How to hire a front office assistant

How to hire a front office assistant, step by step

Here's a step-by-step front office assistant hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a front office assistant job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new front office assistant
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a front office assistant do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your front office assistant job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find a front office assistant for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A front office assistant's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, front office assistants from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   Here's a comparison of front office assistant salaries for various roles:

   Type of Front Office Assistant	Description	Hourly rate
   Front Office Assistant	General office clerks perform a variety of clerical tasks, including answering telephones, typing documents, and filing records.	$12-19
   Office Worker	An office worker is responsible for performing administrative and clerical duties to support the daily operations of the business. Office workers assist in receiving calls to respond to the clients' inquiries and concerns, as well as welcoming visitors, verifying their appointments, and leading them to the appropriate personnel and department for their business needs... Show more	$11-34
   Office Clerk	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... Show more	$12-18

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Patients
   • Customer Service
   • Excellent Interpersonal
   • Patient Demographics
   • Patient Care
   • Front Desk
   • Process Payments
   • Check-In
   • HIPAA
   • Insurance Verification
   • OSHA
   • Work Ethic
   • Appointment Scheduling
   • Office Procedures

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage correspondence and documentation for OSHA compliance and hold some accounts payable responsibilities by coding invoices for processing and payment.
   • Ensure compliance with HIPAA and OSHA regulations to improve customer relations and promote favorable patient/physician interactions.
   • Download all transcription for the physicians and mail out letters and patient consults.
   • Utilize knowledge of ICD-9 and CPT coding by verifying explanation of benefits render to patient, for insurance purposes.
   • Collect co-pays, enter update demographics into EHR/EMR, enter ICD-9 and CPT codes as needed into patient records electronically
   • Verify insurance to include commercial and Medicaid.

   More front office assistant duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your front office assistant job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A front office assistant salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, front office assistants' average salary in new mexico is 44% less than in connecticut.
   • Seniority. Entry-level front office assistants earn 35% less than senior-level front office assistants.
   • Certifications. A front office assistant with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a front office assistant's salary.

   Average front office assistant salary

   $15.82hourly

   $32,913 yearly

   ---

   Entry-level front office assistant salary

   $26,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 19, 2025

   Average front office assistant salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	District of Columbia	$39,932	$19
   2	Massachusetts	$37,435	$18
   3	California	$37,335	$18
   4	Colorado	$36,953	$18
   5	Nevada	$34,784	$17
   6	Minnesota	$34,547	$17
   7	North Dakota	$34,155	$16
   8	Pennsylvania	$33,812	$16
   9	Alaska	$33,710	$16
   10	New York	$33,340	$16
   11	Maryland	$33,124	$16
   12	Arizona	$32,980	$16
   13	Illinois	$31,698	$15
   14	Ohio	$31,534	$15
   15	North Carolina	$31,372	$15
   16	Texas	$31,314	$15
   17	Virginia	$30,800	$15
   18	Florida	$30,698	$15
   19	Missouri	$30,618	$15
   20	Arkansas	$30,563	$15

   Average front office assistant salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	University of California-Berkeley	$43,981	$21.14
   2	Boulder County	$39,264	$18.88	1
   3	Adobe	$38,848	$18.68
   4	Parker University	$37,445	$18.00
   5	Ricoh	$36,474	$17.54	27
   6	Concentra	$35,910	$17.26	86
   7	Triad Adult and Pediatric Medicine	$35,792	$17.21	8
   8	Treasure Coast Community Health	$35,506	$17.07	4
   9	CFCE	$34,913	$16.79	4
   10	Community Dental Services Inc	$34,900	$16.78
   11	Dental Center NWO	$34,530	$16.60
   12	DEXIS	$34,495	$16.58
   13	Fresenius Medical Care North America Holdings Limited Partnership	$34,459	$16.57	20
   14	L'Auberge BatonRouge	$34,391	$16.53
   15	Peregrine	$34,353	$16.52
   16	University of Georgia Small Business Development Center	$34,232	$16.46	21
   17	Kaiser Permanente	$34,130	$16.41	99
   18	APN	$34,076	$16.38
   19	Doylestown Health	$34,019	$16.36
   20	Prohealth Corp	$34,011	$16.35	5

4. Writing a front office assistant job description

   A front office assistant job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of a front office assistant job description:

   Front office assistant job description example

   The Front Office Assistant, under the general direction of the Practice Manager or Practice Administrator, is responsible for greeting patients and visitors, maintaining appropriate patient flow, answering phones in a timely manner, scheduling appointments, and providing exceptional customer services.
   Key Responsibilities
   Greets and assists all patients and visitors upon arrival in the clinic. Initiates and facilitates patient and visitor flow within the clinic. Collects demographic, insurance, and medical information from patient. Ensures all appropriate patient forms are complete and accurate. Accurately schedules follow-up appointments as needed. Answer incoming calls in a timely and professional manner. Route calls and takes messages as appropriate. Organize and scans incoming patient medical records information into correct patient EMR. Assists with arranging for any lab or other diagnostic/clinical tests or treatments prescribed by the physician during the patient examination Assist with billing, accounting, and collections, including ordering supplies and maintaining inventory. Sorts and routes incoming mail and faxes. Follows through with the patient or their physician offices on outstanding documentation needed to finalize the patient's chart. Implements directions from the physicians and nursing staff. All other duties as assigned.
   Minimum Requirements
   High School graduate or equivalent Graduate of a Medical Assistant / Medical Office Specialist program preferred One-year experience in a medical office setting highly preferred.
   Steward Health Care is the largest private, for-profit health care network in the United States. The company is owned and led by a management team of Steward physicians. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, Steward employs more than 40,000 health care professionals and operates 35 hospitals across the United States and in the countries of Malta and Colombia which regularly receive top awards for quality and safety. The Steward network includes multiple urgent care centers and skilled nursing facilities, substantial behavioral health services, more than 7,000 beds under management, and approximately 2.2 million full risk covered lives through the company's managed care and health insurance services.
   
   The Steward Health Care Network includes more than 5,000 physicians across 800 communities who help to provide more than 12 million patient encounters annually. Steward Medical Group, the company's employed physician group, provides more than six million patient encounters per year. The Steward Hospital Group operates hospitals in Malta, Colombia and nine states across the U.S., including Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Utah. For more information, visit www.steward.org.
   
   Additional Information
   
   Steward Medical Group is taking additional necessary preparations to ensure patients can receive compassionate care in safe, carefully managed environment - with confidence and without fear.
   
   Our Safe and Ready program consists of a rigorous [three-point] standard ensuring patient safety, confidence and convenience.
   Any COVID-19 related care takes place in designated areas away from other patients and their families. A stringent cleaning policy has been implemented throughout our facilities. A strictly controlled visitor and mask policy is required for patient and colleague safety.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find front office assistants for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any front office assistants they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level front office assistants with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your front office assistant job on Zippia to find and recruit front office assistant candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with front office assistant candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new front office assistant

   Once you have selected a candidate for the front office assistant position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new front office assistant. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a front office assistant?