Front desk office assistant vs office clerk

The differences between front desk office assistants and office clerks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a front desk office assistant and an office clerk. Additionally, a front desk office assistant has an average salary of $31,361, which is higher than the $30,927 average annual salary of an office clerk.

The top three skills for a front desk office assistant include front desk, patients and customer service. The most important skills for an office clerk are customer service, data entry, and telephone calls.

Front desk office assistant vs office clerk overview

	Front Desk Office Assistant	Office Clerk
Yearly salary	$31,361	$30,927
Hourly rate	$15.08	$14.87
Growth rate	-5%	-5%
Number of jobs	113,589	106,497
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 37%	Bachelor's Degree, 32%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	2	2

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 an office clerk do?

Office clerks are administrative employees who handle clerical activities for the organization. They are in charge of managing company records, organizing and storing documents, filing and sorting hard copies of documents, and liaising with other departments or external partners. They are also in charge of handling and scheduling meetings and appointments, managing the reservation of office meeting rooms, and manning telephone lines. Office clerks may also be in charge of ordering office supplies, preparing purchase requisitions for office needs, sending out and receiving official company documents, and other correspondences.

Front desk office assistant vs office clerk salary

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

	Front Desk Office Assistant	Office Clerk
Average salary	$31,361	$30,927
Salary range	Between $20,000 And $46,000	Between $25,000 And $38,000
Highest paying City	-	Englewood, CO
Highest paying state	-	Alaska
Best paying company	-	University of Massachusetts Boston
Best paying industry	-	Transportation

Differences between front desk office assistant and office clerk education

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

	Front Desk Office Assistant	Office Clerk
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 37%	Bachelor's Degree, 32%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	Western Carolina University

Front desk office assistant vs office clerk demographics

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

	Front Desk Office Assistant	Office Clerk
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 14.1% Female, 85.9%	Male, 23.3% Female, 76.7%
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, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 23.7% Asian, 7.9% White, 53.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between front desk office assistant and office clerk 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

Office clerk example responsibilities.

Complete medical records requests as specified under HIPAA regulations.
Scan EOB's and attach to payments in software system.
Perform electronic billing of Medicare, Medicaid, and HMO/PPO submissions.
Follow all HIPAA guidelines and safety rules as required within the healthcare policy.
Perform account analysis on credit balance accounts using insurance explanation of benefit information (EOB).
Provide information about establishment, such as location of departments or offices, employees within the organization, or services provide.

Front desk office assistant vs office clerk 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 office clerk skills

Customer Service, 21%
Data Entry, 18%
Telephone Calls, 7%
Payroll, 5%
Office Equipment, 4%
Office Machines, 3%

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

Updated January 8, 2025

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