Corporate accountant vs senior accountant

The differences between corporate accountants and senior 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 corporate accountant and a senior accountant. Additionally, a senior accountant has an average salary of $71,967, which is higher than the $64,300 average annual salary of a corporate accountant.

The top three skills for a corporate accountant include reconciliations, GAAP and account reconciliations. The most important skills for a senior accountant are reconciliations, CPA, and GAAP.

Corporate accountant vs senior accountant overview

	Corporate Accountant	Senior Accountant
Yearly salary	$64,300	$71,967
Hourly rate	$30.91	$34.60
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	54,174	76,816
Job satisfaction	-	4
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 76%	Bachelor's Degree, 78%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	4	4

What does a corporate accountant do?

A corporate accountant is an individual who prepares financial statements and maintains financial records of an organization to ensure that they comply with laws, regulations, and the organization's policies. Corporate accountants are required to analyze financial statements to help executives make financial decisions for the organization. They must collect ledgers and financial reports from divisional offices and prepare corporate financial statements for executives. Corporate accountants must also prepare budgets to allocate funds for spending for each department.

What does a senior accountant do?

A senior accountant is responsible for organizing financial reports, analyzing cost estimates, reviewing budget goals regularly, and making adjustments with the company's account statements as necessary. Senior accountants' duties also include managing account reconciliations, preparing tax documents, maintaining audit records and balance sheets, generating invoices, and providing recommendations to minimize possible financial loss. A senior accountant must have excellent analytical and critical-thinking skills and extensive knowledge of accounting and financial principles.

Corporate accountant vs senior accountant salary

Corporate accountants and senior accountants have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Corporate Accountant	Senior Accountant
Average salary	$64,300	$71,967
Salary range	Between $46,000 And $89,000	Between $55,000 And $92,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	New York	New York
Best paying company	Putnam Investments	Google
Best paying industry	Finance	Finance

Differences between corporate accountant and senior accountant education

There are a few differences between a corporate accountant and a senior accountant in terms of educational background:

	Corporate Accountant	Senior Accountant
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 76%	Bachelor's Degree, 78%
Most common major	Accounting	Accounting
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Corporate accountant vs senior accountant demographics

Here are the differences between corporate accountants' and senior accountants' demographics:

	Corporate Accountant	Senior Accountant
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 43.1% Female, 56.9%	Male, 46.9% Female, 53.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.6% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.0% Asian, 13.0% White, 63.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 8.5% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.8% Asian, 14.5% White, 61.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between corporate accountant and senior accountant duties and responsibilities

Corporate accountant example responsibilities.

Lead successful implementation of PeopleSoft fix asset software module.
Manage and monitor accounting procedures for compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley and coordinate and facilitate external audit requirements.
Perform month-end closing responsibilities, month-end accruals, expense allocations across business units and legal entities, and account reconciliations.
Perform general accounting assignments including accruals, profit and loss reports and reconciliations.
Prepare monthly journal entries and variance reconciliations primarily relating to compensation, operational accruals, investments, and partnerships.
Perform detailed and extensive schedules and analysis for annual audits by an outside CPA firm as required by law.

Senior accountant example responsibilities.

Manage complex pricing structure and maintain SalesForce CRM funnel for forecasting accuracy.
Prepare internal financial reports for treasury manage accounts include in external compliance reports.
Manage the review, enhancement, and creation of department policy and procedure documentation require for Sarbanes-Oxley auditing and compliance.
Compile and analyze financial information to prepare monthly accruals, payroll journal, general journal and bank reconciliations.
Research and develop policies around Medicaid and Medicare billings and prepare Medicaid cost reports.
Coordinate submissions of financial data from regional divisions and prepare the consolidated company financial statement using Hyperion program.

Corporate accountant vs senior accountant skills

Common corporate accountant skills

Reconciliations, 14%
GAAP, 6%
Account Reconciliations, 6%
CPA, 5%
General Ledger Accounts, 5%
External Auditors, 4%

Common senior accountant skills

Reconciliations, 13%
CPA, 8%
GAAP, 7%
External Auditors, 4%
Internal Controls, 4%
Payroll, 4%

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Corporate Accountant vs Senior Accountant

Updated January 8, 2025

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