Entry-level payroll specialist jobs: what the job is, skills and open roles
A payroll specialist makes sure employees are paid correctly and on time: hours, deductions, taxes and corrections.
What a payroll specialist does
In the finance and accounting family of jobs. Roles that keep the books, check the numbers and pay the bills.
A typical day
- 1. Collect and check timesheets
- 2. Run payroll in the system
- 3. Handle deductions and tax forms
- 4. Answer pay questions
- 5. Prepare payroll reports
Do you need experience?
Entry-level payroll specialist jobs exist, but none are open on the career sites we track at this moment, so we cannot say how many ask for experience. Each posting states its own requirements, so read the requirements section before you decide a job is out of reach.
Open entry-level payroll specialist jobs
Taken from employers’ own career sites and checked to still be open within the last week.
No entry-level payroll specialist jobs are open on the career sites we track right now. Save a search above and we will email you when one is posted, or search all payroll specialist jobs, including ones that do not say entry level.
Skills for payroll specialist jobs
The skills this job uses, most important first. Most can be learned or shown before the first day.
Skills to build or show
- 1. Payroll software (ADP, Paycom or similar)
- 2. Attention to detail
- 3. Confidentiality
- 4. Excel
- 5. Wage and hour rules basics
Close the gap for this job
Tell us what you already do and we point you to the training for the skills you are missing. Or check your résumé below first.
Find training for these skillsHow would your résumé fare for payroll specialist?
Paste it to see which skills this job uses and which your résumé leaves out. It runs here in your browser, so nothing you paste is sent.
The market for payroll specialist work
Every figure names its source.
- Open entry-level payroll specialist jobs
- 0
- Employment outlook, the closest government category
- Projected to shrink 16% from 2025 to 2035.
- AI use at work, the closest government category
- AI use among payroll and timekeeping clerks is little observed so far.
Source: NextChapter, checked against employer career sites, last 7 days.
See the detail →Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2025–2035.
Source: Anthropic Economic Index.
Outlook and AI-use figures are for the government category “Payroll and timekeeping clerks”, the closest match to this job.
More jobs like payroll specialist
Roles that use the same skills, and where this job commonly leads.
Where it can lead
Similar entry-level jobs
All entry-level finance and accounting jobs · Payroll Specialist jobs at every level
Questions about payroll specialist jobs
- What does a payroll specialist do?
- A payroll specialist makes sure employees are paid correctly and on time: hours, deductions, taxes and corrections. A typical day includes: collect and check timesheets; run payroll in the system; handle deductions and tax forms; answer pay questions; prepare payroll reports.
- Can I get an entry-level payroll specialist job with no experience?
- Entry-level payroll specialist jobs exist, but none are open on the career sites we track at this moment, so we cannot say how many ask for experience. Each posting states its own requirements, so read the requirements section before you decide a job is out of reach.
- What skills do you need to be a payroll specialist?
- The skills this job uses most are payroll software (adp, paycom or similar), attention to detail, confidentiality, excel, wage and hour rules basics. Most can be learned before the first day through coursework, short courses, practice or a related job.
- Where can a payroll specialist job lead?
- People in this job commonly move to HR coordinator, staff accountant, benefits coordinator, HR generalist. The link between jobs is the shared skills; the path is not guaranteed and depends on the employer.
See where you stand in the market today
Your Market Reality Assessment: a plain-language read on your odds, jobs matched to you and a weekly plan. Free. No résumé needed.
Hiring payroll specialist roles?
Leave your work email. We'll send how to reach people searching for payroll specialist jobs.