General office assistant vs office clerk

The differences between general 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 general office assistant and an office clerk. Additionally, an office clerk has an average salary of $30,927, which is higher than the $30,764 average annual salary of a general office assistant.

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

General office assistant vs office clerk overview

	General Office Assistant	Office Clerk
Yearly salary	$30,764	$30,927
Hourly rate	$14.79	$14.87
Growth rate	-5%	-5%
Number of jobs	131,527	106,497
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 41%	Bachelor's Degree, 32%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	2	2

What does a general office assistant do?

A general office assistant is in charge of performing clerical support tasks to help an office run smoothly and efficiently. Their responsibilities include managing the office calendar and schedules, preparing and processing documents, handling calls and correspondence, organizing and disseminating files, greeting visitors, and running errands as needed. They must also monitor the inventory of office supplies, processing procurement requests as necessary. Furthermore, a general office assistant may assist staff in projects and programs while adhering to the company's policies and regulations.

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.

General office assistant vs office clerk salary

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

	General Office Assistant	Office Clerk
Average salary	$30,764	$30,927
Salary range	Between $24,000 And $39,000	Between $25,000 And $38,000
Highest paying City	Annapolis, MD	Englewood, CO
Highest paying state	Alaska	Alaska
Best paying company	Cargill	University of Massachusetts Boston
Best paying industry	Finance	Transportation

Differences between general office assistant and office clerk education

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

	General Office Assistant	Office Clerk
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 41%	Bachelor's Degree, 32%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Western Carolina University	Western Carolina University

General office assistant vs office clerk demographics

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

	General Office Assistant	Office Clerk
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 20.8% Female, 79.2%	Male, 23.3% Female, 76.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.0% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 21.7% Asian, 9.1% White, 54.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%	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 general office assistant and office clerk duties and responsibilities

General office assistant example responsibilities.

Manage operational FedEx relationship through order fulfillment, shipment tracking, and communication with parties involve in shipment transaction.
Utilize QuickBooks to prepare checks and process for submission to insurance companies.
Assign jobs to the installers into the computer by their installer identification number, addressed any payroll questions from the installers.
Distribute payroll and verify accuracy.
Maintain general office tidiness run errands and perform other job-relate duties as assigned.
Lead DoD team that assist Pakistan in gaining military capabilities to conduct counter-terrorism operations against the Taliban.

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.

General office assistant vs office clerk skills

Common general office assistant skills

Data Entry, 26%
Customer Service, 12%
General Office Assistance, 9%
Front Desk, 7%
Schedule Appointments, 6%
Office Equipment, 6%

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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General Office Assistant
General Office Assistant vs Office Clerk

Updated January 8, 2025

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