Dental office manager vs assistant office manager

The differences between dental office managers and assistant office managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a dental office manager and an assistant office manager. Additionally, a dental office manager has an average salary of $55,915, which is higher than the $43,074 average annual salary of an assistant office manager.

The top three skills for a dental office manager include patients, patient care and customer service. The most important skills for an assistant office manager are customer service, patients, and financial statements.

Dental office manager vs assistant office manager overview

	Dental Office Manager	Assistant Office Manager
Yearly salary	$55,915	$43,074
Hourly rate	$26.88	$20.71
Growth rate	28%	-8%
Number of jobs	68,831	56,866
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 36%	Bachelor's Degree, 45%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	6	6

What does a dental office manager do?

A dental office manager oversees the business operations of the dental practice, including billing, expenses, and budget. Dental office managers are leaders in the practice. Among their duties and responsibilities are appointment schedule maintenance and staff supervision. They coordinate the treatment of patients and oversee billing. They may become successful when they incorporate modern communication skills.

What does an assistant office manager do?

An assistant office manager's role is to perform administrative and management support-related tasks. Most of the responsibilities revolve around gathering information and maintaining a database, preparing presentations and processing necessary documents, arranging schedules and appointments, and taking charge of the procurement of office supplies. Furthermore, an assistant office manager may take part in maintenance activities and decisions, devise plans to maximize space, improve the office environment, and even attend meetings on behalf of the manager.

Dental office manager vs assistant office manager salary

Dental office managers and assistant office managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Dental Office Manager	Assistant Office Manager
Average salary	$55,915	$43,074
Salary range	Between $40,000 And $77,000	Between $31,000 And $59,000
Highest paying City	New York, NY	Campbell, CA
Highest paying state	New York	Alaska
Best paying company	GPAC	Cambridge Associates
Best paying industry	Professional	Finance

Differences between dental office manager and assistant office manager education

There are a few differences between a dental office manager and an assistant office manager in terms of educational background:

	Dental Office Manager	Assistant Office Manager
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 36%	Bachelor's Degree, 45%
Most common major	Dental Assisting	Business
Most common college	University of Minnesota - Twin Cities	California State University - Bakersfield

Dental office manager vs assistant office manager demographics

Here are the differences between dental office managers' and assistant office managers' demographics:

	Dental Office Manager	Assistant Office Manager
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 9.7% Female, 90.3%	Male, 17.8% Female, 82.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 19.3% Asian, 5.3% White, 60.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 10.6% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 18.3% Asian, 5.2% White, 60.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between dental office manager and assistant office manager duties and responsibilities

Dental office manager example responsibilities.

Manage medical health documents, submit laboratory works and input diagnoses, ICD-9 and procedure codes.
Manage daily office operations, policies and procedures, and OSHA compliance in a fast pace setting.
Help dentist manage dental and medical emergencies by maintaining CPR certification.
Manage business accounts receivable and payable, payroll, and insurance verification and submission responsibilities.
Work a POS register and sell movie tickets.
Ensure HIPAA compliance, perform monthly inventory, order supplies.

Assistant office manager example responsibilities.

Communicate Medicare and Medicaid benefits and regulations with patients.
Provide customer service to residents and family members in Medicaid process.
Maintain current patient demographic and insurance information, and ensure strict confidentiality of patients' records in accordance with HIPAA regulations.
Reduce overhead by thousands of dollars for waste management and EHR yearly cost with Aprima.
Review all diagnosis on the encounter forms to make sure that ICD-10 codes are used properly.
Organize patient information, insurance paperwork, and patient file management; closely follow and monitor HIPAA regulations.

Dental office manager vs assistant office manager skills

Common dental office manager skills

Patients, 24%
Patient Care, 11%
Customer Service, 10%
Dental Care, 6%
OSHA, 6%
Payroll, 5%

Common assistant office manager skills

Customer Service, 24%
Patients, 16%
Financial Statements, 5%
Front Desk, 4%
Appointment Scheduling, 3%
Office Equipment, 3%

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Office and Administrative Industry
Dental Office Manager
Dental Office Manager vs Assistant Office Manager

Updated January 8, 2025

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