Front desk office assistant vs front office administrator

The differences between front desk office assistants and front office administrators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a front desk office assistant, becoming a front office administrator takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a front office administrator has an average salary of $33,516, which is higher than the $31,361 average annual salary of a front desk office assistant.

The top three skills for a front desk office assistant include front desk, patients and customer service. The most important skills for a front office administrator are patients, front desk, and appointment scheduling.

Front desk office assistant vs front office administrator overview

	Front Desk Office Assistant	Front Office Administrator
Yearly salary	$31,361	$33,516
Hourly rate	$15.08	$16.11
Growth rate	-5%	-5%
Number of jobs	113,589	147,279
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 37%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	2	6

What does a front desk office assistant do?

Front desk office assistants are the first point of contact for anyone visiting a business or an office. They greet workers and clients and perform routine administrative tasks around the office. These tasks include taking phone calls, scheduling appointments, responding to inquiries and concerns of guests, maintaining and arranging office files, taking and delivering messages, and sending mail. Being polite, jovial, and firm are key characteristics in this role.

What does a front office administrator do?

Front desk administrators work for different industries at the front desk of the front office area. They are responsible mostly for handling calls and transfers these calls to extension/local numbers. They manage booking travel appointments, answering inquiries, doing paperwork, and maintaining a professional image. They greet visitors and attend to visitors' inquiries. In addition, they assist other departments by performing other miscellaneous administrative tasks as required, and they often serve as ushers during client visits. Moreover, this job requires excellent interpersonal skills and good communication skills.

Front desk office assistant vs front office administrator salary

Front desk office assistants and front office administrators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Front Desk Office Assistant	Front Office Administrator
Average salary	$31,361	$33,516
Salary range	Between $20,000 And $46,000	Between $27,000 And $40,000
Highest paying City	-	Lakewood, WA
Highest paying state	-	Washington
Best paying company	-	University of California, Berkeley
Best paying industry	-	Non Profits

Differences between front desk office assistant and front office administrator education

There are a few differences between a front desk office assistant and a front office administrator in terms of educational background:

	Front Desk Office Assistant	Front Office Administrator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 37%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	California State University - Bakersfield

Front desk office assistant vs front office administrator demographics

Here are the differences between front desk office assistants' and front office administrators' demographics:

	Front Desk Office Assistant	Front Office Administrator
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 14.1% Female, 85.9%	Male, 9.9% Female, 90.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.9% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 23.5% Asian, 7.6% White, 53.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%	Black or African American, 9.9% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 18.7% Asian, 5.2% White, 60.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	6%	8%

Differences between front desk office assistant and front office administrator duties and responsibilities

Front desk office assistant example responsibilities.

Manage front-line customer service efforts and deliver maximum revenue generation by scheduling patients and maintaining substantial client database.
Enter patient demographics into EMR.
Track patient files records, and other information including entry of data into EMR.
Follow health center and departmental protocols for communication with patients and providers.
Respond to incoming patient calls, including conducting phone triage to determine necessity of scheduling appointments
Enhance student body knowledge by researching key facts to create educational PowerPoint slides to be publish throughout campus

Front office administrator example responsibilities.

Manage correspondence and documentation for OSHA compliance and hold some accounts payable responsibilities by coding invoices for processing and payment.
Handle day to day transactions, schedule patients, place patients onto traction tables and administer E-Stem/Ice.
Observe and perform patient's therapies such as, electric muscle stimulation, mechanical traction and acupuncture.
Cross train in veterinary technician duties including vaccines, administering medications, medical treatment for kennel and hospitalize patients.
Follow HIPPA protocol for sterilization of rooms/instruments.
Create a neck comparison using patient's cervical x-ray.

Front desk office assistant vs front office administrator skills

Common front desk office assistant skills

Front Desk, 20%
Patients, 18%
Customer Service, 9%
Phone Calls, 9%
Data Entry, 8%
Appointment Scheduling, 5%

Common front office administrator skills

Patients, 21%
Front Desk, 6%
Appointment Scheduling, 6%
Phone Calls, 6%
Excellent Interpersonal, 6%
Data Entry, 5%

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Office and Administrative Industry
Front Desk Office Assistant
Front Desk Office Assistant vs Front Office Administrator

Updated January 8, 2025

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