Job outlook for payroll processors in the United States

Payroll processor job growth summary. After extensive research, interviews, and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:

The projected payroll processor job growth rate is -3% from 2018-2028.
About -38,500 new jobs for payroll processors are projected over the next decade.
Payroll processor salaries have increased 11% for payroll processors in the last 5 years.
There are over 141,904 payroll processors currently employed in the United States.
There are 11,795 active payroll processor job openings in the US.
The average payroll processor salary is $44,307.

Are payroll processor jobs in demand?

Yes, payroll processor jobs are in demand. Payroll processor demand is projected to grow -3% from 2018 to 2028.

Payroll processor job and salary trends over time

Compare the number of payroll processor jobs and the average payroll processor salary over time.

Payroll processor jobs over time

Payroll processor job growth rate over time

Year	# of jobs	% of population
2021	141,904	0.04%
2020	127,518	0.04%
2019	135,919	0.04%
2018	137,253	0.04%
2017	145,666	0.04%

Average payroll processor salary over time

Payroll processor salary by year

Year	Avg. salary	Hourly rate	% Change
2025	$44,307	$21.30	+1.8%
2024	$43,516	$20.92	+2.5%
2023	$42,451	$20.41	+2.6%
2022	$41,358	$19.88	+3.5%
2021	$39,945	$19.20	+3.4%

Top payroll processor jobs near you

Payroll processor jobs by state

The map below shows you the number of payroll processor job openings in each state. The darker areas on the map show where payroll processors earn the highest salaries across all 50 states.

Average salary: Job openings:

Most common states for payroll processors

Rank	State	Population	# of jobs	Employment/ 1000ppl
1	Minnesota	5,576,606	351	6%
2	North Dakota	755,393	43	6%
3	Ohio	11,658,609	436	4%
4	Wisconsin	5,795,483	221	4%
5	Kentucky	4,454,189	174	4%
6	Nevada	2,998,039	131	4%
7	New Hampshire	1,342,795	56	4%
8	Montana	1,050,493	44	4%
9	Michigan	9,962,311	333	3%
10	Arkansas	3,004,279	100	3%
11	South Carolina	5,024,369	121	2%
12	Oklahoma	3,930,864	78	2%
13	Wyoming	579,315	11	2%
14	Mississippi	2,984,100	34	1%
15	New Jersey	9,005,644	0	0%
16	Connecticut	3,588,184	0	0%
17	Illinois	12,802,023	0	0%
18	California	39,536,653	0	0%
19	Washington	7,405,743	0	0%
20	Nebraska	1,920,076	0	0%

Most common cities for payroll processors

Rank	City	# of jobs	Employment/ 1000ppl	Avg. salary
1	Culver City	2	5%	$53,161
2	Salt Lake City	3	2%	$42,241
3	Canton	1	1%	$43,007
4	Fort Lauderdale	1	1%	$38,504
5	Framingham	1	1%	$47,334
6	High Point	1	1%	$37,557
7	Columbus	4	0%	$41,338
8	Washington	3	0%	$52,999
9	Chicago	2	0%	$50,506
10	Indianapolis	2	0%	$40,709
11	Los Angeles	2	0%	$53,178
12	New York	2	0%	$48,972
13	Atlanta	1	0%	$42,984
14	Aurora	1	0%	$50,188
15	Dallas	1	0%	$40,969
16	Detroit	1	0%	$40,821
17	Fresno	1	0%	$54,964

Payroll processor jobs

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