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The differences between staff accountants and fixed asset 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 staff accountant and a fixed asset accountant. Additionally, a fixed asset accountant has an average salary of $59,691, which is higher than the $54,216 average annual salary of a staff accountant.
The top three skills for a staff accountant include reconciliations, account reconciliations and GAAP. The most important skills for a fixed asset accountant are fixed assets, reconciliations, and asset system.
| Staff Accountant | Fixed Asset Accountant | |
| Yearly salary | $54,216 | $59,691 |
| Hourly rate | $26.07 | $28.70 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 115,930 | 42,860 |
| Job satisfaction | 4 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 76% | Bachelor's Degree, 77% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
Staff accountants are employees who are part of the company's accounting department. They are usually certified public accountants (CPAs). Staff accountants should be familiar with accounting tasks. Previous accounting experiences play a huge advantage in their success. They perform a variety of accounting responsibilities such as information verification and analysis, financial report preparation and presentation, financial account reconciliation, billing and payment receiving activities, vendor database management, and invoice processing requirements. They should also know how to do bookkeeping. Staff accountants should have good communication skills, analytical skills, and decision-making skills. They should also be organized and trustworthy since they will be handling confidential information.
A fixed asset accountant is responsible for processing statement reports for the company's assets, organizing account records, and handling bank reconciliations and disputes. Fixed asset accountants must have excellent knowledge of the accounting principles to determine and track the assets dispositions in various accounting systems for reference. They also ensure the accurate balance and calculate the value of all fixed assets for reports. A fixed asset accountant should be highly analytical to measure asset obligations and provide recommendations for asset acquisition.
Staff accountants and fixed asset accountants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Staff Accountant | Fixed Asset Accountant | |
| Average salary | $54,216 | $59,691 |
| Salary range | Between $42,000 And $68,000 | Between $46,000 And $76,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | New York | New York |
| Best paying company | Meta | Apple |
| Best paying industry | Government | Energy |
There are a few differences between a staff accountant and a fixed asset accountant in terms of educational background:
| Staff Accountant | Fixed Asset Accountant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 76% | Bachelor's Degree, 77% |
| Most common major | Accounting | Accounting |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between staff accountants' and fixed asset accountants' demographics:
| Staff Accountant | Fixed Asset Accountant | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 41.6% Female, 58.4% | Male, 43.8% Female, 56.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.5% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.8% Asian, 14.4% White, 61.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 8.4% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.7% Asian, 13.0% White, 63.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |