General accountant vs senior tax accountant

The differences between general accountants and senior tax accountants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a general accountant and a senior tax accountant. Additionally, a senior tax accountant has an average salary of $77,537, which is higher than the $55,043 average annual salary of a general accountant.

The top three skills for a general accountant include financial data, reconciliations and cash handling. The most important skills for a senior tax accountant are CPA, state income, and tax research.

General accountant vs senior tax accountant overview

	General Accountant	Senior Tax Accountant
Yearly salary	$55,043	$77,537
Hourly rate	$26.46	$37.28
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	87,663	57,686
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 75%	Bachelor's Degree, 74%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	4	4

What does a general accountant do?

A general accountant is responsible for evaluating account statements, conducting data analysis with financial transactions, and generating reports on revenues, expenses, and sales forecasting. These accountants manage discrepancies on the company and clients' profiles, including bank reconciliations and processing of account receivables and payables. They also handle the release of invoices and petty cash, analyzing balance sheets, and updating accurate financial information on the database. A general accountant must have excellent analytical skills, as well as extensive knowledge of the accounting principles and disciplines.

What does a senior tax accountant do?

Senior Tax Accountants recommend tax strategies, as well as assist the preparation of federal, state, and local taxes. They contact clients to resolve minor tax issues and work with the senior tax manager to ensure compliance with federal, state, and local tax legislation.

General accountant vs senior tax accountant salary

General accountants and senior tax accountants have different pay scales, as shown below.

	General Accountant	Senior Tax Accountant
Average salary	$55,043	$77,537
Salary range	Between $40,000 And $73,000	Between $60,000 And $99,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	New Jersey	New York
Best paying company	Apple	Riverbed Holdings, Inc.
Best paying industry	Automotive	Professional

Differences between general accountant and senior tax accountant education

There are a few differences between a general accountant and a senior tax accountant in terms of educational background:

	General Accountant	Senior Tax Accountant
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 75%	Bachelor's Degree, 74%
Most common major	Accounting	Accounting
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Southern California

General accountant vs senior tax accountant demographics

Here are the differences between general accountants' and senior tax accountants' demographics:

	General Accountant	Senior Tax Accountant
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 43.1% Female, 56.9%	Male, 50.6% Female, 49.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.7% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 13.7% White, 62.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 8.4% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.7% Asian, 14.3% White, 62.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between general accountant and senior tax accountant duties and responsibilities

General accountant example responsibilities.

Manage payroll functions, financial statements, accounts payable, basic job cost, account analysis, accruals, year-end audits.
Manage and monitor accounting procedures for compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley and coordinate and facilitate external audit requirements.
Assist manager with cash flow, preparing financial statement, BBC, and report to CPA.
Create budget at beginning and coordinate CPA firm's audit at the end of year.
Assist in any kind of audit engagement (internal control, external, SOX, etc . )
Provide support for the controller with period-end close accruals and journal entries and assist in various duties and responsibilities.

Senior tax accountant example responsibilities.

Research technical topics in taxation to present to the tax department and clients on areas of concern in the IRS code.
Participate in monthly accounting close with preparation and ownership of tax accrual journal entries and reconciliations.
Help implement, and maintain federal and state tax provision information into OneSource.
Work with internal and external resources to ensure implementation of CCH software on shopping cart is successful.
Assist and review the maintenance of the OneSource database relative to coding & mapping of the trial balance.
Conduct research with CCH and RIA on tax exposures, savings, refund, recovery, and credits.

General accountant vs senior tax accountant skills

Common general accountant skills

Financial Data, 11%
Reconciliations, 10%
Cash Handling, 9%
Vendor Invoices, 6%
General Ledger Accounts, 6%
Account Reconciliations, 5%

Common senior tax accountant skills

CPA, 14%
State Income, 5%
Tax Research, 5%
Income Tax Returns, 4%
Tax Planning, 4%
Tax Compliance, 4%

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General Accountant vs Senior Tax Accountant

Updated January 8, 2025

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