Staff accountant vs senior tax accountant

The differences between staff accountants and senior tax 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 senior tax accountant. Additionally, a senior tax accountant has an average salary of $77,537, 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 senior tax accountant are CPA, state income, and tax research.

Staff accountant vs senior tax accountant overview

	Staff Accountant	Senior Tax Accountant
Yearly salary	$54,216	$77,537
Hourly rate	$26.07	$37.28
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	115,930	57,686
Job satisfaction	4	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 76%	Bachelor's Degree, 74%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	4	4

What does a staff accountant do?

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.

What does a senior tax accountant do?

Senior Tax Accountants recommend tax strategies, as well as assist the preparation of federal, state, and local taxes. They contact clients to resolve minor tax issues and work with the senior tax manager to ensure compliance with federal, state, and local tax legislation.

Staff accountant vs senior tax accountant salary

Staff accountants and senior tax accountants have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Staff Accountant	Senior Tax Accountant
Average salary	$54,216	$77,537
Salary range	Between $42,000 And $68,000	Between $60,000 And $99,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	New York	New York
Best paying company	Meta	Riverbed Holdings, Inc.
Best paying industry	Government	Professional

Differences between staff accountant and senior tax accountant education

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

	Staff Accountant	Senior Tax Accountant
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 76%	Bachelor's Degree, 74%
Most common major	Accounting	Accounting
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Southern California

Staff accountant vs senior tax accountant demographics

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

	Staff Accountant	Senior Tax Accountant
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 41.6% Female, 58.4%	Male, 50.6% Female, 49.4%
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, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.7% Asian, 14.3% White, 62.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between staff accountant and senior tax accountant duties and responsibilities

Staff accountant example responsibilities.

Manage and monitor accounting procedures for compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley and coordinate and facilitate external audit requirements.
Contribute revenue accruals using job cost system, fix assets including reclassification, reconciliation and depreciation.
Prepare month-end journal entries and assist in compilation of financial statements, reconcile bank statements and general ledgers.
Complete audit-quality account reconciliations monthly for balance sheet accounts including the capital projects in progress accounts and miscellaneous revenue accounts.
Assume responsibility for cash management encompassing wire and ACH transfers processing, bank activity confirmation, and monthly bank account reconciliations.
Handle all A/R and A/P, payroll, change orders, collections, lien placement and release, vendor account management.

Senior tax accountant example responsibilities.

Research technical topics in taxation to present to the tax department and clients on areas of concern in the IRS code.
Participate in monthly accounting close with preparation and ownership of tax accrual journal entries and reconciliations.
Help implement, and maintain federal and state tax provision information into OneSource.
Work with internal and external resources to ensure implementation of CCH software on shopping cart is successful.
Assist and review the maintenance of the OneSource database relative to coding & mapping of the trial balance.
Conduct research with CCH and RIA on tax exposures, savings, refund, recovery, and credits.

Staff accountant vs senior tax accountant skills

Common staff accountant skills

Reconciliations, 15%
Account Reconciliations, 7%
GAAP, 6%
General Ledger Accounts, 4%
External Auditors, 4%
Internal Controls, 4%

Common senior tax accountant skills

CPA, 14%
State Income, 5%
Tax Research, 5%
Income Tax Returns, 4%
Tax Planning, 4%
Tax Compliance, 4%

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Staff Accountant vs Senior Tax Accountant

Updated January 8, 2025

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