What's the Difference Between Finance vs. Accounting?

When you have a passion for numbers and enjoy learning about financial systems, choosing between finance vs. accounting can be quite the dilemma.

Determining which academic path is the best fit for you can be challenging, especially because of the many similarities between them. Before you make a decision, it can be beneficial to dig deeper into what is the difference between accounting and finance degrees.

Editorial Listing ShortCode:

Understanding the required coursework, ongoing educational requirements, and potential job prospects for these degree paths is a helpful place to begin.

What’s the Difference Between Finance vs. Accounting?

Finance and accounting degree programs often overlap in terms of basic coursework. They both focus on topics such as business principles, mathematics, and statistics.

Accounting and finance professionals offer some of the same services to employers—including financial recommendations and analysis—but the scope of their work differs. As a result, the curriculum of accounting and finance programs often feature distinct major-specific courses.

For many students, determining which type of degree to pursue comes down to interests and desired job titles, which is why it’s so helpful to know exactly what each program entails.

What Is Accounting?

Accounting is a field that involves analyzing, documenting, and sharing financial information. During an accounting degree program, students learn how to help people, businesses, and organizations with their financial paperwork and budgetary decisions.

While earning their degrees, accounting students typically take courses in subjects such as tax law, auditing, cost accounting, and fraud. These courses teach future accounting professionals how to create, share, and submit documents that comply with financial regulations.

Editorial Listing ShortCode:

Graduates with accounting degrees often become accountants or auditors for accounting firms, private businesses, or tax agencies. Many of them go on to complete the qualifications to become Certified Public Accountants, better known as CPAs.

Accountants are often responsible for overseeing budgets, compiling financial reports and statements, calculating taxes, and organizing financial records. They provide their employers with a clear picture of their financial standing so they can make more informed decisions.

What Is Finance?

Finance is a more general field than accounting because it relates to overall money management. Finance professionals are responsible for analyzing financial data and using it to make recommendations about investments, opportunities, and risk levels.

Courses in a finance program provide students with essential information about financial institutions, risk management, and economics. A finance degree program also teaches students how to research and interpret financial trends and relate them to historical financial data.

Editorial Listing ShortCode:

Earning a degree in finance is a logical step if you hope to build a career in banking, trading, or investing. Graduates of finance programs often work for credit unions, commercial banks, mortgage lenders, and other finance companies.

Some professionals in this field also use their skills in positions with regulatory agencies, which are responsible for ensuring that financial institutions, businesses, and individuals are following the required laws.

Key Differences Between Finance vs. Accounting

Accounting and finance degree programs are not identical, and it’s vital that prospective students have a clear picture of what sets them apart. This helps ensure that they enroll in a program that’s appropriate for their skills and interests.

From career paths to education requirements, there are many factors that separate these related fields.

Accounting vs. Finance: Careers

The first finance and accounting difference is the type of career you might pursue. Graduates from both programs work with numbers, but they often follow unique professional paths.

These are some of the key factors that separate these areas of employment:

Potential employers. Many finance specialists analyze economic trends and make recommendations to banks, investment firms, and large corporations. Accountants prepare tax documents and generate reports for accounting firms, government agencies, nonprofits, and individual clients.
Professional focus. Generally speaking, accounting professionals are responsible for compiling and analyzing current financial data rather than looking to the future, which is the responsibility of employees in finance.
Specializations. Finance experts often specialize in areas including personal, corporate, behavioral, and social finance. Accountants may concentrate on forensics, management, taxes, or auditing.
Job titles. Many graduates of accounting programs work as accountants, auditors, and bookkeepers. A degree in finance may lead to a career as a financial analyst, manager, or trader.

Degree programs in accounting and finance tend to be flexible in that they help prepare students for careers in either field. But, if you already have a particular job title in mind, earning the degree most closely associated with that position may help strengthen your candidacy.

Accounting vs. Finance Roles and Responsibilities

Employees serve as both finance and accounting experts in some organizations, while other employers consider these roles to be entirely separate because of their different responsibilities.

The daily tasks of accounting and finance professionals diverge in a number of ways, including:

Financial statements. In most organizations, accountants generate financial statements and reports with past and present data. Finance employees analyze those statements to provide insights and recommendations.
Primary responsibility. Employers expect accountants to explain their current financial status, including any potential weaknesses. But they turn to finance specialists for insights into how they can improve their strategies moving forward, based on where the economic world is headed.
Business focus. Both accounting and finance experts need to understand the basics of business, but people who work in finance often have a deeper knowledge of how to develop and improve business strategies. Accountants are more concerned with accuracy and compliance.

As you research accounting and finance degree programs, you might consider which day-to-day activities sound more appealing to you. Deciding whether you would rather gather data or interpret data may help you understand which academic area and profession you would most enjoy.

Accounting vs. Finance Degrees: Education

Whether you pursue a degree in finance or accounting, you will most likely take courses in business subjects, such as marketing, ethics, and management. Beyond these classes, the curriculum of a finance vs. accounting degree may have a variety of defining features.

Accounting Curriculum

Finance Curriculum

Focus. Some courses focus on auditing and identifying instances of fraud.
Core topics. Classes often center around financial processes, tax laws, and accounting methods.
Concentrations. Specialty areas include public accounting, tax planning, and auditing.
Electives. Electives may be limited, as there are more core courses to help prepare students for the CPA exam.

Focus. Some courses focus on microeconomics and macroeconomics.
Core topics. Classes often center around mathematical, analytical, and evaluative skills.
Concentrations. Specialty areas include traditional finance and financial planning or advising.
Electives. Students have more opportunities to take electives in classes such as international finance, digital currencies, and security analysis.

When researching on campus or online finance degree vs. accounting degree programs, it’s beneficial to look beyond the first 1 or 2 years of coursework. In many programs, field-specific courses don’t emerge until after students have developed foundational skills in their core classes.

Finance vs. Accounting Ongoing Education

After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in finance or accounting, you may decide to pursue additional degrees or credentials to strengthen your resumé.

The steps you take in the future typically depend on which type of degree you initially complete.

Finance Ongoing Education	Accounting Ongoing Education
Master’s in Finance. Finance degree holders may pursue a masters in finance with a focus on subjects such as corporate finance or investments. MBA in Finance. This MBA teaches about financial management and investments. Professional certifications. Common ones are Certified Financial Planner, Certified Treasury Professional, and Certified Professional Risk Manager.	Master’s in Accounting. Accounting degree holders may earn a masters in accounting and specialize in forensic accounting or auditing. MBA in Accounting. This MBA lets you develop a more thorough understanding of taxes and financial reporting. Professional certifications. Common ones are Certified Public Accountant, Certified Management Accountant, or Certified Fraud Examiner.

Regardless of whether you elect to earn a bachelor’s degree in accounting or finance, continuing your education and professional development with a certification or graduate degree may improve your job prospects and help advance your career.

Finance vs. Accounting Skills

Another accounting and finance difference is the set of required skills for each field. Professionals in these areas are usually adept at mathematics, communication, and problem-solving.

Editorial Listing ShortCode:

In addition to these basic requirements, there are some skills that are more closely aligned with one area of study than the other, including:

Financial skills. Successful accountants excel at financial reporting and creating financial statements. Employees in finance are expected to demonstrate skills in financial planning and modeling.
Knowledge areas. Accounting experts are well-versed in Generally Accepted Accounting Principles and accounting regulations. Finance professionals are familiar with the stock market, investments, and economic theories.
Specialized skills. A degree in accounting helps students develop skills in account reconciliation, balance sheets, and accounting techniques. Finance programs focus on analytical skills, particularly the ability to interpret statistical and financial data.

When you compare finance and accounting programs, keep in mind that a bachelor’s program is an opportunity to build or establish these skills. If you feel that your current analytical and quantitative skills are lacking, your courses may help you improve them.

On the other hand, if you feel that your skills in one area are especially weak, you may be better suited to the alternate program. For example, if you struggle with interpreting and analyzing data but enjoy calculations, you may find more success in accounting rather than finance.

Finance vs. Accounting Salary & Job Outlook

Careers in finance and accounting are similar in that they both offer competitive salaries. Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that there are ample opportunities for growth and earnings in each field.

Finance Salary and Job Outlook	Accounting Salary and Job Outlook
Financial and Investment Analysts These professionals are expected to see a faster-than-average 9% job growth over the next ten years. The median salary for financial and investment analysts is $95,080 per year. Those working in securities, investments, and commodity contracts have the highest median salary at $106,390.	Accountants and Auditors These professionals are expected to see a steady 6% job growth over the next ten years. The median salary for accountants and auditors is $78,000. Those working in finance and insurance have the highest median salary at $81,010.
Personal Financial Advisors Growth for personal financial advisors is expected to be especially high, with 15% job growth over the next ten years. The median pay for personal financial advisors is $95,390.	Tax Examiners The job outlook for tax examiners and collectors and revenue agents is lower, with a 7% decline over the next ten years. The median pay for tax examiners and collectors and revenue agents is $57,950.

A bachelor’s degree in either finance or accounting may yield the opportunity to pursue a position in an expanding area with pay that is above the median wage for all workers.

Finance vs. Accounting Degree Pros and Cons

Neither a career in accounting nor in finance will be entirely good or bad. They each present benefits and disadvantages that may determine your long-term satisfaction and fulfillment in your career.

	Finance	Accounting
Pros	Above-average salaries, sometimes nearing six figures A large pool of potential employers—including large corporations and financial institutions Opportunities for advancement, such as roles in financial management	Competitive salaries—even for entry-level professionals with bachelor’s degrees A clear and defined career path in a stable field Flexibility in location and employer, allowing you to work in your preferred region or area
Cons	High numbers of qualified job applicants for positions Long work hours, including evenings, weekends, and holidays High-stress work environments with pressure from upper-level management	Constantly changing regulations and laws that require professional development and ongoing education Repetitive work with tasks that are often very similar from day to day High-stress periods during the year, particularly during tax season

Speaking to current professionals in the field—such as working financial analysts or accountants—may help you gain more insight into the highs and lows of a particular job. Some degree programs also offer internship opportunities that allow you to see firsthand what a job entails.

A Major in Accounting vs. Finance, Which Is Harder?

Because finance and accounting have similar coursework, some students find them equally easy or challenging. Whether you struggle or thrive in a degree program typically depends on your skill sets and interests.

Accounting is usually a very technical field, requiring students to understand complex laws and regulations, detailed accounting processes, and precise mathematical calculations. Courses in accounting programs require students to study a narrower area of finance.

Editorial Listing ShortCode:

Students in finance programs, on the other hand, take a more holistic view of financial management and economics. They spend a lot of time studying theoretical concepts and financial markets as well as analyzing financial trends.

Should I Major in Accounting or Finance?

Making the choice to pursue a degree in accounting or finance requires you to reflect on your professional goals and academic background. Finance is a good career path for many professionals, so is accounting. Both fields are expected to either expand or have steady growth over the coming years.

Finance majors often go on to work in high-earning careers as financial analysts, advisors, and managers. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median earnings for financial managers is $139,790. Professionals with accounting degrees often become accountants, auditors, or tax examiners. These positions also tend to earn salaries that are substantially higher than the average for all occupations.

Finance or Accounting – Which Is Right for You?

Enrolling in an accounting or finance bachelor’s program may help prepare you for a lucrative and rewarding career.

During the course of your studies, you can learn about financial institutions, regulations, and processes that are at the heart of economic systems around the world. Knowing what is the difference between finance and accounting is the first step on the journey toward your degree. You might consider which program sounds the most engaging and suitable for your personality and passions.

Once you’ve decided between finance & accounting, you can begin exploring available degree programs offered by accredited colleges and universities.

WRITTEN BY

Kama Offenberger

Kama has a master's degree in English from Virginia Tech and a bachelor's in English from Concord University. She previously taught college-level English composition, literature, and English as a second language courses. She is now a full-time writer in the education field, with a particular focus on educational technology and pedagogical best practices for English language learners.