Bookkeeper vs accountant

A bookkeeper keeps the day-to-day financial records. Your accountant works from those records to prepare financial statements and advise the business. The ABS classifies the two as separate occupations, and its figures for each are below.

By Book Keeping Pros
Sources checked 15 Oct 2026

How the two roles differ

The ABS lists keeping financial records and balancing accounts among a bookkeeper's tasks.
For your accountant's occupation group, it lists preparing financial statements for boards, management, shareholders and statutory bodies.
The classification puts bookkeepers at Skill Level 3, a Certificate III with at least two years of on-the-job training, a Certificate IV or three years of relevant experience, and your accountant at Skill Level 1, a bachelor degree or higher.
In the May 2025 survey, employees in your accountant's occupation group earned more per week on average than bookkeepers, and were younger on average.

The two roles side by side

Tasks and skill levels from the ABS occupation classification, ANZSCO 2022 unit groups 5512 and 2211. Earnings and ages are ABS survey estimates for all employees, full-time and part-time, in May 2025.
Measure	Bookkeeper	Your accountant
A task the ABS classification lists	Keeping financial records, and maintaining and balancing accounts using manual and computerised systems	Preparing financial statements for presentation to boards of directors, management, shareholders, and governing and statutory bodies
Indicative skill level	Skill Level 3: AQF Certificate III with at least two years of on-the-job training, AQF Certificate IV, or at least three years of relevant experience	Skill Level 1: a bachelor degree or higher qualification
Average weekly total cash earnings, May 2025	$818.80	$1,829.30
Average age of employees, May 2025	46.6 years	41.4 years

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, ANZSCO 2022, unit group 5512 Bookkeepers; Australian Bureau of Statistics, ANZSCO 2022, unit group 2211; Australian Bureau of Statistics, Employee Earnings and Hours, Australia, May 2025, data cube 11 (63060DO011_202505.xlsx). Checked 15 Oct 2026.

General information

This page sets out what the ABS publishes about the two occupations. It is general information, not advice about who your business needs. The earnings are averages across all employees, including part-time staff, so they are not pay rates or fees. Sources checked 15 October 2026.

Sources

ANZSCO 2022, unit group 5512 Bookkeepers
Australian Bureau of Statistics. ANZSCO 2022, released 22 November 2022. Checked 15 October 2026.
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, ANZSCO, Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations, 2022, licensed under CC BY 4.0 Licence: CC BY 4.0.
ANZSCO 2022, unit group 2211
Australian Bureau of Statistics. ANZSCO 2022, released 22 November 2022. Checked 15 October 2026.
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, ANZSCO, Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations, 2022, licensed under CC BY 4.0 Licence: CC BY 4.0.
Employee Earnings and Hours, Australia, May 2025, data cube 11 (63060DO011_202505.xlsx)
Australian Bureau of Statistics. May 2025, released 23 January 2026. Checked 15 October 2026.
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Employee Earnings and Hours, Australia, May 2025, licensed under CC BY 4.0 Licence: CC BY 4.0.