Senior accountant vs chief accountant

The differences between senior accountants and chief accountants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a senior accountant and a chief accountant. Additionally, a senior accountant has an average salary of $71,967, which is higher than the $61,481 average annual salary of a chief accountant.

The top three skills for a senior accountant include reconciliations, CPA and GAAP. The most important skills for a chief accountant are external auditors, reconciliations, and general ledger accounts.

Senior accountant vs chief accountant overview

	Senior Accountant	Chief Accountant
Yearly salary	$71,967	$61,481
Hourly rate	$34.60	$29.56
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	76,816	52,287
Job satisfaction	4	4
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 78%	Bachelor's Degree, 69%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	4	4

What does a senior accountant do?

A senior accountant is responsible for organizing financial reports, analyzing cost estimates, reviewing budget goals regularly, and making adjustments with the company's account statements as necessary. Senior accountants' duties also include managing account reconciliations, preparing tax documents, maintaining audit records and balance sheets, generating invoices, and providing recommendations to minimize possible financial loss. A senior accountant must have excellent analytical and critical-thinking skills and extensive knowledge of accounting and financial principles.

What does a chief accountant do?

Chief accountants develop financial strategies, oversee the accounting department, make investment decisions, and develop financial strategies. They provide assistance to departments with their reviews and budgets, tax studies, and internal control. It is part of their job to respond to the accounting questions from time management. They take charge of monitoring and recording financial transactions based on corporate regulations and policies. Also, they recommend changes to the procedures of accounting.

Senior accountant vs chief accountant salary

Senior accountants and chief accountants have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Senior Accountant	Chief Accountant
Average salary	$71,967	$61,481
Salary range	Between $55,000 And $92,000	Between $43,000 And $87,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	New York, NY
Highest paying state	New York	New York
Best paying company	Google	IBM
Best paying industry	Finance	Retail

Differences between senior accountant and chief accountant education

There are a few differences between a senior accountant and a chief accountant in terms of educational background:

	Senior Accountant	Chief Accountant
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 78%	Bachelor's Degree, 69%
Most common major	Accounting	Accounting
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Senior accountant vs chief accountant demographics

Here are the differences between senior accountants' and chief accountants' demographics:

	Senior Accountant	Chief Accountant
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 46.9% Female, 53.1%	Male, 57.0% Female, 43.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.5% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.8% Asian, 14.5% White, 61.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 8.2% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.5% Asian, 15.3% White, 61.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between senior accountant and chief accountant duties and responsibilities

Senior accountant example responsibilities.

Manage complex pricing structure and maintain SalesForce CRM funnel for forecasting accuracy.
Prepare internal financial reports for treasury manage accounts include in external compliance reports.
Manage the review, enhancement, and creation of department policy and procedure documentation require for Sarbanes-Oxley auditing and compliance.
Compile and analyze financial information to prepare monthly accruals, payroll journal, general journal and bank reconciliations.
Research and develop policies around Medicaid and Medicare billings and prepare Medicaid cost reports.
Coordinate submissions of financial data from regional divisions and prepare the consolidated company financial statement using Hyperion program.

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Chief accountant example responsibilities.

Manage and monitor accounting procedures for compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley and coordinate and facilitate external audit requirements.
Prepare monthly trial balance, balance sheets, and profit and loss statements according to GAAP.
Prepare monthly account reconciliations (bank reconciliation, accounts receivable reconciliation, accounts payable reconciliation, and general ledger reconciliation).
Research, advise and resolve accounting and business issues, ensuring compliance with U.S. GAAP and head office requirements.
Monitor deposits and withdrawals of revenue and expenses, review payroll, and ensure accurate processing and timely bank reconciliations.
Prepare daily SOX audit documentation, ensuring that bank account activity have been reconcile and to identify any outstanding variances.

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Senior accountant vs chief accountant skills

Common senior accountant skills

Reconciliations, 13%
CPA, 8%
GAAP, 7%
External Auditors, 4%
Internal Controls, 4%
Payroll, 4%

Common chief accountant skills

External Auditors, 13%
Reconciliations, 10%
General Ledger Accounts, 9%
Balance Sheet Accounts, 7%
Financial Reports, 5%
Internal Controls, 4%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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