---
title: "Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerk"
description: "Compute, classify, and record numerical data to keep financial records complete. Perform any combination of routine calculating, posting, and verifying…"
canonical: "https://nuecareer.com/careers/bookkeeping-accounting-and-auditing-clerk"
last-updated: "2026-08-23T15:56:39.581Z"
---

# Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerk

**Category:** Office and Administrative Support · **SOC code:** 43-3031 · **O\*NET-SOC code:** 43-3031.00

Compute, classify, and record numerical data to keep financial records complete. Perform any combination of routine calculating, posting, and verifying duties to obtain primary financial data for use in maintaining accounting records. May also check the accuracy of figures, calculations, and postings pertaining to business transactions recorded by other workers.

Also advertised as: Account Clerk; Accounting Assistant; Accounting Associate; Accounting Clerk; Accounting Specialist; Accounting Technician; Accounts Payable Clerk; Accounts Payable Specialist.

## At a glance

- **Median annual wage:** $50,670 (BLS OEWS, May 2025)
- **Median hourly wage:** $24.36/hr
- **Wage range (10th–90th percentile):** $36,000 to $74,550, with the middle half between $43,520 and $61,470
- **Total US employment:** 1,373,680
- **Typical entry education:** Some college
- **Preparation required:** Some preparation — O\*NET rates this "Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed"
- **Projected growth:** -5.8% over 2024–2034 (BLS EP, 2024–2034)
- **Annual job openings:** 170,000 openings a year
- **AI-resilience score:** 10/100 — a NueCareer heuristic over O\*NET work activities and context, not a BLS or O\*NET figure

## Pay

National wage distribution, BLS OEWS, May 2025, across 1,373,680 US jobs.

| Percentile | Annual wage |
| --- | --- |
| 10th | $36,000 |
| 25th | $43,520 |
| 50th (median) | $50,670 |
| 75th | $61,470 |
| 90th | $74,550 |
| Mean (average) | $53,560 |

### Pay by state

The 15 highest-paying states, by median annual wage. The cost-of-living-adjusted column divides the state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity, so the columns answer different questions: the first is what the job pays there, the second is what that pay buys there.

| State | Median annual wage | Cost-of-living adjusted | Employment |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| DC | $65,180 | $59,308 | 1,790 |
| CT | $59,970 | $57,881 | 14,930 |
| MA | $59,830 | $56,573 | 29,110 |
| CA | $59,230 | $53,495 | 151,870 |
| WA | $58,620 | $54,778 | 32,930 |
| NJ | $58,300 | $53,582 | 37,550 |
| NY | $58,160 | $53,891 | 84,280 |
| AK | $56,430 | $55,129 | 4,580 |
| VT | $54,720 | $55,861 | 2,950 |
| MN | $54,600 | $55,363 | 26,850 |
| OR | $54,060 | $52,302 | 21,710 |
| CO | $54,000 | $52,401 | 26,140 |
| MD | $53,540 | $51,010 | 18,170 |
| RI | $53,280 | $52,092 | 4,570 |
| NH | $52,450 | $50,353 | 7,180 |

39 more states with published wage data are omitted here. The full table for all 54 states is at https://nuecareer.com/careers/bookkeeping-accounting-and-auditing-clerk/salary-by-state, or as JSON at https://nuecareer.com/api/v1/careers/bookkeeping-accounting-and-auditing-clerk.

## Outlook

BLS projects employment to move from 1,613,400 in the 2024–2034 base year to 1,519,100 by the end of the cycle — a loss of 94,300 jobs, or -5.8%. Declining: -5.8% against 3.1% projected for all occupations over the same cycle. About 170,000 openings a year are expected on average, counting openings from growth as well as from workers leaving the occupation permanently. Source: BLS EP, 2024–2034.

## How to get in

- **Typical entry education:** Some college, no degree (BLS Employment Projections).
- **Preparation level:** Some preparation — O\*NET's preparation band for this occupation is "Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed".
- **Related work experience typically required:** None.
- **Typical on-the-job training:** Moderate-term on-the-job training.

### Education people in this job actually hold

O\*NET surveys incumbents, so this distribution describes who is in the job today and can differ from the BLS entry requirement above.

| Education level | Share of workers |
| --- | --- |
| High School Diploma | 40.9% |
| Post-Secondary Certificate | 20.8% |
| Bachelor's Degree | 12.2% |
| Associate's Degree (or other 2-year degree) | 8.5% |
| Master's Degree | 6.5% |
| Less than a High School Diploma | 6.4% |

## What the work involves

- Operate computers programmed with accounting software to record, store, and analyze information.
- Check figures, postings, and documents for correct entry, mathematical accuracy, and proper codes.
- Operate 10-key calculators, typewriters, and copy machines to perform calculations and produce documents.
- Perform general office duties, such as filing, answering telephones, and handling routine correspondence.
- Reconcile or note and report discrepancies found in records.
- Comply with federal, state, and company policies, procedures, and regulations.
- Debit, credit, and total accounts on computer spreadsheets and databases, using specialized accounting software.
- Receive, record, and bank cash, checks, and vouchers.

## Skills and knowledge

### Essential skills

- Mathematics — importance 3.4 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Reading Comprehension — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Active Listening — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Critical Thinking — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Writing — importance 3.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Speaking — importance 3.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Monitoring — importance 3.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Active Learning — importance 2.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Transferable skills

These are the skills that carry into other occupations, and they drive the related-occupation and career-change rankings on this site.

- Time Management — importance 3.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Coordination — importance 2.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Service Orientation — importance 2.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Complex Problem Solving — importance 2.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Social Perceptiveness — importance 2.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Judgment and Decision Making — importance 2.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Persuasion — importance 2.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Negotiation — importance 2.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Knowledge areas

- Customer and Personal Service — importance 4.2 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Administrative — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Mathematics — importance 3.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- English Language — importance 3.4 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Economics and Accounting — importance 3.4 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Computers and Electronics — importance 3.2 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Abilities

- Oral Comprehension — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Written Comprehension — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Mathematical Reasoning — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Near Vision — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Written Expression — importance 3.6 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Oral Expression — importance 3.5 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

## Who it suits

O\*NET rates every occupation on the six Holland (RIASEC) interest areas, on a 1–7 scale. This occupation's strongest areas are Conventional (C).

| Interest area | Score (1–7) |
| --- | --- |
| C — Conventional | 7.00 |
| E — Enterprising | 2.87 |
| I — Investigative | 2.18 |
| R — Realistic | 1.63 |
| S — Social | 1.49 |
| A — Artistic | 1.00 |

### Personality fit

These scores are **derived by NueCareer**, not published by any government agency: they are cosine similarities between a personality type's trait profile and this occupation's O\*NET interest and work-style ratings, expressed 0–100. Treat them as a starting point for exploration, not as evidence that a type belongs in a job.

| Type | Fit score (0–100) |
| --- | --- |
| ISTJ | 80.7 |
| ESTJ | 80.7 |
| ISFJ | 77.0 |
| ESFJ | 70.5 |
| ENTJ | 58.7 |

Best-fitting types: ISTJ, ESTJ, ISFJ.

## Related occupations

O\*NET's primary related occupations, in its own ranked order.

- [Billing and Posting Clerk](https://nuecareer.com/careers/billing-and-posting-clerk) — median $48,500
- [Payroll and Timekeeping Clerk](https://nuecareer.com/careers/payroll-and-timekeeping-clerk) — median $58,260
- [Brokerage Clerk](https://nuecareer.com/careers/brokerage-clerk) — median $65,750
- [Credit Authorizer, Checker, and Clerk](https://nuecareer.com/careers/credit-authorizer-checker-and-clerk) — median $50,080
- [Office Clerk, General](https://nuecareer.com/careers/office-clerk-general) — median $45,010
- [Teller](https://nuecareer.com/careers/teller) — median $43,030
- [File Clerk](https://nuecareer.com/careers/file-clerk) — median $43,600
- [Loan Interviewer and Clerk](https://nuecareer.com/careers/loan-interviewer-and-clerk) — median $50,020
- [Insurance Claim and Policy Processing Clerk](https://nuecareer.com/careers/insurance-claim-and-policy-processing-clerk) — median $49,230
- [New Accounts Clerk](https://nuecareer.com/careers/new-accounts-clerk) — median $47,670

## Sources

- **O\*NET** — O\*NET 30.3 Database, May 2026. https://www.onetcenter.org/database.html
- **BLS OEWS** — BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. https://www.bls.gov/oes/
- **BLS EP** — BLS Employment Projections, Table 1.2, 2024–2034. https://www.bls.gov/emp/
- **BLS OOH** — BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2024–2034 edition. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/
- **BEA RPP** — BEA Regional Price Parities by State, 2024. https://www.bea.gov/data/prices-inflation/regional-price-parities-state-and-metro-area

---

This bank includes information from the O\*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). O\*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. NueCareer has transformed the data by joining it to BLS wage and projection data and deriving facet, personality-fit and AI-resilience scores. BLS and BEA data are public domain (17 U.S.C. §105).

O\*NET content is used under [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). How these figures are sourced and derived: https://nuecareer.com/careers/methodology

JSON representation of this page: https://nuecareer.com/api/v1/careers/bookkeeping-accounting-and-auditing-clerk