The Difference Between a Bookkeeper Vs Accountant

bookkeeper vs accountant salary

Both the American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers (AIPB) and the National Association of Certified Public Bookkeepers (NACPB) offer accreditation and licensing to bookkeepers. As a financial auditor, you may work as an external or internal auditor. If you are an external auditor, you will most likely have a job at a public accounting firm, and you will need to have a CPA license, plus a college degree, and often bookkeeper vs accountant salary a master’s degree. Bookkeeping is a great starting point if you are interested in the field but not fully committed and want to test the waters. You may also be an ideal bookkeeping candidate if you want a good job with a respectable wage and decent security but may not be looking for a long-term career. Bookkeeping offers much lower barriers to entry, and the competition you face in the job search is less fierce.

  • It can be a difficult decision for small business owners to decide if and when to hire a bookkeeper vs accountant.
  • For example, a certification from California State University, Fullerton costs $2,195.
  • Bookkeepers need a strong grasp of all financial details in the company so they know if there are any inconsistencies.
  • In researching bookkeeping or bookkeeping accounting, you may come across information on accounting or find that bookkeeping and accounting are used interchangeably.
  • It also keeps business owners from incurring unnecessary liabilities like debts and unpaid bills.
  • It may take some background research to find a suitable bookkeeper because, unlike accountants, they are not required to hold a professional certification.

Accounting assistants usually work in a business environment, such as an accounting firm or company. They often work with other employees who are involved in the daily operations of a business. In this article, we discuss the differences between an accounting assistant and a bookkeeper, and we provide additional information about each position.

Difference Between Payroll Clerk & Accounting Clerk

In this guide, you’ll learn what differentiates a bookkeeper vs accountant, which your business should hire, and when to employ them. The overall best bookkeeping software includes Zoho Books, FreshBooks, Xero, and Intuit QuickBooks. They look at all of the financial details of a company so they can make larger decisions about how the business operates. Accountants are more specialized, so not every company has an in-house accountant. You can use a firm or work with accounting software for your business needs. Both bookkeepers and accountants are eligible to become professionally certified.

  • As an accountant, you must pay attention to figures and financial details, but it is more essential to possess sharp logic skills and big-picture problem-solving abilities.
  • Both accounting and bookkeeping play an important financial role in business, there is a difference between the two.
  • According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), most bookkeepers can learn the profession’s basics in about six months [3].
  • This is the equivalent of around $45,000 per year, assuming a 40-hour workweek.
  • There are no formal educational requirements to become a bookkeeper, but they must be knowledgeable about financial topics and accounting terms and strive for accuracy.

They’re in charge of balancing the books, which means carefully recording and monitoring assets, liabilities, and equity. Bookkeepers organize the finances by ensuring that each transaction is well-documented. In either case, familiarizing yourself with bookkeeping terms and accounting basics can certainly go a long way toward making the process easier. Whether you sell baseball cards, baseballs, or tickets to a baseball game, your business still needs a bookkeeper or an accountant, or ideally, both. Cecilia is a freelance writer, content marketing strategist and author covering education, technology and energy. She is a current contributor to the Forbes Advisor education vertical and holds a summa cum laude journalism degree from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo.

Differences between accountant and bookkeeper duties and responsibilities

Of course, a background in accounting practices will help you ride out a learning curve as a new bookkeeper. In addition, you must be a member of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners. In most cases, employers want to hire someone with a bachelor’s degree, and a master’s degree may help boost your earnings. The Ascent is a Motley Fool service that rates and reviews essential products for your everyday money matters.

bookkeeper vs accountant salary

It’s the bookkeeper’s task to record all the sales and purchases the business made in the ledger and to provide the supporting documents needed. This is the master file where they record or post, and keep track of sales and expenses. Ledgers can come in the form of a computerized spreadsheet, a software, or even on paper. It also keeps business owners from incurring unnecessary liabilities like debts and unpaid bills.

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