Benefits & payroll administrator vs human resource specialist

The differences between benefits & payroll administrators and human resource specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a benefits & payroll administrator and a human resource specialist. Additionally, a human resource specialist has an average salary of $53,143, which is higher than the $50,662 average annual salary of a benefits & payroll administrator.

The top three skills for a benefits & payroll administrator include human resources, HRIS and cobra. The most important skills for a human resource specialist are data entry, oversight, and life insurance.

Benefits & payroll administrator vs human resource specialist overview

	Benefits & Payroll Administrator	Human Resource Specialist
Yearly salary	$50,662	$53,143
Hourly rate	$24.36	$25.55
Growth rate	7%	8%
Number of jobs	61,356	50,511
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 55%	Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Average age	45	41
Years of experience	6	6

What does a benefits & payroll administrator do?

The Benefits and Payroll Administrator manages the company's payroll, ensuring work benefits and employee documents are secure. The administrator also delivers employees' issues and concerns to the company's proper channels. This position also helps in the audit of the company and ensures compliance with state and federal regulations. This administrative position requires bookkeeping knowledge, a bachelor's degree, and experience in using spreadsheets and accounting software.

What does a human resource specialist do?

A human resources specialist is responsible for assisting in the recruitment and staffing process. Duties of a human resources specialist include updating the requirements and qualifications of a job post, handling employees' inquiries regarding compensation and benefits, maintaining employees' records, updating the status of new joiners, tracking performance reviews, and generating reports as business requires. A human resource specialist must be detail-oriented, as well as excellent in organizational and communication skills. Additionally, a human resource specialist must have a broad knowledge of the recruitment process and structure.

Benefits & payroll administrator vs human resource specialist salary

Benefits & payroll administrators and human resource specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Benefits & Payroll Administrator	Human Resource Specialist
Average salary	$50,662	$53,143
Salary range	Between $37,000 And $68,000	Between $36,000 And $77,000
Highest paying City	San Jose, CA	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	New Jersey	New Jersey
Best paying company	HGA	Meta
Best paying industry	Professional	Government

Differences between benefits & payroll administrator and human resource specialist education

There are a few differences between a benefits & payroll administrator and a human resource specialist in terms of educational background:

	Benefits & Payroll Administrator	Human Resource Specialist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 55%	Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Benefits & payroll administrator vs human resource specialist demographics

Here are the differences between benefits & payroll administrators' and human resource specialists' demographics:

	Benefits & Payroll Administrator	Human Resource Specialist
Average age	45	41
Gender ratio	Male, 11.7% Female, 88.3%	Male, 26.9% Female, 73.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.6% Unknown, 3.6% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 7.8% White, 62.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	Black or African American, 11.4% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 19.0% Asian, 7.6% White, 56.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between benefits & payroll administrator and human resource specialist duties and responsibilities

Benefits & payroll administrator example responsibilities.

Manage HRIS, recruiting, training, and time and attendance programs as well as trouble shooting.
Create reports using SQL database and manage reports, perform from internet-base tools for research projects need for client insight.
Ensure accuracy of all benefit enrollments and life status changes record in the HRIS to provide vendors with accurate eligibility information.
Complete weekly internal payroll reports and fund employee accounts (HSA and 401K).
Process benefit elections, merit raises, salary changes, garnishments, cobra and severance.
Administer employee benefits programs including group medical, dental, vision, group life and FSA.

Human resource specialist example responsibilities.

Manage site KRONOS payroll, time and attendance, and vacation tracking for hourly.
Manage new hire and current employee paperwork that includes status change forms, W-4s, I-9s, etc.
Lead a compliance initiative to ensure successful transition to the e-Verify employment verification process.
Integrate efforts on actions and programs where joint OPM functional effort are necessary to accomplish recruitment and enhance organizational effectiveness.
Advise, coach, and counsele managers and Sr.
Assist with affirmative action reporting, VETS100 and EEO-1 submission.

Benefits & payroll administrator vs human resource specialist skills

Common benefits & payroll administrator skills

Human Resources, 6%
HRIS, 6%
Cobra, 6%
Payroll System, 4%
Open Enrollment, 4%
ADP Payroll, 4%

Common human resource specialist skills

Data Entry, 10%
Oversight, 9%
Life Insurance, 9%
Human Resources Policies, 8%
Customer Service, 7%
Timekeeping, 5%

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Benefits & Payroll Administrator
Benefits & Payroll Administrator vs Human Resource Specialist

Updated January 8, 2025

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