What the work involves, what it pays, and real lines you can start from. Answer a few small questions and leave with a resume.
Also called corporate tax preparer, income tax preparer, tax preparer assistant and certified public accountant.
$54,920
Median pay a year
76,480
People do this work
6
Resume lines ready for you
Pay and headcount are from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The lines are written from what the US Department of Labor records about this work.
An example
A Tax Preparer resume, filled in
Every line below comes from the same public record as the rest of this page. The greyed parts are the ones only you can answer.
Tax Preparer
Summary
Tax preparer preparing tax returns for individuals and small businesses, computing taxes owed, reviewing financial records, and explaining tax laws to ensure accurate form completion
Experience
Tax Preparer
Where you worked
Month Year to Month Year
Computed taxes owed or overpaid using personal computers and completed entries on forms following tax form instructions and tax tables
Prepared or assisted in preparing simple to complex tax returns for individuals or small businesses
Reviewed financial records, such as income statements and documentation of expenditures to determine forms needed for tax returns
Interviewed clients to obtain additional information on taxable income and deductible expenses and allowances
Explained federal and state tax laws to individuals and companies
Furnished taxpayers with sufficient information and advice to ensure correct tax form completion
Checked data input or verified totals on forms prepared by others to detect errors in arithmetic, data entry, or procedures
Skills
Core Skills
Calculating tax information, Interviewing clients, Verifying records accuracy, Examining financial records, Advising on financial issues, Intuit QuickBooks, Developing financial plans for clients
Working With People
Explaining procedures, Corresponding with customers
Tools and software
Intuit TurboTax, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software, Tax compliance property tax management software, Tax software
Education
Certificate Your training program, Year
Yours will not say this. It will say what you did, in your own words, and Rung writes it with you one question at a time.
Nothing to write from scratch
What to put on a Tax Preparer resume
Real duties for this job, already written the way a resume reads. Inside Rung you choose the ones that were yours.
What did you do each day?
Choose what fits, or say your own.
Computed taxes owed or overpaid accuratelyUtilized adjustments and deductions for clientsFurnished taxpayers with information for formsInterviewed clients for taxable income detailsPrepared simple to complex tax returnsReviewed financial records for tax preparation
becomes
On your resume
Computed taxes owed or overpaid with precision, ensuring compliance with tax regulations
Furnished taxpayers with detailed information and guidance for completing tax forms
These are written the way a resume line reads. Rung asks which ones are actually yours, keeps your own words, and never claims work you did not do.
Then it asks for one more thing
The line that could show more, and the fact that lands it.
Make it stronger
A few lines could show more. Each one is asked, and answered by choosing.
Add how many tax returns you prepared each season
The line
Computed taxes owed or overpaid for dozens of clients each tax season, ensuring compliance with tax regulations
Add how many tax returns you prepared each season
Pick one that fits
Dozens each tax seasonSeveral hundred returns annuallyMany clients every year
Or add your own.
In your wordsAdd it
Adding it to the line…
Added to your resume
Show what improved for clients after you provided guidance
The line
Furnished taxpayers with detailed information and guidance for completing tax forms
Show what improved for clients after you provided guidance
Pick one that fits
Clients felt more confident in their filingsFewer errors in submitted formsClients completed forms more quickly
Or add your own.
In your wordsAdd it
Adding it to the line…
Added to your resume
Every ready answer is in plain words, never a figure. Nothing is invented to fill a gap.
What it is made of
Skills for a Tax Preparer resume
What this work is made of. Rung offers these and keeps the ones you claim.
What are you good at?
Calculating tax information
Interviewing clients
Verifying records accuracy
Examining financial records
Developing financial plans for clients
Explaining procedures
Corresponding with customers
Advising on financial issues
The work itself
What a Tax Preparer does
The public record of what this job is, in one paragraph.
Prepare tax returns for individuals or small businesses.
What it pays
How much does a Tax Preparer make?
Annual pay across the United States. The middle figure is the median: half earn less than that, and half earn more.
25th percentile
$38,910
Median
$54,920
75th percentile
$76,300
About 76,480 people do this work in the United States.
What it pays in each state
State
25th percentile
Median
75th percentile
AK
$40,430
$62,360
$116,170
AL
$25,080
$33,280
$36,540
AR
$29,530
$35,040
$41,600
AZ
$41,690
$44,770
$77,320
CA
$47,420
$70,030
$84,890
CO
$43,380
$62,620
$75,260
CT
$36,840
$41,130
$60,660
DE
$39,320
$51,960
$58,470
FL
$35,770
$49,020
$63,490
GA
$37,050
$49,330
$63,800
HI
$29,990
$34,720
$44,710
IA
$38,970
$53,660
$73,660
IL
$38,120
$54,480
$62,910
IN
$38,250
$45,710
$61,660
KS
$35,950
$47,300
$66,710
KY
$27,900
$36,620
$61,240
LA
$28,210
$38,740
$56,300
MA
$38,730
$58,400
$68,710
MD
$42,190
$47,020
$61,570
ME
$44,190
$47,150
$52,370
MI
$40,220
$46,400
$61,660
MN
$44,250
$59,200
$76,870
MO
$35,580
$62,780
$98,630
MS
$34,360
$50,670
$76,670
MT
$47,470
$63,080
$82,850
NC
$43,820
$48,130
$72,840
ND
$43,870
$57,060
$78,460
NE
$37,040
$43,010
$51,310
NH
$43,520
$61,370
$80,230
NJ
$37,790
$43,420
$63,050
NM
$28,900
$38,060
$46,450
NV
$46,630
$60,000
$99,500
NY
$57,030
$71,850
$101,070
OH
$37,930
$49,020
$57,180
OK
$29,530
$42,700
$50,840
OR
$48,830
$61,370
$78,090
PA
$39,020
$61,270
$81,450
PR
$31,380
$46,730
$61,100
RI
$52,000
$57,680
$59,790
SC
$30,930
$39,220
$71,810
SD
$44,100
$52,530
$63,850
TN
$29,500
$36,600
$59,120
TX
$35,440
$47,460
$74,060
UT
$48,210
$66,720
$80,550
VA
$40,960
$58,520
$70,480
WA
$41,590
$45,370
$48,830
WI
$36,260
$44,340
$55,660
WV
$29,840
$35,880
$40,240
WY
$47,470
$57,990
$87,240
Other names
Other names for this job
corporate tax preparer, income tax preparer, tax preparer assistant, certified public accountant, CPA, credentialed tax expert, credentialed tax professional, enrolled agent, income tax advisor, income tax consultant, income tax expert, licensed tax consultant.
More names for this work
preseason tax professional, salt associate, state and local tax associate, tax accountant, tax advisor, tax associate, tax consultant, tax evaluator, tax expert, tax professional, tax specialist.
Free resume help
Start with this job
Answer a few small questions and leave with a resume. Your answers stay on your own device.
A truly free resume that is yours to keep
You leave with a PDF and a Word file, and a cover letter if you want one.
Nothing to pay when you download, no account, and the resume saves to your own device.
Every question can be read aloud, and answered out loud.
Nothing to write from scratch: the lines are ready, and you choose the ones that were yours.
This page is about the occupation Tax Preparers. What this job involves and what it is made of come from O*NET 30.3, the US Department of Labor's occupation database, refreshed July 2026; Rung writes those records into the plain sentences you see. Pay comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS release for 2025. Rung is an independent service and is not affiliated with or endorsed by either agency. How Rung handles accuracy is on the accuracy page, and the full data credits are on the credits page.