Payroll Specialist salary and cost of hiring in the US
A payroll specialist prepares payroll runs, checks hours and deductions, keeps employee pay records and answers staff questions about their pay.
BLS occupation 43-3051[1]; benefits share[2]. Checked 2026-10-16.
US salary range
| Range | 10th | Median | 90th | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | $39,500 | $58,260 | $81,350 |
Salary by state
| State | Median | 90th percentile | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | $98,760 | 270 | |
| California | $92,080 | 20,590 | |
| Washington | $89,290 | 3,560 | |
| Colorado | $88,050 | 2,580 | |
| Massachusetts | $86,360 | 3,280 | |
| New Hampshire | $87,140 | 800 | |
| Alaska | $78,450 | 360 | |
| Connecticut | $83,950 | 1,540 | |
| Hawaii | $83,810 | 700 | |
| Illinois | $86,460 | 5,580 | |
| Minnesota | $79,370 | 2,790 | |
| New York | $86,470 | 8,400 | |
| Oregon | $82,080 | 2,890 | |
| New Jersey | $84,990 | 4,290 | |
| North Dakota | $77,530 | 300 | |
| Georgia (US state) | $76,790 | 6,720 | |
| Maryland | $82,140 | 1,870 | |
| Rhode Island | $82,090 | 410 | |
| Wisconsin | $76,830 | 2,590 | |
| Virginia | $78,800 | 3,400 | |
| Nevada | $78,410 | 1,390 | |
| Maine | $79,040 | 590 | |
| Ohio | $80,650 | 5,820 | |
| Kansas | $79,160 | 1,400 | |
| Delaware | $86,620 | 320 | |
| Utah | $74,530 | 1,590 | |
| Michigan | $78,200 | 4,050 | |
| Pennsylvania | $76,980 | 5,170 | |
| Vermont | $70,690 | 270 | |
| Montana | $78,500 | 530 | |
| Nebraska | $74,360 | 910 | |
| Texas | $75,850 | 13,220 | |
| Iowa | $70,990 | 1,230 | |
| Missouri | $79,470 | 3,460 | |
| Indiana | $77,700 | 4,020 | |
| North Carolina | $74,480 | 3,630 | |
| New Mexico | $69,990 | 820 | |
| Kentucky | $76,590 | 1,670 | |
| South Carolina | $77,660 | 1,550 | |
| Wyoming | $74,610 | 160 | |
| Florida | $76,710 | 10,910 | |
| Idaho | $70,390 | 800 | |
| Tennessee | $75,160 | 3,680 | |
| Louisiana | $71,750 | 2,160 | |
| Arizona | $69,980 | 3,540 | |
| Oklahoma | $74,190 | 2,470 | |
| South Dakota | $64,350 | 370 | |
| West Virginia | $63,390 | 580 | |
| Alabama | $64,170 | 1,360 | |
| Arkansas | $71,280 | 1,220 | |
| Mississippi | $66,930 | 1,330 |
Top-paying metro areas
Areas with at least 500 people in the job.
| Metro area | Median | Jobs |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | 2,260 | |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | 1,000 | |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | 2,500 | |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | 1,980 | |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | 2,000 | |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | 6,600 | |
| Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO | 1,580 | |
| Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | 1,850 | |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | 1,840 | |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | 7,770 |
What the job involves
- Collect hours, overtime and changes before each run
- Prepare and check payroll in the provider
- Reconcile payroll with the general ledger
- Keep records of benefits and deductions
- Answer pay questions from employees
Tools
- Gusto, ADP or Paychex
- Deel or Remote for international staff
- Excel
- QuickBooks or Xero
How to test candidates
- Check a payroll register with planted mistakes
- Explain gross-to-net for a sample payslip
- Confidentiality: how they handle salary data
Remote work
Possible remotely with the provider doing tax filings; the specialist prepares and checks, the company approves.
Local or remote
We place executive assistants, customer support and e-commerce staff today; for payroll specialists we answer within one business day whether we can help. Enter the monthly pay you have in mind to compare it with a local hire. The fee field shows our standard fee[3]; Deel's contractor plan is the default payroll tool[4].
Questions
What is the average payroll specialist salary in the US?
The BLS median was $58,260 a year in May 2025 and the mean $59,630.
Which state pays payroll specialists the most?
District of Columbia, with a median of $74,670 a year.
Sources
- BLS OEWS May 2025, 43-3051: https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes433051.htm
- BLS Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, private industry, June 2026: https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.nr0.htm
- Silkstaff pricing: https://silkstaff.com/#pricing
- Deel pricing, contractor management: https://www.deel.com/pricing/
How these pages are built: methodology and data sources. Data checked 2026-10-16.