Desk clerk vs receptionist/billing clerk

The differences between desk clerks and receptionist/billing clerks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a receptionist/billing clerk has an average salary of $31,932, which is higher than the $29,096 average annual salary of a desk clerk.

The top three skills for a desk clerk include reservations, front desk and customer service. The most important skills for a receptionist/billing clerk are patients, data entry, and customer service.

Desk clerk vs receptionist/billing clerk overview

	Desk Clerk	Receptionist/Billing Clerk
Yearly salary	$29,096	$31,932
Hourly rate	$13.99	$15.35
Growth rate	-	-
Number of jobs	113,183	129,530
Job satisfaction	5	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 35%	High School Diploma, 31%
Average age	37	42
Years of experience	-	2

What does a desk clerk do?

The desk clerk or general office clerk is an employee who works with little supervision from the manager. The duties and responsibilities of desk clerks vary depending on the industry they belong to. These may include but are not limited to answering phone calls, electronic correspondence, filing paperwork, taking and maintaining inventory levels, and setting calendars and schedules. They are expected to always offer excellent customer service. In hotels, they check-in and check-out their guests.

What does a receptionist/billing clerk do?

A receptionist/billing clerk is responsible for performing administrative and clerical duties as needed to maintain a smooth flow of operations for the business. Receptionist/billing clerks process the customers' payment transactions, manage account payables, releasing invoices, and immediately resolve account discrepancies. A receptionist/billing clerk must have excellent communication and analytical skills, responding to customers' inquiries and concerns, escalating high-level complaints to the billing management. They should also maintain records of financial documentation for reference and reconciliation as needed.

Desk clerk vs receptionist/billing clerk salary

Desk clerks and receptionist/billing clerks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Desk Clerk	Receptionist/Billing Clerk
Average salary	$29,096	$31,932
Salary range	Between $23,000 And $36,000	Between $26,000 And $39,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	Santa Maria, CA
Highest paying state	California	Alaska
Best paying company	Deborah's Place	Leggett & Platt
Best paying industry	Manufacturing	Technology

Differences between desk clerk and receptionist/billing clerk education

There are a few differences between a desk clerk and a receptionist/billing clerk in terms of educational background:

	Desk Clerk	Receptionist/Billing Clerk
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 35%	High School Diploma, 31%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Desk clerk vs receptionist/billing clerk demographics

Here are the differences between desk clerks' and receptionist/billing clerks' demographics:

	Desk Clerk	Receptionist/Billing Clerk
Average age	37	42
Gender ratio	Male, 30.0% Female, 70.0%	Male, 7.2% Female, 92.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.6% Unknown, 6.5% Hispanic or Latino, 16.5% Asian, 10.0% White, 55.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%	Black or African American, 10.5% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 25.0% Asian, 5.7% White, 53.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage	13%	6%

Differences between desk clerk and receptionist/billing clerk duties and responsibilities

Desk clerk example responsibilities.

Manage customer service issues with ease and charm and train other co workers in daily operations.
Assist with setting up meetings using PowerPoint presentations.
Book keeping, check ins, paperwork, PowerPoint, enter information into database.
Communicate with previous shift, organize shift and review reservations and update contingency
Position require guest reservations to be coordinate with housekeeping and maintenance needs.
Register new patients and updates existing patient demographics by collecting patient detail patient information including personal and financial information.

Receptionist/billing clerk example responsibilities.

Assist office management and staff with administrative projects/responsibilities such as managing time-sensitive projects, filing, copying, and collating materials.
Obtain and track all insurance referrals for patients with HMO products.
Coordinate in-processing of all patients, to include accurate insurance information and payments are entered correctly into office computer system.
Move from SNF billing to HMO outpatient billing and keep a large alpha current.
Maintain confidentiality and adherence to HIPAA guidelines.
Develop effective billing strategies for Medicaid recipients according to HIPPA rules and regulations.

Desk clerk vs receptionist/billing clerk skills

Common desk clerk skills

Reservations, 22%
Front Desk, 14%
Customer Service, 12%
Room Availability, 11%
Direct Calls, 6%
Telephone Calls, 5%

Common receptionist/billing clerk skills

Patients, 25%
Data Entry, 11%
Customer Service, 9%
Telephone Calls, 7%
Appointment Scheduling, 6%
Front Desk, 5%

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Desk Clerk
Desk Clerk vs Receptionist/Billing Clerk

Updated January 8, 2025

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