How To Become A Payroll And Benefits Specialist: What It Is and Career Path

What is a payroll and benefits specialist and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted expert

Dr. Stephanie Mitchell

A payroll and benefits specialist is part of a company's HR team. They are tasked with managing employee's compensation and benefits programs. They ensure that employee payroll and benefit payment complies with state and federal laws and regulations. They may work in different or specific departments of an organization. However, their general duty is to oversee the company's payment and benefits system and create attractive benefits packages for potential employees.

A payroll and benefits specialist manages and administers employee benefits and retirement programs. This includes researching healthcare plans, evaluating the benefits and costs of wellness programs, and evaluating job positions for classification and salary requirements. Their duties may include resolving disputes, reviewing invoices, and reporting costs and fees. A career path in human resources management is enough to qualify to be a payroll and benefits specialist.

What general advice would you give to a payroll and benefits specialist?

Dr. Stephanie Mitchell

Professor of History, Carthage College

A better question to ask yourself is: How much money do I need to give a life with dignity to myself and the people I love who will depend on my salary? Then, how can I earn that much money? A quick look at different fields will give you a sense of average salaries in different parts of our economy, and that kind of information should be a variable to incorporate as you pursue your vocational exploration and discernment. It's not the only variable, but it's an important one. Others include whether you are good at that kind of work, whether you enjoy it, and whether you think it serves the common good, which is another way of asking whether you think you would find the work meaningful. At Carthage, we know that earning enough money is an important part of living a good life, but it isn't the only part. A purposeful life is the one you will find is worth living.

ScorePayroll And Benefits SpecialistUS Average

Salary

3.9

Avg. Salary $49,466

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

6.0

Growth rate 7%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.8

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.34%

Asian 7.78%

Black or African American 10.59%

Hispanic or Latino 15.08%

Unknown 3.64%

White 62.58%

Gender

female 85.28%

male 14.72%

Age - 45

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 45

Stress level

6.0

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.1

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.1

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a payroll and benefits specialist

Explore payroll and benefits specialist education requirements

Most common payroll and benefits specialist degrees

Bachelor's

57.2 %

Associate

26.1 %

High School Diploma

5.9 %

Start to develop specific payroll and benefits specialist skills

Skills	Percentages
Customer Service	15.10%
HRIS	7.30%
Human Resources	6.36%
ADP Workforce	4.12%
Payroll Processing	4.08%

Complete relevant payroll and benefits specialist training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New payroll and benefits specialists learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a payroll and benefits specialist based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real payroll and benefits specialist resumes.

Research payroll and benefits specialist duties and responsibilities

Manage yearly personnel reports, EEO, etc.
Manage all accounts payable and accounts receivable, using QuickBooks.
Manage paid time off (PTO) for all staff, complete monthly payroll check reconciliation and perform electronic 401K transfers.
Integrate efforts on actions and programs where joint OPM functional effort are necessary to accomplish recruitment and enhance organizational effectiveness.

Prepare your payroll and benefits specialist resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your payroll and benefits specialist resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a payroll and benefits specialist resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable payroll and benefits specialist resume templates

Build a professional payroll and benefits specialist resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your payroll and benefits specialist resume.

Apply for payroll and benefits specialist jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a payroll and benefits specialist job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

Average payroll and benefits specialist salary

The average payroll and benefits specialist salary in the United States is $49,466 per year or $24 per hour. Payroll and benefits specialist salaries range between $36,000 and $67,000 per year.

Average payroll and benefits specialist salary

$49,466 Yearly

$23.78 hourly

What is a payroll and benefits specialist and how to become one

What general advice would you give to a payroll and benefits specialist?

Payroll and benefits specialist career paths

Key steps to become a payroll and benefits specialist

Explore payroll and benefits specialist education requirements

Most common payroll and benefits specialist degrees

Start to develop specific payroll and benefits specialist skills

Complete relevant payroll and benefits specialist training and internships

Research payroll and benefits specialist duties and responsibilities

Prepare your payroll and benefits specialist resume

Choose from 10+ customizable payroll and benefits specialist resume templates

Apply for payroll and benefits specialist jobs

How did you land your first payroll and benefits specialist job

Average payroll and benefits specialist salary

How do payroll and benefits specialists rate their job?