Billing and Posting Clerks
43-3021.00

The occupation code you requested, 43-3021.02 (Billing, Cost, and Rate Clerks), is no longer in use. In the future, please use 43-3021.00 (Billing and Posting Clerks) instead.

Compile, compute, and record billing, accounting, statistical, and other numerical data for billing purposes. Prepare billing invoices for services rendered or for delivery or shipment of goods.

Sample of reported job titles: Biller, Billing Accounts Representative, Billing Clerk, Billing Coordinator, Billing Specialist, IP Clerk (Item Processing Clerk), Pre Audit Clerk, Statement Clerk, Statement Distribution Clerk

Occupation-Specific Information

Tasks

  • Verify accuracy of billing data and revise any errors.
  • Prepare itemized statements, bills, or invoices and record amounts due for items purchased or services rendered.
  • Keep records of invoices and support documents.
  • Operate typing, adding, calculating, or billing machines.
  • Create billing documents, shipping labels, credit memorandums, or credit forms.
  • Perform general administrative tasks, such as answering telephones, scheduling appointments, and ordering supplies or equipment.
  • Contact customers to obtain or relay account information.
  • Review compiled data on operating costs and revenues to set rates.
  • Answer inquiries regarding rates, routing, or procedures.
  • Load machines with statements, cancelled checks, or envelopes to prepare statements for distribution to customers or stuff envelopes by hand.
  • Track accumulated hours and dollar amounts charged to each client job to calculate client fees for professional services, such as legal or accounting services.
  • Consult sources, such as rate books, manuals, or insurance company representatives, to determine specific charges or information such as rules, regulations, or government tax and tariff information.
  • Review documents, such as purchase orders, sales tickets, charge slips, or hospital records, to compute fees or charges due.
  • Compile reports of cost factors, such as labor, production, storage, and equipment.
  • Resolve discrepancies in accounting records.
  • Compute credit terms, discounts, shipment charges, or rates for goods or services to complete billing documents.
  • Perform bookkeeping work, including posting data or keeping other records concerning costs of goods or services or the shipment of goods.
  • Monitor equipment to ensure proper operation.
  • Update manuals when rates, rules, or regulations are amended.
  • Weigh envelopes containing statements to determine correct postage and affix postage, using stamps or metering equipment.
  • Compare previously prepared bank statements with canceled checks and reconcile discrepancies.
  • Route statements for mailing or over-the-counter delivery to customers.
  • Return checks to customers or retrieve checks returned to customers in error, adjusting accounts and answering inquiries about errors as necessary.
  • Post stop-payment notices to prevent payment of protested checks.
  • Verify signatures and required information on checks.
  • Fix minor problems, such as equipment jams, and notify repair personnel of major equipment problems.

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Occupational Requirements

Work Activities

  • Working with Computers — Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.
  • Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates — Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
  • Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
  • Processing Information — Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or verifying information or data.
  • Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships — Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
  • Documenting/Recording Information — Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
  • Performing Administrative Activities — Performing day-to-day administrative tasks such as maintaining information files and processing paperwork.
  • Analyzing Data or Information — Identifying the underlying principles, reasons, or facts of information by breaking down information or data into separate parts.
  • Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge — Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
  • Making Decisions and Solving Problems — Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
  • Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work — Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
  • Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards — Using relevant information and individual judgment to determine whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.
  • Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events — Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.

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Detailed Work Activities

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Work Context

  • Importance of Being Exact or Accurate — 88% responded “Extremely important.”
  • Spend Time Sitting — 93% responded “Continually or almost continually.”
  • E-Mail — 73% responded “Every day.”
  • Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team — 59% responded “Extremely important.”
  • Contact With Others — 56% responded “Constant contact with others.”
  • Importance of Repeating Same Tasks — 61% responded “Extremely important.”
  • Determine Tasks, Priorities and Goals — 47% responded “Some freedom.”
  • Telephone Conversations — 58% responded “Every day.”
  • Freedom to Make Decisions — 59% responded “Some freedom.”
  • Time Pressure — 21% responded “Every day.”
  • Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams — 57% responded “Every day.”
  • Coordinate or Lead Others in Accomplishing Work Activities — 17% responded “Extremely important.”
  • Frequency of Decision Making — 22% responded “Every day.”
  • Indoors, Environmentally Controlled — 58% responded “Every day.”
  • Spend Time Making Repetitive Motions — 33% responded “Continually or almost continually.”
  • Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results — 29% responded “Important results.”
  • Deal With External Customers or the Public in General — 49% responded “Extremely important.”
  • Work Outcomes and Results of Other Workers — 42% responded “High responsibility.”
  • Duration of Typical Work Week — 92% responded “40 hours.”

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Experience Requirements

Job Zone

Title
Job Zone 1-2: Very Little to Some Preparation Needed
Education
Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.
Related Experience
Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience. For example, landscaping and groundskeeping workers might require very little training or previous experience, while agricultural equipment operators can benefit from on-the job training.
Job Training
Ranges from a few days to one year of on-the-job training.
Job Zone Examples
These occupations involve following instructions and often involve using your knowledge and skills to help others. Examples include dishwashers, landscaping and groundskeeping workers, counter and rental clerks, dental laboratory technicians, and security guards.
SVP Range
(Below 6.0)

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Training & Credentials

State training
Local training
Certifications

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Apprenticeship Opportunities

Start your career and build your skillset. Visit Apprenticeship.gov external site to learn about opportunities related to this occupation.

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Worker Requirements

Software Skills

Hot Technologies are requirements most frequently included across all employer job postings.
In Demand skills are frequently included in employer job postings for this occupation.

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Essential Skills

  • Reading Comprehension — Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
  • Speaking — Talking to others to convey information effectively.
  • Active Listening — Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
  • Critical Thinking — Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
  • Mathematics — Using mathematics to solve problems.
  • Monitoring — Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
  • Writing — Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.

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Transferable Skills

No transferable skills met the minimum score.

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Knowledge

  • English Language — Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
  • Mathematics — Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
  • Administration and Management — Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
  • Economics and Accounting — Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
  • Administrative — Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
  • Customer and Personal Service — Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
  • Education and Training — Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

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Education

How much education does a new hire need to perform a job in this occupation? Respondents said:

  • 33%
     
    responded: Bachelor’s degree required
  • 25%
     
    responded: High school diploma or equivalent required
  • 22%
     
    responded: Associate’s degree or other 2-year degree required

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Worker Characteristics

Abilities

  • Near Vision — The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
  • Information Ordering — The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
  • Written Comprehension — The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
  • Oral Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
  • Oral Comprehension — The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
  • Speech Recognition — The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
  • Category Flexibility — The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
  • Deductive Reasoning — The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
  • Inductive Reasoning — The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
  • Mathematical Reasoning — The ability to choose the right mathematical methods or formulas to solve a problem.
  • Number Facility — The ability to add, subtract, multiply, or divide quickly and correctly.
  • Problem Sensitivity — The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
  • Speech Clarity — The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
  • Written Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.

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Interests

Interest code: C
Want to discover your interests? Take the O*NET Interest Profiler.
  • Conventional — Work involves following procedures and regulations to organize information or data, typically in a business setting. Conventional occupations are often associated with office work, accounting, mathematics/statistics, information technology, finance, or human resources.
    • Accounting — Work involves examining, analyzing, and interpreting accounting records for financial statements, or maintaining, auditing, or evaluating records and accounts.
    • Office Work — Work involves clerical and administrative tasks for an organization such as answering phones, bookkeeping, updating records, scheduling appointments or meetings, and editing of documents and files.

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Work Styles

  • Integrity — A tendency to be honest and ethical at work.
  • Attention to Detail — A tendency to be detail-oriented, organized, and thorough in completing work.
  • Dependability — A tendency to be reliable, responsible, and consistent in meeting work-related obligations.

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Workforce Characteristics

Wages & Employment Trends

Median wages (2025)
$23.32 hourly, $48,500 annual
State wages
Local wages
Employment (2025)
418,000 employees
Projected growth (2025-2035)
Little or no change
Projected job openings (2025-2035)
37,000
State trends
Top industries (2025)

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics 2025 wage data external site and 2025-2035 employment projections external site. “Projected growth” represents the estimated change in total employment over the projections period (2025-2035). “Projected job openings” represent openings due to growth and replacement.

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Job Openings on the Web

State job openings
Local job openings

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More Information

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Professional Associations

Disclaimer: Sources are listed to provide additional information on related jobs, specialties, and/or industries. Links to non-DOL Internet sites are provided for your convenience and do not constitute an endorsement.

National Associations
Accreditation, Certification, & Unions

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