Paymaster vs payroll clerk

The differences between paymasters 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 paymaster and a payroll clerk. Additionally, a paymaster has an average salary of $69,234, which is higher than the $41,602 average annual salary of a payroll clerk.

The top three skills for a paymaster include ADP, payroll processing and payroll system. The most important skills for a payroll clerk are data entry, payroll system, and photocopying.

Paymaster vs payroll clerk overview

	Paymaster	Payroll Clerk
Yearly salary	$69,234	$41,602
Hourly rate	$33.29	$20.00
Growth rate	-3%	-3%
Number of jobs	668	71,944
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 57%	Bachelor's Degree, 34%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	4	4

Paymaster vs payroll clerk salary

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

	Paymaster	Payroll Clerk
Average salary	$69,234	$41,602
Salary range	Between $41,000 And $115,000	Between $31,000 And $55,000
Highest paying City	-	Boston, MA
Highest paying state	-	Connecticut
Best paying company	-	MDU Resources
Best paying industry	-	Government

Differences between paymaster and payroll clerk education

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

	Paymaster	Payroll Clerk
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 57%	Bachelor's Degree, 34%
Most common major	Accounting	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Paymaster vs payroll clerk demographics

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

	Paymaster	Payroll Clerk
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 27.8% Female, 72.2%	Male, 12.4% Female, 87.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.9% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 18.9% Asian, 6.1% White, 58.5% 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 paymaster and payroll clerk duties and responsibilities

Paymaster example responsibilities.

Manage annual professional liability in PeopleSoft for faculty and fellows.
Assist in month end process including accruals and payroll journals.
Create and maintain record of expenses and payments, assisting in the preparation of various reports and reconciliations.
Perform monthly balance sheet account reconciliations including bank and payroll reconciliations.
Maintain detailed records of employment, and provide spreadsheets/data of all payroll functions-for audit purposes in accordance with statutory requirements.
Create new inventory/non-inventory items in QuickBooks accounting system and tracks supplies accurately.

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.

Paymaster vs payroll clerk skills

Common paymaster skills

ADP, 11%
Payroll Processing, 11%
Payroll System, 10%
Accruals, 9%
Reconciliations, 8%
W-2, 8%

Common payroll clerk skills

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