Are you interested in finding out how much a Senior Accountant makes? The Accounting Starter Kit can help, but it’s not just for beginners. In fact, it’s packed with tips and tricks that even experienced accountants will find exciting. Get ready to start making money sooner rather than later!
A Senior Accountant is an experienced accountant who has worked in the accounting field for a substantial period of time. They will have gained plenty of experience over a previous role, often having worked their way up from an entry-level role. Senior accountants provide support to junior accountants and help senior management and directors understand how to manage the company finances.
The Senior Accountant is responsible for the preparation of financial reports and implementing policies and procedures for the internal auditing department.
Salary For Senior Accountant Overview
If you’re looking to become an accountant, the first thing you should know is that regardless of whether you’re fresh out of college or have been working as a senior accountant for 20 years, there are certain things you can do to ensure that your salary remains competitive and fair.
The average annual salary for an accountant with three years’ experience is $50,000. If you’d like to increase this number significantly, consider taking a position at a hospital or medical center; senior accountants at these types of companies earn an average of $72,000 per year.
Additionally, if you’re considering becoming a hospital senior accountant, keep in mind that it requires more than just accounting skills: You will also need to have excellent communication skills and experience working with patients and their families on a daily basis.
What Is A Senior Accountant
The senior accountant job title isn’t for the faint of heart. Well, really, it’s just not for those just starting their careers. Hence the senior title. This means you need to have some experience under your belt to secure a job under this title.
Once you have experience and education, you’ll be ready to tackle the senior accountant world. That means you’ll be doing everything from analyzing client account information to maintaining subsidiary accounts. On top of being able to do this work without supervision, you’re also going to be in charge of a small accounting team. So you’ll need to be ready to answer questions.
Quite generally, senior accountants become such after being a staff accountant with that firm for a few years. Many senior accountants recommend learning how to do your job above and beyond expectations so that you’re already considered for the position before you’ve even applied. Some things are just that easy.
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a Senior Accountant. For example, did you know that they make an average of $33.98 an hour? That’s $70,681 a year!
Senior accountant salary levels
So here it is: Research from the Salary Guide lists the midpoint salary for senior accountants as $77,750 for 2019.
Midpoint is defined as the salary for candidates with an average level of experience for the position and the necessary skills to meet the job requirements. The salaries listed in the Salary Guide reflect starting pay and are based on actual placements throughout the United States, as well as an analysis of the supply of talent and other market conditions.
Aside from company size and industry, an important factor that can influence your pay as a senior accountant is your location. Check for senior accountant jobs in your area and in the cities where you can make the most money, according to the local market variances listed in the Salary Guide:
- Senior accountant jobs in New York
- Senior accountant jobs in San Francisco
- Senior accountant jobs in Boston
- Senior accountant jobs in Washington, D.C.
- Senior accountant jobs in Chicago
Duties, expectations, education
A senior accountant is responsible for the integrity of all the accounting information for a company. That means everything from supervising the accounting staff to preparing financial statements to assisting with risk assessments and budget preparations.
Senior accountants handle a number of responsibilities, including the following:
- Reconciling sub-ledger to general ledger account balances
- Preparing financial statements
- Assessing internal controls, including risk assessments and reviews of risk areas
- Assisting with budget preparation and preparing the monthly budget variance analyses
- Maintaining and reconciling fixed assets schedules
- Assisting with initial internal control evaluations
- Supervising accounting staff
Candidates for senior accountant positions typically should have at least three years’ experience, along with a bachelor’s degree in accounting or finance. The CPA is still the most sought-after certification, while the certified management accountant (CMA) and master’s degree in business administration (MBA) are also frequently preferred.
How To Become a Senior Accountant
If you’re interested in becoming a Senior Accountant, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We’ve determined that 77.6% of Senior Accountants have a bachelor’s degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 13.9% of Senior Accountants have master’s degrees. Even though most Senior Accountants have a college degree, it’s impossible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Choosing the right major is always an important step when researching how to become a Senior Accountant. When we researched the most common majors for a Senior Accountant, we found that they most commonly earn Bachelor’s Degree degrees or Master’s Degree degrees. Other degrees that we often see on Senior Accountant resumes include Associate Degree degrees or Diploma degrees.
You may find that experience in other jobs will help you become a Senior Accountant. In fact, many Senior Accountant jobs require experience in a role such as Staff Accountant. Meanwhile, many Senior Accountants also have previous career experience in roles such as Accountant or Accounting Manager.
Demand for senior accountants
Job seekers with accounting and finance experience rarely stay unemployed for long, something that’s particularly true for senior accountants. The latest U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics quarterly report shows the unemployment rate for accountants and auditors remains low.
As employers seek to upgrade and expand their operations and add to core managerial accounting roles, they’re looking to hire senior accountants, either from within their organizations or outside.
Companies are hiring accountants at all levels, particularly staff and senior accountants with strong general accounting abilities, proficiency with Excel and excellent nontechnical skills, such as communication and organizational skills. Firms are also looking for staff with strong business acumen and the ability to apply a broader view of the organization.
What’s next? Senior accountants who pursue career development can progress up the career ladder to roles such as accounting manager, controller and CFO.
Senior Accountant Average Salary By State
| State | Avg. Salary | Hourly Rate | Job Count |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $54,929 | $26.41 | 222 |
| Alaska | $58,385 | $28.07 | 49 |
| Arizona | $55,698 | $26.78 | 556 |
| Arkansas | $56,003 | $26.92 | 145 |
| California | $73,572 | $35.37 | 4,013 |
| Colorado | $56,896 | $27.35 | 816 |
| Connecticut | $69,497 | $33.41 | 368 |
| Delaware | $71,041 | $34.15 | 134 |
| District of Columbia | $88,909 | $42.74 | 330 |
| Florida | $57,709 | $27.74 | 1,373 |
| Georgia | $66,036 | $31.75 | 880 |
| Hawaii | $52,852 | $25.41 | 83 |
| Idaho | $45,886 | $22.06 | 111 |
| Illinois | $62,807 | $30.20 | 1,617 |
| Indiana | $61,214 | $29.43 | 412 |
| Iowa | $52,907 | $25.44 | 299 |
| Kansas | $51,432 | $24.73 | 199 |
| Kentucky | $54,015 | $25.97 | 221 |
| Louisiana | $52,966 | $25.46 | 182 |
| Maine | $52,126 | $25.06 | 84 |
| Maryland | $72,098 | $34.66 | 726 |
| Massachusetts | $68,383 | $32.88 | 1,070 |
| Michigan | $62,332 | $29.97 | 639 |
| Minnesota | $58,179 | $27.97 | 770 |
| Mississippi | $52,526 | $25.25 | 83 |
| Missouri | $54,108 | $26.01 | 513 |
| Montana | $45,623 | $21.93 | 110 |
| Nebraska | $46,851 | $22.52 | 166 |
| Nevada | $55,572 | $26.72 | 228 |
| New Hampshire | $55,908 | $26.88 | 153 |
| New Jersey | $78,053 | $37.53 | 735 |
| New Mexico | $48,413 | $23.28 | 107 |
| New York | $80,369 | $38.64 | 1,479 |
| North Carolina | $67,026 | $32.22 | 731 |
| North Dakota | $45,629 | $21.94 | 47 |
| Ohio | $60,913 | $29.29 | 831 |
| Oklahoma | $54,157 | $26.04 | 163 |
| Oregon | $62,685 | $30.14 | 420 |
| Pennsylvania | $66,054 | $31.76 | 1,026 |
| Rhode Island | $61,413 | $29.53 | 129 |
| South Carolina | $56,037 | $26.94 | 291 |
| South Dakota | $49,397 | $23.75 | 58 |
| Tennessee | $57,509 | $27.65 | 485 |
| Texas | $60,944 | $29.30 | 2,159 |
| Utah | $49,205 | $23.66 | 345 |
| Vermont | $54,137 | $26.03 | 43 |
| Virginia | $73,220 | $35.20 | 948 |
| Washington | $71,014 | $34.14 | 792 |
| West Virginia | $56,386 | $27.11 | 57 |
| Wisconsin | $54,552 | $26.23 | 429 |
| Wyoming | $43,737 | $21.03 | 37 |
