Benefits clerk vs payroll clerk

The differences between benefits clerks and payroll clerks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a benefits clerk and a payroll clerk. Additionally, a payroll clerk has an average salary of $41,602, which is higher than the $34,841 average annual salary of a benefits clerk.

The top three skills for a benefits clerk include payroll system, data entry and open enrollment. The most important skills for a payroll clerk are data entry, payroll system, and photocopying.

Benefits clerk vs payroll clerk overview

	Benefits Clerk	Payroll Clerk
Yearly salary	$34,841	$41,602
Hourly rate	$16.75	$20.00
Growth rate	-3%	-3%
Number of jobs	75,454	71,944
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 44%	Bachelor's Degree, 34%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	4	4

Benefits clerk vs payroll clerk salary

Benefits clerks and payroll clerks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Benefits Clerk	Payroll Clerk
Average salary	$34,841	$41,602
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $44,000	Between $31,000 And $55,000
Highest paying City	Los Angeles, CA	Boston, MA
Highest paying state	Minnesota	Connecticut
Best paying company	Monarch Casino & Resort	MDU Resources
Best paying industry	Government	Government

Differences between benefits clerk and payroll clerk education

There are a few differences between a benefits clerk and a payroll clerk in terms of educational background:

	Benefits Clerk	Payroll Clerk
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 44%	Bachelor's Degree, 34%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Benefits clerk vs payroll clerk demographics

Here are the differences between benefits clerks' and payroll clerks' demographics:

	Benefits Clerk	Payroll Clerk
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 13.3% Female, 86.7%	Male, 12.4% Female, 87.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.5% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 17.7% Asian, 5.9% White, 58.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5%	Black or African American, 10.2% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 18.2% Asian, 6.0% White, 58.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5%
LGBT Percentage	10%	10%

Differences between benefits clerk and payroll clerk duties and responsibilities

Benefits clerk example responsibilities.

Examine HMO documents to verify eligibility to process or reject into or from a manage care plan when necessary.
Enter employee data in HRIS system.
Used ADP HR/B software for benefits enrollment and reports.
Maintain retirement (401k) plan, FMLA and personnel records.
Monitor FMLA, CFRA, PDL, and personal leave of absence and premiums payments.
Update and maintain benefits data in the HRIS system to ensure accuracy and integrity of employee information.

Payroll clerk example responsibilities.

Manage all worker compensation and cobra benefit issues and filings.
Manage employee drug and background screenings, train new hires and verify I9 information.
Process payroll; assist in establishing new time and attendance (KRONOS) computer system; balance insurance billings.
View, key, post and monitor time and labor, absences and leave balances in PeopleSoft HRIS system.
Compile data and enter information into ADP payroll processing system.
Process payroll and transmit electronically to outside computer service for preparation of payroll checks and reports.

Benefits clerk vs payroll clerk skills

Common benefits clerk skills

Payroll System, 17%
Data Entry, 8%
Open Enrollment, 7%
Cobra, 7%
HRIS, 5%
Human Resources, 5%

Common payroll clerk skills

Data Entry, 19%
Payroll System, 10%
Photocopying, 7%
Excellent Organizational, 6%
Customer Service, 6%
ADP, 5%