Payroll clerk vs payroll analyst

The differences between payroll clerks and payroll analysts 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 clerk and a payroll analyst. Additionally, a payroll analyst has an average salary of $54,217, which is higher than the $41,602 average annual salary of a payroll clerk.

The top three skills for a payroll clerk include data entry, payroll system and photocopying. The most important skills for a payroll analyst are customer service, payroll system, and payroll data.

Payroll clerk vs payroll analyst overview

	Payroll Clerk	Payroll Analyst
Yearly salary	$41,602	$54,217
Hourly rate	$20.00	$26.07
Growth rate	-3%	-3%
Number of jobs	71,944	15,555
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 34%	Bachelor's Degree, 60%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	4	4

What does a payroll clerk do?

A payroll clerk is responsible for managing the payroll process by collecting the necessary information needed to release payments. Payroll clerks' duties include verifying timesheets, calculating necessary deductions, issuing paychecks timely, managing payment discrepancies and disputes, updating employee's payment information in the database, and creating payroll reports. A payroll clerk must have strong analytical and organization skills, as well as a clear understanding of the organization's payroll policies, ensuring that the process follows regulatory procedures.

What does a payroll analyst do?

A payroll analyst is primarily in charge of overseeing a company's payroll processes and transactions, ensuring efficiency and timeliness. Their responsibilities typically revolve around coordinating with human resources for accurate and complete timesheets and employee data, managing calendars and schedules, calculating wages and deductions, and performing consistent audits. There are also instances when a payroll analyst must perform clerical tasks such as processing documents, prepare progress reports, and respond to employee inquiries. Furthermore, it is essential to report to managers should there be any issues and concerns.

Payroll clerk vs payroll analyst salary

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

	Payroll Clerk	Payroll Analyst
Average salary	$41,602	$54,217
Salary range	Between $31,000 And $55,000	Between $39,000 And $74,000
Highest paying City	Boston, MA	Olympia, WA
Highest paying state	Connecticut	Washington
Best paying company	MDU Resources	Varian Medical Systems
Best paying industry	Government	Technology

Differences between payroll clerk and payroll analyst education

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

	Payroll Clerk	Payroll Analyst
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 34%	Bachelor's Degree, 60%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Payroll clerk vs payroll analyst demographics

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

	Payroll Clerk	Payroll Analyst
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 12.4% Female, 87.6%	Male, 24.2% Female, 75.8%
Race ratio	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%	Black or African American, 10.1% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 18.6% Asian, 6.1% White, 57.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5%
LGBT Percentage	10%	10%

Differences between payroll clerk and payroll analyst duties and responsibilities

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.

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Payroll analyst example responsibilities.

Manage all activities relate to base pay, overtime, PTO, garnishments and payroll tax.
Perform monthly accounting functions including journal entries, general ledger account reconciliations, benefit and salary accruals, and headcount reconciliations.
Create PowerPoint slides to train new timekeepers and managers in KRONOS.
Lead functional tester in support of timekeeping, payroll and labor upgrades and conversion projects.
Support the third-party web applications like KRONOS and custom-built time entry systems to input the time data
Enter new hires, terminations, and employee maintenance changes into HRIS & ADP including process employee benefit elections.

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Payroll clerk vs payroll analyst skills

Common payroll clerk skills

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

Common payroll analyst skills

Customer Service, 11%
Payroll System, 6%
Payroll Data, 4%
Human Resources, 4%
Reconciliations, 4%
Data Entry, 3%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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