Payroll Specialist: salaries and requirements
As of September 28, 2026, the cvGO database holds 42 active jobs for “Payroll Specialist”. Median pay among jobs that state it: US & Canada — $145,000 per year (n = 23). Most requested skills: Payroll Compliance, Payroll Processing, Payroll.
Pay by region
| Region | Median | 25–75% | Jobs with pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| US & Canada | $145,000 per year | $130,800 per year – $175,000 per year | 23 |
Skills in requirements
- Payroll Compliance — 27%
- Payroll Processing — 27%
- Payroll — 24%
- Global Payroll — 22%
- Month-End Close — 22%
- Workday — 22%
- Equity Compensation — 19%
- Payroll Accounting — 19%
- Excel — 16%
- HRIS — 16%
- Tax Compliance — 16%
- Compliance — 14%
- Cross-functional Collaboration — 14%
- International Payroll — 14%
- payroll automation — 14%
- Payroll Tax — 14%
- Process Improvement — 14%
- Reconciliations — 14%
- Vendor Management — 14%
- Workday Payroll — 14%
Levels
- Junior — 1
- Middle — 22
- Senior — 11
- Lead — 4
- Director — 4
FAQ
How much do “Payroll Specialist” jobs pay?
US & Canada: median $145,000 per year, half of jobs between $130,800 per year and $175,000 per year (n = 23). Pay is stated in 55% of jobs.
Which skills do “Payroll Specialist” jobs require?
Payroll Compliance — 27%, Payroll Processing — 27%, Payroll — 24%, Global Payroll — 22%, Month-End Close — 22%. Share of jobs with parsed requirements (n = 37).
How many “Payroll Specialist” jobs are remote?
Remote — 40%, hybrid — 21%, office — 38% (of 42 jobs that state the format).
Are there entry-level “Payroll Specialist” jobs?
Intern and junior — 1 job (2%).
What level of English is required?
The level is stated in 71% of jobs; most often: C1 — 64%, B2 — 7%.
How we count
- Source: jobs in the cvGO database as of September 28, 2026: Global 90%, Telegram 10%.
- A job belongs to a profession by its title; one job may belong to several professions.
- Some jobs in the database match no profession in our catalogue and are not counted on these pages.
- Pay is the midpoint of the stated range or the single stated amount, in US dollars at a fixed rate (90 RUB per USD, table v1). Yearly amounts are divided by 12; if the period is not stated, it is inferred from the currency and amount; amounts outside 300–60,000 USD per month are excluded.
- A median is shown when a region has at least 10 jobs with pay.
- Skills and English are counted only for jobs with the employer’s own text.
- Duplicates of one job across sources are not merged.