Payroll administrator vs payroll manager

The differences between payroll administrators and payroll managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a payroll administrator and a payroll manager. Additionally, a payroll manager has an average salary of $86,147, which is higher than the $46,596 average annual salary of a payroll administrator.

The top three skills for a payroll administrator include customer service, data entry and payroll system. The most important skills for a payroll manager are customer service, human resources, and payroll system.

Payroll administrator vs payroll manager overview

	Payroll Administrator	Payroll Manager
Yearly salary	$46,596	$86,147
Hourly rate	$22.40	$41.42
Growth rate	-3%	-3%
Number of jobs	55,490	6,972
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 51%	Bachelor's Degree, 57%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	4	4

What does a payroll administrator do?

A payroll administrator is responsible for processing the wages of employees in a company or organization. Aside from issuing payments, it is also the payroll administrator's task to audit, process taxes and other deductions, keep and maintain an organized record of data, respond to inquiries and resolve issues, and tally employee work hours. Furthermore, a payroll administrator needs to have efficient attention to detail as most of the tasks require accuracy and speed. It is also essential to communicate and coordinate with team members at all times.

What does a payroll manager do?

A payroll manager is responsible for monitoring the payment process of all employees. Payroll managers oversee payroll records, reviewing calculable taxes and other deductions, creating a comprehensive summary of payroll details, managing payroll discrepancies, and releasing payroll checks through the organization's payment method. They must also follow strict procedures on legal requirements and tax obligations. A payroll manager must have excellent analytical and communication skills, especially on responding to the employees' inquiries and concerns, as well as managing the performance of the payroll staff.

Payroll administrator vs payroll manager salary

Payroll administrators and payroll managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Payroll Administrator	Payroll Manager
Average salary	$46,596	$86,147
Salary range	Between $33,000 And $64,000	Between $63,000 And $117,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Maine	California
Best paying company	Northern Trust	Ep Energy
Best paying industry	Construction	Finance

Differences between payroll administrator and payroll manager education

There are a few differences between a payroll administrator and a payroll manager in terms of educational background:

	Payroll Administrator	Payroll Manager
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 51%	Bachelor's Degree, 57%
Most common major	Business	Accounting
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Payroll administrator vs payroll manager demographics

Here are the differences between payroll administrators' and payroll managers' demographics:

	Payroll Administrator	Payroll Manager
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 16.0% Female, 84.0%	Male, 22.0% Female, 78.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.5% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 19.1% Asian, 6.2% White, 57.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5%	Black or African American, 9.9% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 18.6% Asian, 6.1% White, 57.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5%
LGBT Percentage	10%	10%

Differences between payroll administrator and payroll manager duties and responsibilities

Payroll administrator example responsibilities.

Manage year-end W2 audit/corrections and distribution.
Manage employee direct deposit accounts and initiate ACH reversals when necessary.
Manage all requisitions using PeopleSoft for the administrator and all assign departments.
Maintain KRONOS timekeeping system, review, sort and distribute employee upload file and multiple misc.
Maintain and monitor PTO balances and provide executive reports relate to vacation accruals.
Assist in implementing and training of MyTime and Lawson systems.

Payroll manager example responsibilities.

Manage accounting and finance operations including A/R, A/P and general accounting, etc.
Manage annual W2 reconciliation and distribution.
Manage expatriates compensation packages and taxation.
Coordinate department conversion of manual payroll system to KRONOS automate time and attendance system.
Save the company $5,500 by learning ADP and creating payroll accruals and profiles to accurately record employee PTO time profiles.
Process payroll utilizing ADP payroll system

Payroll administrator vs payroll manager skills

Common payroll administrator skills

Customer Service, 9%
Data Entry, 7%
Payroll System, 6%
Human Resources, 5%
Payroll Data, 4%
Process Payroll, 4%

Common payroll manager skills

Customer Service, 8%
Human Resources, 5%
Payroll System, 5%
Payroll Tax, 5%
HRIS, 4%
Reconciliations, 4%

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Payroll Administrator vs Payroll Manager

Updated January 8, 2025

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