Senior tax associate vs cost accountant

The differences between senior tax associates and cost 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 tax associate and a cost accountant. Additionally, a senior tax associate has an average salary of $91,872, which is higher than the $60,528 average annual salary of a cost accountant.

The top three skills for a senior tax associate include CPA, tax compliance and client relationships. The most important skills for a cost accountant are reconciliations, variance analysis, and GAAP.

Senior tax associate vs cost accountant overview

	Senior Tax Associate	Cost Accountant
Yearly salary	$91,872	$60,528
Hourly rate	$44.17	$29.10
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	28,339	39,925
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 64%	Bachelor's Degree, 77%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	4	4

What does a senior tax associate do?

A senior tax associate is responsible for assisting the accounting and finance department in processing tax requirements and analyzing documents for accurate completion of tax filings. Senior tax associates also support the analysis of financial transactions and account statements, resolving billing discrepancies, and performing account reconciliations. They handle tax disputes immediately to mitigate complications on tax systems and coordinate with the management and clients for the updates. A senior tax associate must have excellent analytical skills, as well as extensive knowledge of the financial and taxation industry.

What does a cost accountant do?

A cost accountant specializes in determining the total cost incurred by a company from producing goods and services. Through the various financial data they collect, the cost accountant will devise plans and strategies that will be a vital factor in the next budget and marketing preparations of a company. Aside from this, a cost accountant is responsible for various tasks such as conducting research and analysis in different areas, keeping financial records and inventory, producing financial reports involving profitability and expenditures, and proposing a budget and other financial plans.

Senior tax associate vs cost accountant salary

Senior tax associates and cost accountants have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Senior Tax Associate	Cost Accountant
Average salary	$91,872	$60,528
Salary range	Between $66,000 And $126,000	Between $45,000 And $81,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	Edison, NJ
Highest paying state	New York	New Jersey
Best paying company	Lord Abbett	Google
Best paying industry	Finance	Energy

Differences between senior tax associate and cost accountant education

There are a few differences between a senior tax associate and a cost accountant in terms of educational background:

	Senior Tax Associate	Cost Accountant
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 64%	Bachelor's Degree, 77%
Most common major	Accounting	Accounting
Most common college	University of Southern California	University of Pennsylvania

Senior tax associate vs cost accountant demographics

Here are the differences between senior tax associates' and cost accountants' demographics:

	Senior Tax Associate	Cost Accountant
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 49.7% Female, 50.3%	Male, 52.6% Female, 47.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.8% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.1% Asian, 17.8% White, 60.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 8.7% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.0% Asian, 12.2% White, 63.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between senior tax associate and cost accountant duties and responsibilities

Senior tax associate example responsibilities.

Prepare and review tax exempt-bond arbitrage rebate calculations; communicate findings to managing director and clients.
Identify book-tax differences to reconcile GAAP basis income to tax basis income.
Prepare and audit year-end/quarterly provision for public and private companies (ASC [].
Maintain tax and GAAP capital accounts for investors and respond to limit partner requests when necessary.
Assist in the booking of in-transit, and audit invoices, to ensure sales tax bill accurately.
Register all new DG store locations for sales and use tax with the appropriate jurisdiction within each assign state.

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Cost accountant example responsibilities.

Manage ledgers and perform month end journal entries.
Manage the payroll with ADP system and account receivable.
Manage costing control as well as accounts payable (A/P) and accounts receivable (A/R).
Prepare internal financial reports for treasury manage accounts include in external compliance reports.
Prepare raw material and WIP inventory reconciliations.
Develop tracking of GAAP inventory valuation for all inventory inherit from the bankrupt former company.

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Senior tax associate vs cost accountant skills

Common senior tax associate skills

CPA, 24%
Tax Compliance, 12%
Client Relationships, 5%
Taxation, 4%
FAS, 4%
Tax Planning, 3%

Common cost accountant skills

Reconciliations, 9%
Variance Analysis, 6%
GAAP, 4%
Account Reconciliations, 3%
Cost Analysis, 3%
Financial Analysis, 3%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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