Pastor vs bishop

The differences between pastors and bishops can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a pastor and a bishop. Additionally, a pastor has an average salary of $44,787, which is higher than the $34,665 average annual salary of a bishop.

The top three skills for a pastor include community outreach, overseer and bible study. The most important skills for a bishop are alumni, community services, and .

Pastor vs bishop overview

	Pastor	Bishop
Yearly salary	$44,787	$34,665
Hourly rate	$21.53	$16.67
Growth rate	-	-
Number of jobs	494	257
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 51%	Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Average age	51	51
Years of experience	4	4

Pastor vs bishop salary

Pastors and bishops have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Pastor	Bishop
Average salary	$44,787	$34,665
Salary range	Between $30,000 And $64,000	Between $24,000 And $48,000
Highest paying City	Worcester, MA	-
Highest paying state	Hawaii	-
Best paying company	Bethel Church	-
Best paying industry	Education	-

Differences between pastor and bishop education

There are a few differences between a pastor and a bishop in terms of educational background:

	Pastor	Bishop
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 51%	Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Most common major	Theology	Theology
Most common college	Emory University	Emory University

Pastor vs bishop demographics

Here are the differences between pastors' and bishops' demographics:

	Pastor	Bishop
Average age	51	51
Gender ratio	Male, 87.1% Female, 12.9%	Male, 58.6% Female, 41.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.7% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 9.0% Asian, 6.6% White, 68.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 12.0% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 9.2% Asian, 6.7% White, 67.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage	16%	16%

Differences between pastor and bishop duties and responsibilities

Pastor example responsibilities.

Manage and provide oversight for the administration of all ministry areas within the organization.
Provide formal and informal leadership training and forums for frequent communication, encouragement and evaluation.
Coordinate visitation program, VBS, and youth programs.
Develop children's ministry including writing of curriculum for Sunday school and VBS.
Begin to birth new Sunday school groups, and new bible study small groups.
Provide hand-outs, and employ PowerPoint slides to illustrate concepts and provide visual referencing of all teaching content.

Bishop example responsibilities.

Develop, provide oversight and lead all ministries for middle school and high school students and their parents.
Sort and organize bulk monthly mailings and alumni quarterly mailings.
Lead the church in developing a process driven discipleship strategy in growing maturing disciples and disciple-makers enhance.
Develop deacons in fulfilling their respective leadership obligations.

Pastor vs bishop skills

Common pastor skills

Community Outreach, 22%
Overseer, 7%
Bible Study, 7%
Public Speaking, 6%
GOD, 6%
Youth Ministry, 5%

Common bishop skills

Alumni, 50%
Community Services, 50%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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