Senior accountant vs general ledger accountant

The differences between senior accountants and general ledger 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 general ledger accountant. Additionally, a senior accountant has an average salary of $71,967, which is higher than the $60,034 average annual salary of a general ledger accountant.

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

Senior accountant vs general ledger accountant overview

	Senior Accountant	General Ledger Accountant
Yearly salary	$71,967	$60,034
Hourly rate	$34.60	$28.86
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	76,816	81,408
Job satisfaction	4	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 78%	Bachelor's Degree, 76%
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 general ledger accountant do?

A general ledger accountant is in charge of ensuring the accuracy of a company's overall accounting processes and information. It is their responsibility to communicate with different departments and officials to gather necessary data, conduct extensive audits, prepare documentation and reports, maintain financial data on the company ledger, and interpret financial information. Furthermore, like a general ledger accountant, it is essential to monitor the progress of accounting processes, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.

Senior accountant vs general ledger accountant salary

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

	Senior Accountant	General Ledger Accountant
Average salary	$71,967	$60,034
Salary range	Between $55,000 And $92,000	Between $47,000 And $76,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	New York	California
Best paying company	Google	Citi
Best paying industry	Finance	Technology

Differences between senior accountant and general ledger accountant education

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

	Senior Accountant	General Ledger Accountant
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 78%	Bachelor's Degree, 76%
Most common major	Accounting	Accounting
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Senior accountant vs general ledger accountant demographics

Here are the differences between senior accountants' and general ledger accountants' demographics:

	Senior Accountant	General Ledger Accountant
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 46.9% Female, 53.1%	Male, 36.9% Female, 63.1%
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, 8.4% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.8% Asian, 15.0% White, 61.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between senior accountant and general ledger 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.

General ledger accountant example responsibilities.

Prepare internal financial reports for treasury manage accounts include in external compliance reports.
Perform account analysis, cost accruals, bank reconciliations, inventory reconciliation and analysis; research and recommend transaction corrections.
Maintain ERP general ledger and data in sub module, and perform the expenditure review according to budgeting.
Prepare monthly, reconciliations of subsidiary ledgers to general ledger control accounts.
Reconcile general ledger accounts which including preparing journal entries and accruals in preparation of consolidate financial reports.
Prepare various monthly journal entries to record prepay insurance amortization, payroll deduction liabilities and other liability accruals.

Senior accountant vs general ledger accountant skills

Common senior accountant skills

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

Common general ledger accountant skills

Reconciliations, 15%
GAAP, 6%
Balance Sheet Accounts, 6%
Payroll, 5%
Accruals, 5%
External Auditors, 4%

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Senior Accountant vs General Ledger Accountant

Updated January 8, 2025

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