Payroll technician vs certified medical technician

The differences between payroll technicians and certified medical technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a payroll technician, becoming a certified medical technician takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a payroll technician has an average salary of $44,971, which is higher than the $38,859 average annual salary of a certified medical technician.

The top three skills for a payroll technician include payroll system, human resources and data entry. The most important skills for a certified medical technician are patients, vital signs, and CPR.

Payroll technician vs certified medical technician overview

	Payroll Technician	Certified Medical Technician
Yearly salary	$44,971	$38,859
Hourly rate	$21.62	$18.68
Growth rate	-3%	5%
Number of jobs	11,297	164,424
Job satisfaction	5	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 45%	Bachelor's Degree, 28%
Average age	48	44
Years of experience	4	12

What does a payroll technician do?

A payroll technician may work in the finance or human resource department of an organization or with a payroll service. They are responsible for the collation and recording of employee payment data. As a payroll technician, you will apply organization systems, relevant laws, and other employment and labour regulations to process employees' payments. Depending on the payroll cycle, as a payroll technician, you will be expected to maintain accurate and up to date detailed information of staff for payroll purposes.

What does a certified medical technician do?

Certified Medical Technicians are specialists in medical diagnoses by performing laboratory testing and analysis for hospitals and physicians. Their duties include lab sanitization to prepare for testing and collection, recording medical samples for testing, specimen preparation, blood drawing for donation and testing, and assisting physicians with sample collection as well as equipment handling in surgical rooms. They must also understand how to use complex and sensitive testing equipment such as cell counters, analyzers, microscopes, and centrifuges.

Payroll technician vs certified medical technician salary

Payroll technicians and certified medical technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Payroll Technician	Certified Medical Technician
Average salary	$44,971	$38,859
Salary range	Between $30,000 And $66,000	Between $28,000 And $53,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	Denton, TX
Highest paying state	New Jersey	Alaska
Best paying company	InfosysPublicService	Favorite Healthcare Staffing
Best paying industry	Finance	Health Care

Differences between payroll technician and certified medical technician education

There are a few differences between a payroll technician and a certified medical technician in terms of educational background:

	Payroll Technician	Certified Medical Technician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 45%	Bachelor's Degree, 28%
Most common major	Business	Nursing
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Connecticut

Payroll technician vs certified medical technician demographics

Here are the differences between payroll technicians' and certified medical technicians' demographics:

	Payroll Technician	Certified Medical Technician
Average age	48	44
Gender ratio	Male, 19.1% Female, 80.9%	Male, 20.4% Female, 79.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.7% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 18.9% Asian, 6.1% White, 57.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5%	Black or African American, 15.9% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 10.0% White, 53.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	10%	8%

Differences between payroll technician and certified medical technician duties and responsibilities

Payroll technician example responsibilities.

Provide Kronos and Lawson support to management concerning departmental payroll and timekeeping.
Evaluate time cards through KRONOS for accuracy.
Transmit and process payroll for hourly/shift employees on a bi-weekly basis with the use of ADP software.
Process payroll from the loading of time and attendance files to submitting payment data to ADP for check printing.
Provide payroll calculation and leave posting input for computer processing.
Participate in the successful implementation of PeopleSoft from an in-house system.

Certified medical technician example responsibilities.

Maintain the cleanliness of storage areas, trays, centrifuges, refrigerators, freezers and work area.
Administer medications to patients according to their medication record as scheduled, as needed according to physician orders.
Perform laboratory test and procedures in areas including chemistry, hematology, urinalysis, coagulation, serology, and bacteriology.
Perform first aid and apply CPR when necessary.
Perform first aid or CPR during medical emergencies until paramedics arrive.
Assist the residents in their ADL needs and prepare their meals.

Payroll technician vs certified medical technician skills

Common payroll technician skills

Payroll System, 9%
Human Resources, 7%
Data Entry, 6%
Life Insurance, 5%
Kronos, 4%
Payroll Data, 4%

Common certified medical technician skills

Patients, 17%
Vital Signs, 12%
CPR, 8%
Administer Medications, 7%
Resident Care, 6%
HIPAA, 6%

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Payroll Technician vs Certified Medical Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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