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The differences between sales clerks and retail clerks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a retail clerk has an average salary of $30,046, which is higher than the $25,739 average annual salary of a sales clerk.
The top three skills for a sales clerk include customer service, stock shelves and sales floor. The most important skills for a retail clerk are stock shelves, groceries, and retail sales.
| Sales Clerk | Retail Clerk | |
| Yearly salary | $25,739 | $30,046 |
| Hourly rate | $12.37 | $14.45 |
| Growth rate | - | - |
| Number of jobs | 372,651 | 470,355 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 34% | Bachelor's Degree, 35% |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
A sales clerk is responsible for assisting customers in purchasing products, responding to customer inquiries, and providing product recommendations. Sales clerks require excellent customer service and communication skills to offer the best services to the customers and maintain good customer feedback for the business. They also check inventories, request supplies as needed, and organize product displays on the appropriate shelves. A sales clerk must have strong verbal communication skills to manage customer concerns and excellent time-management skills to perform tasks within the fast-paced work environment.
A retail clerk is responsible for selling goods and services to the customers, recommending products based on their needs, and responding to the customers' inquiries and concerns about the product. Retail clerks assist with the store's marketing strategies, organize product displays, monitor inventories, endorse promotional discounts, and help customers on their checkout payments. A retail clerk must have excellent communication and customer service skills to handle customers' requests and ensure their highest satisfaction.
Sales clerks and retail clerks have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Sales Clerk | Retail Clerk | |
| Average salary | $25,739 | $30,046 |
| Salary range | Between $16,000 And $39,000 | Between $23,000 And $38,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | Seattle, WA |
| Highest paying state | New York | Rhode Island |
| Best paying company | Hawaii Pacific Health | Bellevue Jr/Sr High School |
| Best paying industry | Energy | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between a sales clerk and a retail clerk in terms of educational background:
| Sales Clerk | Retail Clerk | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 34% | Bachelor's Degree, 35% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between sales clerks' and retail clerks' demographics:
| Sales Clerk | Retail Clerk | |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 35.3% Female, 64.7% | Male, 41.0% Female, 59.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.2% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 19.7% Asian, 6.8% White, 57.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 10.0% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 19.8% Asian, 6.6% White, 57.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |