How Much Do Payroll and Benefits Managers Make?

Having a clear understanding of earnings potential is important, especially if you are researching career paths or considering changing jobs. If you're one of those people, and you're curious what kind of salary payroll and benefits managers make, you've come to the right place.

Using data from Lightcast,™ the Best Adult Colleges and Careers Guide has compiled rich information about salary for payroll and benefits managers and related jobs, including details about average compensation, salary trends and job growth. We've also gathered advertised salaries from actual job postings to provide insight into what employers of payroll and benefits managers are offering as compensation.

Keep reading to learn more about how much payroll and benefits managers can expect to make in the United States.

At a Glance: Salary & Jobs for Payroll and Benefits Managers

According to data from 2022, there were about 16,606 positions for payroll and benefits managers in the United States. In terms of salary, the national median salary for payroll and benefits managers was reported to be $131,269. Additionally, when examining job demand, employers across the country posted 12,977 job postings related to positions for payroll and benefits managers.

How Much Money Do Payroll and Benefits Managers Make?

Median salary is just one data point. To build a better understanding of how much money payroll and benefits managers and related positions can expect to make in the United States, it can be helpful to look at the full range of compensation for those jobs.

Let's look more deeply at data that was reported to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) for detail into the lowest and highest salary earnings for payroll and benefits managers.

Annual Salary for Payroll and Benefits Managers

According to the BLS, the lowest earners for payroll and benefits managers and related professions earned about $77,230 per year in 2022. Meanwhile, at the other end of the spectrum, the highest earners made about $217,651 annually.

As mentioned previously, the median salary for payroll and benefits managers in the United States in 2022 was $131,269.

Hourly Salary for Payroll and Benefits Managers

The BLS also breaks down compensation for payroll and benefits managers by hourly salary, and the median average hourly pay for payroll and benefits managers in 2022 was $63. Lowest hourly earners took home $37 while the highest reported hourly salaries for payroll and benefits managers was $105.

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Degree Options for Payroll and Benefits Managers

Advertised Compensation for Payroll and Benefits Managers

Data from the BLS is one way to dig into compensation for payroll and benefits managers, but another way to build a more real-time understanding of salary is to look at actual job postings and see what compensation organizations are currently providing to fill open positions for payroll and benefits managers.

Keep in mind that salary data is not included in every job posting, so the information compiled here is reflective of the data available through Lightcast.™

Annual Salary from Job Postings for Payroll and Benefits Managers

During a review of 23,698 job postings related to payroll and benefits managers, advertised salary was included in 4,672 of them, which was 20%. Based on those postings, the median advertised salary for payroll and benefits managers was $111,872 per year.

Hourly Salary from Job Postings for Payroll and Benefits Managers

A similar analysis of job postings provides insight into advertised hourly salary for payroll and benefits managers. Based on 36% of postings with advertised compensation, the median hourly salary for open positions for payroll and benefits managers in the United States is about $54.

Salary Trend for Payroll and Benefits Managers

If you're thinking about pursuing a career in the field, you may want to understand how compensation has changed over time for payroll and benefits managers. The chart below provides a snapshot of advertised salaries over the past three years.

Based on compensation data that was included in job postings for payroll and benefits managers dating back to September 2019, advertised salaries for payroll and benefits managers have increased 58%.

What's the Job Growth for Payroll and Benefits Managers?

Another data point that someone thinking about a career path should consider is whether or not jobs are expected to see growth in the future. The chart below looks at projected employment for payroll and benefits managers over the next 10 years.

According to the data obtained through Lightcast,™ there were 16,602 jobs for payroll and benefits managers in the United States in 2022. By 2032, it is expected that about 1,263 jobs will be added. That's a 7.6% increase over the next 10-year period.

Additional Links

Ready to dig deeper into career information about payroll and benefits managers? Visit our other pages focused on salary and education for payroll and benefits managers.

What do payroll and benefits managers do?
Payroll and Benefits Managers: How do you become one?

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