Office technician vs general office clerk

The differences between office technicians and general 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 an office technician and a general office clerk. Additionally, an office technician has an average salary of $34,956, which is higher than the $30,034 average annual salary of a general office clerk.

The top three skills for an office technician include data entry, patients and office equipment. The most important skills for a general office clerk are data entry, customer service, and office equipment.

Office technician vs general office clerk overview

	Office Technician	General Office Clerk
Yearly salary	$34,956	$30,034
Hourly rate	$16.81	$14.44
Growth rate	-5%	-5%
Number of jobs	82,512	160,597
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 36%	Bachelor's Degree, 28%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	2	2

What does an office technician do?

An Office Technician handles installation and repair tasks by using power tools and manual equipment safely and effectively. Besides installing, maintaining, and repairing central office equipment, an office technician also installs, tests, and labels cable lines. They deactivate, activate, and maintain office equipment. Other duties performed by office technicians include removing non-functional and unused office equipment, managing equipment stations and telecommunication rooms cabling, and maintaining inspection, repair, maintenance, and installation documents. Also, these professionals work as per environmental, safety, and health policies.

What does a general office clerk do?

A general office clerk is responsible for performing various clerical duties to support business functions and ensure smooth daily operations. General office clerks respond to clients' inquiries and concerns, welcoming guests, and assisting in disseminating information across the organization. They maintain the adequacy of inventories, organize business and financial transaction reports, and perform basic bookkeeping tasks and banking transactions. A general office clerk must be highly organizational and analytical, especially in encoding account statements on the database and processing business reports required by the management.

Office technician vs general office clerk salary

Office technicians and general office clerks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Office Technician	General Office Clerk
Average salary	$34,956	$30,034
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $48,000	Between $23,000 And $38,000
Highest paying City	Anchorage, AK	Seattle, WA
Highest paying state	Hawaii	Washington
Best paying company	Motorola Solutions	USF Reddaway
Best paying industry	Construction	Health Care

Differences between office technician and general office clerk education

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

	Office Technician	General Office Clerk
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 36%	Bachelor's Degree, 28%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Western Carolina University	Western Carolina University

Office technician vs general office clerk demographics

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

	Office Technician	General Office Clerk
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 30.0% Female, 70.0%	Male, 22.2% Female, 77.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.4% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 23.2% Asian, 8.5% White, 54.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 9.5% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 23.7% Asian, 8.2% White, 53.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between office technician and general office clerk duties and responsibilities

Office technician example responsibilities.

Manage operational FedEx relationship through order fulfillment, shipment tracking, and communication with parties involve in shipment transaction.
Interact with SCO divisions, other agencies and campuses and the public, to resolve distribution problems concerning mail and payroll.
Communicate payroll information with employees.
Verify eligibility and coverage with Medicaid and Medicare.
Certify to perform refraction to patients participating in clinical trials.
Provide patients with surgical and procedural information and instructions as appropriate.

General office clerk example responsibilities.

Set up PowerPoint presentations using LCD projectors and computers.
Update and maintain PowerPoint presentations used for new hire orientation of management and employees.
Insert data accurately and expeditiously into the company payroll system for future retrieval.
Assist patients with sensitive and detail orient documentation, schedule appointments and verify insurance benefits.
Use QuickBooks for purchase order, inventory activities and sales order.
Bag groceries, assist customers in locating merchandise, cleaning of store floors, restrooms and shelves.

Office technician vs general office clerk skills

Common office technician skills

Data Entry, 16%
Patients, 11%
Office Equipment, 7%
Office Procedures, 7%
Word Processing, 5%
Payroll, 4%

Common general office clerk skills

Data Entry, 17%
Customer Service, 15%
Office Equipment, 12%
Front Desk, 11%
Word Processing, 9%
Telephone Calls, 8%

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Office Technician
Office Technician vs General Office Clerk

Updated January 8, 2025

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