Medical coder vs medical records manager

The differences between medical coders and medical records managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a medical coder and a medical records manager. Additionally, a medical records manager has an average salary of $75,232, which is higher than the $51,563 average annual salary of a medical coder.

The top three skills for a medical coder include CPC, medical terminology and ICD-10-CM. The most important skills for a medical records manager are patients, HIPAA, and patient care.

Medical coder vs medical records manager overview

	Medical Coder	Medical Records Manager
Yearly salary	$51,563	$75,232
Hourly rate	$24.79	$36.17
Growth rate	11%	11%
Number of jobs	51,316	54,997
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 37%	Bachelor's Degree, 44%
Average age	45	45
Years of experience	12	12

What does a medical coder do?

A medical coder's role is to interpret and analyze a patient's medical record and translate particular details according to the universal medical alphanumeric code. Moreover, a medical coder is primarily responsible for ensuring that the translations are accurate, as this will play a vital factor in processing insurance and receiving treatments. Aside from accuracy, it is also crucial for a medical coder to coordinate with other hospital personnel at all times, especially when there inconsistencies in the records.

What does a medical records manager do?

The main job of a medical records manager is to secure and maintain electronic and written data within a medical records department. Medical records managers retrieve patient records for medical personnel and physicians. They supervise the department's employees. It is their responsibility to document a patient's health information, which may include symptoms, histories, and exam results. They ensure that the confidentiality of patients will follow the proper record-keeping practices. Also, they manage electronic health records and computer software.

Medical coder vs medical records manager salary

Medical coders and medical records managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Medical Coder	Medical Records Manager
Average salary	$51,563	$75,232
Salary range	Between $37,000 And $70,000	Between $50,000 And $111,000
Highest paying City	Trenton, NJ	Oakland, CA
Highest paying state	Hawaii	New Jersey
Best paying company	Meta	Amazon
Best paying industry	Health Care	Technology

Differences between medical coder and medical records manager education

There are a few differences between a medical coder and a medical records manager in terms of educational background:

	Medical Coder	Medical Records Manager
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 37%	Bachelor's Degree, 44%
Most common major	Health Care Administration	Health Care Administration
Most common college	Stanford University	University of Pennsylvania

Medical coder vs medical records manager demographics

Here are the differences between medical coders' and medical records managers' demographics:

	Medical Coder	Medical Records Manager
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 13.2% Female, 86.8%	Male, 21.1% Female, 78.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 16.2% Asian, 9.0% White, 60.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%	Black or African American, 8.9% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 17.4% Asian, 8.1% White, 60.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between medical coder and medical records manager duties and responsibilities

Medical coder example responsibilities.

Manage all EDI relate communication with trading partners and assist to produce all operational documents for all end users.
Manage all aspects of AR including writing letters for medical necessity, claim denials, bundling issues and charge capture.
Manage health records while applying ICD-10 coding to update and process insurance claims for time and accuracy to various insurance companies.
Manage the outsourced transcription company.
Create documentation education classes to general surgery residents, increasing the leveling of reporting which lead to increase revenues.
Adhere to regulations with CPT-4, ICD-9-CM and HCPCS coding with medical terminology and effort meet all audit requirements.

Medical records manager example responsibilities.

Manage 2nd/ 3rd and weekend shift supervisors and staff and develop unit (s) QA activities.
Achieve this goal by providing clear policies/justification for initiatives which impact designated FTE's.
Prepare documents for FOIA requests.
Assign ICD-9 and CPT medical codes.
Have knowledge of the latest CPT coding.
Ensure compliance with medical/legal requirements, JCAHO standards.

Medical coder vs medical records manager skills

Common medical coder skills

CPC, 11%
Medical Terminology, 8%
ICD-10-CM, 7%
AHIMA, 7%
Patients, 7%
Clinical Documentation, 5%

Common medical records manager skills

Patients, 29%
HIPAA, 10%
Patient Care, 10%
EHR, 4%
Hippa, 4%
Medical Terminology, 4%

Medical Coder vs. similar jobs

Medical Coder related careers

Medical Coder related jobs

Medical Coder jobs by location

Zippia Careers
Healthcare Practitioner and Technical Industry
Medical Coder
Medical Coder vs Medical Records Manager

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse healthcare practitioner and technical jobs