Receptionist/billing clerk vs accounting clerk

The differences between receptionist/billing clerks and accounting clerks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a receptionist/billing clerk, becoming an accounting clerk takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, an accounting clerk has an average salary of $38,683, which is higher than the $31,932 average annual salary of a receptionist/billing clerk.

The top three skills for a receptionist/billing clerk include patients, data entry and customer service. The most important skills for an accounting clerk are data entry, customer service, and purchase orders.

Receptionist/billing clerk vs accounting clerk overview

	Receptionist/Billing Clerk	Accounting Clerk
Yearly salary	$31,932	$38,683
Hourly rate	$15.35	$18.60
Growth rate	-	-5%
Number of jobs	129,530	106,969
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 31%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Average age	42	51
Years of experience	2	6

What does a receptionist/billing clerk do?

A receptionist/billing clerk is responsible for performing administrative and clerical duties as needed to maintain a smooth flow of operations for the business. Receptionist/billing clerks process the customers' payment transactions, manage account payables, releasing invoices, and immediately resolve account discrepancies. A receptionist/billing clerk must have excellent communication and analytical skills, responding to customers' inquiries and concerns, escalating high-level complaints to the billing management. They should also maintain records of financial documentation for reference and reconciliation as needed.

What does an accounting clerk do?

Accounting clerks are employees assigned to manage administrative and clerical tasks in the accounting department. Accounting clerks handle office accounting records and ensure that files are properly labeled and stored. They validate records and check whether these are updated. They also sort through documents to ensure that they are in their proper storage bins. Aside from document handling, they also help with creating and validating financial statements and bookkeeping. As such, accounting clerks should have a strong background in accounting to manage their tasks better.

Receptionist/billing clerk vs accounting clerk salary

Receptionist/billing clerks and accounting clerks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Receptionist/Billing Clerk	Accounting Clerk
Average salary	$31,932	$38,683
Salary range	Between $26,000 And $39,000	Between $29,000 And $51,000
Highest paying City	Santa Maria, CA	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	Alaska	New York
Best paying company	Leggett & Platt	Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker Llp
Best paying industry	Technology	Government

Differences between receptionist/billing clerk and accounting clerk education

There are a few differences between a receptionist/billing clerk and an accounting clerk in terms of educational background:

	Receptionist/Billing Clerk	Accounting Clerk
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 31%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Most common major	Business	Accounting
Most common college	-	University of Pennsylvania

Receptionist/billing clerk vs accounting clerk demographics

Here are the differences between receptionist/billing clerks' and accounting clerks' demographics:

	Receptionist/Billing Clerk	Accounting Clerk
Average age	42	51
Gender ratio	Male, 7.2% Female, 92.8%	Male, 20.0% Female, 80.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.5% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 25.0% Asian, 5.7% White, 53.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 6.9% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 6.6% White, 67.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	6%	7%

Differences between receptionist/billing clerk and accounting clerk duties and responsibilities

Receptionist/billing clerk example responsibilities.

Assist office management and staff with administrative projects/responsibilities such as managing time-sensitive projects, filing, copying, and collating materials.
Obtain and track all insurance referrals for patients with HMO products.
Coordinate in-processing of all patients, to include accurate insurance information and payments are entered correctly into office computer system.
Move from SNF billing to HMO outpatient billing and keep a large alpha current.
Maintain confidentiality and adherence to HIPAA guidelines.
Develop effective billing strategies for Medicaid recipients according to HIPPA rules and regulations.

Accounting clerk example responsibilities.

Manage revenue ledger including other subsidiary ledgers and responsible for the reconciliation of various income accounts to ensure accuracy of postings.
Perform balance sheet reconciliations and resolve open items by notifying employees and vendors of transaction discrepancies.
Assist in monthly financial close process by analyzing preliminary departmental expense reports and making necessary adjustments and accruals.
Develop a spreadsheet that pulls all data relate to project hours by operation from the ERP system.
Process all incoming payments receive via ACH, EFT, or the web; ensure accounts are accurately balance and reconcile.
Digitize proof of delivery receipts into ERP system (AS400) serving as an easy backup for employees to verify occurrence.

Receptionist/billing clerk vs accounting clerk skills

Common receptionist/billing clerk skills

Patients, 25%
Data Entry, 11%
Customer Service, 9%
Telephone Calls, 7%
Appointment Scheduling, 6%
Front Desk, 5%

Common accounting clerk skills

Data Entry, 15%
Customer Service, 10%
Purchase Orders, 9%
Reconciliations, 6%
Vendor Invoices, 6%
QuickBooks, 3%

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Office and Administrative Industry
Receptionist/Billing Clerk
Receptionist/Billing Clerk vs Accounting Clerk

Updated January 8, 2025

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