Top 12 Payroll Clerk Skills to Put on Your Resume

In today’s competitive job market, standing out as a payroll clerk means showing a mix of sharp technical know-how and steady soft skills on your resume. Spotlight the skills employers ask for most and you’ll move faster through screens and into interviews.

Payroll Clerk Skills

1. QuickBooks
2. ADP Workforce Now
3. Excel
4. Paychex Flex
5. SAP SuccessFactors
6. UKG Workforce (formerly Kronos)
7. Data Entry
8. Dayforce (formerly Ceridian Dayforce)
9. Multi-state Payroll
10. Gusto Payroll
11. Payroll Compliance
12. Oracle PeopleSoft

1. QuickBooks

QuickBooks is accounting software built for small and mid-sized businesses. It handles payroll, expenses, invoicing, and financial reporting with solid tools for payroll automation, tax filings, and employee payments.

Why It's Important

It speeds payroll, automates tax calculations, and helps ensure on-time, accurate pay. Fewer mistakes, fewer headaches.

How to Improve QuickBooks Skills

1. Automate payroll: Turn on automated runs and tax payments to reduce manual touchpoints.

2. Integrate time tracking: Connect approved time tools so hours flow straight into payroll.

3. Stay current on tax rules: Keep the software updated and review tax table changes routinely.

4. Use direct deposit: Faster paydays, less paper, less chasing.

5. Customize reports: Build views for liabilities, deductions, and payroll costs you monitor every cycle.

6. Protect data: Enforce strong passwords, roles, and two-factor authentication.

7. Train and refresh: Explore new features and best practices quarterly; small tweaks compound.

How to Display QuickBooks Skills on Your Resume

2. ADP Workforce Now

ADP Workforce Now is a cloud HCM platform with payroll, HR, time, talent, and benefits. It’s designed to streamline payroll operations from input to tax filing.

Why It's Important

It centralizes payroll, enforces compliance rules, and cuts errors through automation. Time back in your day, fewer corrections later.

How to Improve ADP Workforce Now Skills

1. Deepen product training: Complete role-based learning paths; schedule refreshers for new releases.

2. Lean on built-in resources: Use help articles, in-app tips, and release notes to discover better workflows.

3. Automate the routine: Configure recurring runs, tax filings, and retro calculations where feasible.

4. Integrate systems: Connect time, accounting, and HRIS to eliminate rekeying.

5. Audit regularly: Run exception and variance reports; resolve anomalies before payroll finalization.

6. Collect feedback: Gather input from approvers and employees to smooth rough edges in the process.

How to Display ADP Workforce Now Skills on Your Resume

3. Excel

Excel is the spreadsheet backbone for tracking hours, calculating wages, reconciling deductions, and producing quick reports on demand.

Why It's Important

It organizes and analyzes payroll data at scale. When systems don’t report exactly what you want, Excel fills the gaps.

How to Improve Excel Skills

1. Level up formulas: Master SUMIF/SUMIFS, XLOOKUP (or INDEX/MATCH), IF/IFS, TEXT functions, and DATE math.

2. Pivot like a pro: Build PivotTables and slicers for fast summaries of earnings, taxes, and labor costs.

3. Automate repetitive work: Record simple macros; learn basic VBA for recurring cleanup tasks.

4. Enforce data validation: Control inputs with dropdowns, ranges, and error alerts to prevent typos.

5. Security matters: Protect sheets, hide formulas, and encrypt files containing PII.

6. Power Query and Power Pivot: Clean, combine, and model data from multiple sources without manual wrangling.

How to Display Excel Skills on Your Resume

4. Paychex Flex

Paychex Flex is a cloud platform for payroll and HR tasks—calculations, tax filing, onboarding, and more—aimed at dependable, accurate cycles.

Why It's Important

It trims manual work, keeps tax settings fresh, and reduces exposure to compliance errors.

How to Improve Paychex Flex Skills

1. Streamline with automation: Schedule payroll, set recurring deductions, and enable e-file/e-pay.

2. Tune the interface to your flow: Favorite frequent tasks and customize dashboards to reduce clicks.

3. Build useful reports: Save templates for labor distribution, liabilities, and quarter-end work.

4. Integrate accounting: Connect to your GL so payroll postings land in the right accounts automatically.

5. Ongoing learning: Review release notes and attend trainings to adopt improvements early.

6. Harden security: Enforce roles, MFA, and periodic access reviews.

7. Close the loop: Gather user feedback and iterate settings to cut bottlenecks.

How to Display Paychex Flex Skills on Your Resume

5. SAP SuccessFactors

SAP SuccessFactors is a cloud HR suite with payroll capabilities and strong links to compensation, benefits, and compliance.

Why It's Important

It automates payroll steps, reduces manual corrections, and consolidates employee data for precise, auditable results.

How to Improve SAP SuccessFactors Skills

1. Ground yourself in core payroll: Learn navigation, pay components, schemas, and configuration basics relevant to your role.

2. Formal training and certification: Build confidence with structured courses and sandbox practice.

3. Keep up with releases: Review quarterly updates and adopt features that shrink effort or risk.

4. Automate and integrate: Use workflows, business rules, and integrations with finance/time to cut duplicate entry.

5. Customize analytics: Tailor reports and tiles for the KPIs you manage every pay period.

6. Solicit feedback: Partner with HR and finance to refine processes that touch payroll.

How to Display SAP SuccessFactors Skills on Your Resume

6. UKG Workforce (formerly Kronos)

UKG (the merger of Kronos and Ultimate Software) offers workforce management and HCM tools for scheduling, timekeeping, and payroll. It tightens the handoff from time to pay.

Why It's Important

Accurate time data means accurate pay. With cleaner inputs and automated calculations, payroll closes faster with fewer adjustments.

How to Improve UKG Workforce Skills

1. Invest in training: Learn time rules, pay rules, and accruals thoroughly; they drive clean payroll results.

2. Automate approvals: Configure reminders, escalations, and auto-approvals where policy allows.

3. Tailor reports: Build exception, overtime, and variance reports that spotlight issues early.

4. Integrate systems: Connect HRIS, payroll, and GL to keep data flowing without re-entry.

5. Stay current: Apply updates and review new features that enhance compliance and security.

6. Iterate with users: Collect feedback from supervisors and approvers to refine timekeeping practices.

How to Display UKG Workforce Skills on Your Resume

7. Data Entry

Data entry for payroll means precise input and upkeep of employee details, hours, rates, deductions, and tax settings inside the payroll system.

Why It's Important

Accurate entry protects paychecks, keeps taxes right, and supports clean audits. One stray digit can ripple.

How to Improve Data Entry Skills

1. Adopt reliable payroll software: Reduce manual typing with imports, templates, and validations.
2. Standardize inputs: Use SOPs, naming conventions, and checklists to ensure consistency.
3. Train often: Refresh on system updates and keyboard shortcuts; speed follows accuracy.
4. Verify systematically: Peer reviews, spot checks, and exception reports catch issues early.
5. Use capture tools: Employ OCR or structured forms to pull data in cleanly.
6. Secure the workflow: Role-based access, MFA, and audit logs to protect sensitive information.

How to Display Data Entry Skills on Your Resume

8. Dayforce (formerly Ceridian Dayforce)

Dayforce is an end-to-end HCM platform with real-time payroll calculation, tax management, and compliance features built in.

Why It's Important

Continuous calculation reduces surprises at close. Taxes and deductions stay aligned with current rules.

How to Improve Dayforce Skills

1. Track release changes: Review new features and enable those that simplify your runbook.

2. Use training resources: Complete product modules focused on payroll, taxes, and year-end.

3. Automate repetitive steps: Configure workflows for approvals, retro pay, and adjustments.

4. Tighten data quality: Schedule audits for earnings codes, deductions, and jurisdiction settings.

5. Engage your community: Swap tips with peers internally and share what works best.

6. Provide feedback: Document edge cases and process pain points to guide improvements.

How to Display Dayforce Skills on Your Resume

9. Multi-state Payroll

Multi-state payroll means paying employees who work or live across state lines, withholdings and filings that vary by location, and sometimes city or local taxes layered on top.

Why It's Important

Compliance differs by state—tax rates, SUI, wage-and-hour rules, pay frequency, reciprocity agreements. Getting it wrong invites penalties.

How to Improve Multi-state Payroll Skills

1. Maintain a state rules library: Document tax rates, reciprocity, local taxes, and deadlines for each jurisdiction you touch.

2. Use software that supports multi-jurisdiction logic: Automate residency vs. work location, SUI rates, and local tax setup.

3. Automate time and location capture: Accurate work location data drives correct tax withholding.

4. Consult experts when needed: Complex nexus or remote scenarios benefit from specialist review.

5. Train regularly: New state rules and city taxes emerge—refresh knowledge on a schedule.

6. Communicate with employees: Explain how location changes affect taxes and what documents are required.

How to Display Multi-state Payroll Skills on Your Resume

10. Gusto Payroll

Gusto is a cloud platform for payroll with benefits, onboarding, and simple compliance support wrapped in.

Why It's Important

Automated tax filing and tidy interfaces speed payroll and minimize manual corrections.

How to Improve Gusto Payroll Skills

1. Connect your books: Integrate with your accounting system to keep journals clean.
2. Personalize reports: Save custom views for liabilities, payroll costs, and team changes.
3. Enable auto tax: Turn on e-file and e-pay so deadlines don’t sneak up.
4. Empower self-service: Encourage employees to manage profiles and direct deposit details.
5. Stay updated: Review product updates and attend trainings to adopt new features quickly.
6. Mind security: Enforce MFA and least-privilege access for payroll roles.

How to Display Gusto Payroll Skills on Your Resume

11. Payroll Compliance

Payroll compliance means paying people correctly and on time while following federal, state, and local laws—wages, overtime rules, tax withholding, reporting, and recordkeeping.

Why It's Important

It prevents penalties, protects employees, and builds trust across the business. Clean compliance is quiet; the opposite is loud.

How to Improve Payroll Compliance Skills

1. Monitor regulatory changes: Track updates to tax rates, overtime thresholds, minimum wage, and filing requirements.

2. Use compliant software: Rely on systems that update tax tables and support mandated forms and e-filing.

3. Invest in education: Take courses and attend webinars from reputable payroll and HR organizations.

4. Keep airtight records: Timecards, wage rates, approvals, and pay statements—organized and retained per requirements.

5. Map a compliance calendar: Flag filing deadlines, year-end tasks, and audit checkpoints so nothing slips.

How to Display Payroll Compliance Skills on Your Resume

12. Oracle PeopleSoft

Oracle PeopleSoft is a robust suite for HR, finance, and supply chain. Its payroll modules support complex calculations, tax processing, benefits, and detailed reporting.

Why It's Important

It automates high-volume, multi-rule payrolls with audit trails and reporting that finance and compliance teams trust.

How to Improve Oracle PeopleSoft Skills

1. Stay updated: Apply current images and patches to gain features and security fixes.

2. Streamline workflows: Tailor pages, components, and approvals to match your payroll cadence.

3. Leverage reporting: Use queries and BI reporting for reconciliations, audits, and variance tracking.

4. Automate routine jobs: Schedule processes (calc, confirm, GL) and notifications to cut manual steps.

5. Harden security: Enforce role-based access, segregation of duties, and periodic audits.

6. Upskill continuously: Train on payroll rules, GL integrations, and year-end activities to stay sharp.

How to Display Oracle PeopleSoft Skills on Your Resume