Account payables analyst vs payroll analyst

The differences between account payables analysts and payroll analysts can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become an account payables analyst, becoming a payroll analyst takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, an account payables analyst has an average salary of $54,356, which is higher than the $54,217 average annual salary of a payroll analyst.

The top three skills for an account payables analyst include customer service, data entry and purchase orders. The most important skills for a payroll analyst are customer service, payroll system, and payroll data.

Account payables analyst vs payroll analyst overview

	Account Payables Analyst	Payroll Analyst
Yearly salary	$54,356	$54,217
Hourly rate	$26.13	$26.07
Growth rate	-5%	-3%
Number of jobs	73,985	15,555
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 63%	Bachelor's Degree, 60%
Average age	51	48
Years of experience	6	4

What does an account payables analyst do?

An accounts payable analyst is primarily responsible for managing and processing invoices and payments, ensuring accuracy and timeliness. They are also responsible for coordinating with various departments to obtain and acquire data and invoices, submitting payments to external vendors and suppliers, identifying errors and inconsistencies, and providing corrective measures. One may also perform clerical tasks such as producing progress reports and presentations, managing schedules, addressing issues and concerns through calls and correspondence, and resolving them promptly and efficiently.

What does a payroll analyst do?

A payroll analyst is primarily in charge of overseeing a company's payroll processes and transactions, ensuring efficiency and timeliness. Their responsibilities typically revolve around coordinating with human resources for accurate and complete timesheets and employee data, managing calendars and schedules, calculating wages and deductions, and performing consistent audits. There are also instances when a payroll analyst must perform clerical tasks such as processing documents, prepare progress reports, and respond to employee inquiries. Furthermore, it is essential to report to managers should there be any issues and concerns.

Account payables analyst vs payroll analyst salary

Account payables analysts and payroll analysts have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Account Payables Analyst	Payroll Analyst
Average salary	$54,356	$54,217
Salary range	Between $39,000 And $74,000	Between $39,000 And $74,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	Olympia, WA
Highest paying state	New York	Washington
Best paying company	SMTC	Varian Medical Systems
Best paying industry	Energy	Technology

Differences between account payables analyst and payroll analyst education

There are a few differences between an account payables analyst and a payroll analyst in terms of educational background:

	Account Payables Analyst	Payroll Analyst
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 63%	Bachelor's Degree, 60%
Most common major	Accounting	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Account payables analyst vs payroll analyst demographics

Here are the differences between account payables analysts' and payroll analysts' demographics:

	Account Payables Analyst	Payroll Analyst
Average age	51	48
Gender ratio	Male, 26.3% Female, 73.7%	Male, 24.2% Female, 75.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 6.8% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 6.6% White, 67.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 10.1% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 18.6% Asian, 6.1% White, 57.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5%
LGBT Percentage	7%	10%

Differences between account payables analyst and payroll analyst duties and responsibilities

Account payables analyst example responsibilities.

Manage budget submissions by subsidiaries in Europe/AFNE region in Hyperion.
Perform month end close activities such as account reconciliations and journal entries resulting in accurate financial statement reporting.
Perform validation in ERP to ensure invoices not already paid.
Maintain fixed assets in ERP system to report the correct depreciation monthly.
Request current vendors to switch payment type from check to ACH and enroll in e-Invoicing for faster and more efficient processing.
Coordinate ACH implementation/conversion to electronic payment system.

Payroll analyst example responsibilities.

Manage all activities relate to base pay, overtime, PTO, garnishments and payroll tax.
Perform monthly accounting functions including journal entries, general ledger account reconciliations, benefit and salary accruals, and headcount reconciliations.
Create PowerPoint slides to train new timekeepers and managers in KRONOS.
Lead functional tester in support of timekeeping, payroll and labor upgrades and conversion projects.
Support the third-party web applications like KRONOS and custom-built time entry systems to input the time data
Enter new hires, terminations, and employee maintenance changes into HRIS & ADP including process employee benefit elections.

Account payables analyst vs payroll analyst skills

Common account payables analyst skills

Customer Service, 11%
Data Entry, 6%
Purchase Orders, 5%
Reconciliations, 5%
Vendor Invoices, 5%
Expense Reports, 4%

Common payroll analyst skills

Customer Service, 11%
Payroll System, 6%
Payroll Data, 4%
Human Resources, 4%
Reconciliations, 4%
Data Entry, 3%

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Account Payables Analyst
Account Payables Analyst vs Payroll Analyst

Updated January 8, 2025

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