Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks pay in the U.S.
$59,630avg. a year
$28.67 an hour · 153,140 employed
Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks in the U.S. earn an average of $59,630 a year and a median of $58,260. Pay is highest in District of Columbia ($76,510) and lowest in Alabama ($47,530).
$58,260Median pay
$28.67Average hourly
+23%Avg. pay since 2020
153,140Jobs in the U.S.
Top-paying states for payroll and timekeeping clerks
Average pay by state. Swipe to see the top 10.
1270 jobs
District of Columbia
$76,510
$36.79 an hour
220,590 jobs
California
$68,580
$32.97 an hour
33,560 jobs
Washington
$67,810
$32.60 an hour
43,280 jobs
Massachusetts
$66,810
$32.12 an hour
52,580 jobs
Colorado
$65,400
$31.44 an hour
61,540 jobs
Connecticut
$64,880
$31.19 an hour
7700 jobs
Hawaii
$64,260
$30.89 an hour
8800 jobs
New Hampshire
$64,240
$30.89 an hour
98,400 jobs
New York
$63,650
$30.60 an hour
10360 jobs
Alaska
$62,990
$30.29 an hour
Why people trust JobPayFacts
Official government dataEvery number comes from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics wage survey of employers, not self-reported salaries.
Every state and city830 jobs across all 50 states, D.C. and 199 large metro areas.
Updated every yearNew figures each spring when BLS releases them. This site uses May 2025 data.
Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks pay, charted
Pay over time
United States, annual wage, May of each year
AverageMedian
Where the jobs are
Employment by state, May 2025
Average pay by state
May 2025 · tap a state
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Under $55k$55k–$58k$58k–$62k$62k+
Top-paying metro areas
Average pay, May 2025 (areas with 100+ jobs)
| Metro area | Avg. pay | Hourly |
|---|---|---|
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | $84,640 | $40.69 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $81,730 | $39.29 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $70,360 | $33.83 |
| Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA | $69,640 | $33.48 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $68,830 | $33.09 |
| Kahului-Wailuku, HI | $68,690 | $33.02 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | $68,660 | $33.01 |
| Napa, CA | $67,880 | $32.64 |
Related jobs
- Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks$53,560
- Billing and Posting Clerks$51,070
- Tellers$42,350
- Bill and Account Collectors$49,060
- Procurement Clerks$52,370
- Financial Clerks, All Other$56,450
Average U.S. pay, May 2025
Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS
Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks pay in every state
States without a figure had too few jobs or too little survey data for BLS to publish.
| State | Avg. pay | Median | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $47,530 | $46,170 | 1,360 |
| Alaska | $62,990 | $62,210 | 360 |
| Arizona | $52,140 | $50,210 | 3,540 |
| Arkansas | $49,750 | $46,110 | 1,220 |
| California | $68,580 | $65,340 | 20,590 |
| Colorado | $65,400 | $64,140 | 2,580 |
| Connecticut | $64,880 | $62,200 | 1,540 |
| Delaware | $61,460 | $56,430 | 320 |
| District of Columbia | $76,510 | $74,670 | 270 |
| Florida | $55,170 | $51,910 | 10,910 |
| Georgia | $59,510 | $59,990 | 6,720 |
| Hawaii | $64,260 | $62,070 | 700 |
| Idaho | $54,810 | $51,790 | 800 |
| Illinois | $62,460 | $61,390 | 5,580 |
| Indiana | $55,590 | $53,770 | 4,020 |
| Iowa | $56,960 | $54,080 | 1,230 |
| Kansas | $58,630 | $56,590 | 1,400 |
| Kentucky | $54,510 | $52,890 | 1,670 |
| Louisiana | $51,730 | $50,800 | 2,160 |
| Maine | $59,700 | $57,360 | 590 |
| Maryland | $59,580 | $59,760 | 1,870 |
| Massachusetts | $66,810 | $63,670 | 3,280 |
| Michigan | $58,450 | $56,160 | 4,050 |
| Minnesota | $62,620 | $61,320 | 2,790 |
| Mississippi | $47,680 | $45,170 | 1,330 |
| Missouri | $56,000 | $54,080 | 3,460 |
| Montana | $57,000 | $55,040 | 530 |
| Nebraska | $57,030 | $54,900 | 910 |
| Nevada | $58,800 | $58,220 | 1,390 |
| New Hampshire | $64,240 | $63,090 | 800 |
| New Jersey | $62,510 | $60,750 | 4,290 |
| New Mexico | $53,380 | $53,230 | 820 |
| New York | $63,650 | $61,040 | 8,400 |
| North Carolina | $54,800 | $53,550 | 3,630 |
| North Dakota | $61,350 | $60,600 | 300 |
| Ohio | $58,530 | $57,270 | 5,820 |
| Oklahoma | $52,030 | $49,920 | 2,470 |
| Oregon | $62,260 | $60,980 | 2,890 |
| Pennsylvania | $56,880 | $55,690 | 5,170 |
| Rhode Island | $61,010 | $59,370 | 410 |
| South Carolina | $54,950 | $52,240 | 1,550 |
| South Dakota | $49,730 | $47,680 | 370 |
| Tennessee | $54,220 | $51,780 | 3,680 |
| Texas | $55,390 | $54,090 | 13,220 |
| Utah | $57,810 | $56,430 | 1,590 |
| Vermont | $56,440 | $55,340 | 270 |
| Virginia | $59,810 | $58,250 | 3,400 |
| Washington | $67,810 | $64,560 | 3,560 |
| West Virginia | $47,820 | $47,460 | 580 |
| Wisconsin | $59,710 | $59,310 | 2,590 |
| Wyoming | $54,000 | $51,940 | 160 |
Metro areas with the most jobs
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ
$66,110
7,770 jobsLos Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA$68,830
6,600 jobsAtlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA$62,960
4,260 jobsChicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN$64,400
4,170 jobsDallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX
$58,450
3,800 jobsHouston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX
$57,080
3,260 jobsMiami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL
$57,070
2,750 jobsPhoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ
$53,390
2,650 jobsQuestions and answers
How much do payroll and timekeeping clerks make?
The average is $59,630 a year across the U.S. Half earn more than $58,260 and half earn less (the median).
What is the hourly pay?
The average hourly wage is $28.67, and the median is $28.01 an hour.
Which state pays payroll and timekeeping clerks the most?
District of Columbia, with an average of $76,510 a year. The best-paying metro area is San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA at $84,640.
What is the pay range?
The lowest-paid 10% earn under $39,500 a year, and the top 10% earn over $81,350.
Sources and notes. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 (trend: May 2020–May 2025), occupation code 43-3051. Wages are gross pay before taxes and don't include overtime premiums, tips, bonuses or benefits; self-employed workers aren't included. Year-to-year changes can partly reflect survey method changes, so treat the trend as a guide. How we use the data. JobPayFacts isn't affiliated with BLS.