheads the development of financial reports. Although the extent of their responsibilities depends on their place or industry of employment, it typically includes coordinating with different teams to gather and analyze data, conduct audits and risk analyses, monitor budgets and expenditures, review documents and other transactions and develop strategies to optimize operations. A Control Accountant leads and encourages staff to reach goals while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
A project accountant is primarily in charge of overseeing the budget and expenditures allocated for various projects within a company. Their responsibilities revolve around reviewing financial data and work plans, managing billing and financial reports, monitoring the flow of revenue, filing purchase orders and invoices, and processing payments to subcontractors, suppliers, and more. It is also vital to coordinate with all managing personnel to prepare necessary reports such as costs and taxes. Furthermore, it is essential to maintain data and records of all transactions, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
Control accountants and project accountants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Control Accountant | Project Accountant | |
| Average salary | $66,563 | $60,467 |
| Salary range | Between $48,000 And $91,000 | Between $46,000 And $79,000 |
| Highest paying City | New York, NY | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | New York | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Marathon Oil | Perficient |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Professional |
There are a few differences between a control accountant and a project accountant in terms of educational background:
| Control Accountant | Project Accountant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 72% |
| Most common major | Accounting | Accounting |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between control accountants' and project accountants' demographics:
| Control Accountant | Project Accountant | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 49.2% Female, 50.8% | Male, 36.8% Female, 63.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.8% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.2% Asian, 12.1% White, 63.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 8.7% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 12.3% White, 63.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |