Average Payroll Specialist Salary in Puerto Rico for 2026

In this article, we will look at the average Payroll Specialist salary for 2026 in Puerto Rico and how that compares to other countries and professions. We'll also look at interesting salary data points like median salary, 25th and 75th percentile salaries, salary amounts based on experience, bonus ranges and more!

The data in this article has been compiled using official government salary data, salary surveys, and other sources such as job postings which contain salary information.

All salary information is in the local currency, which is the United States dollar. To keep things simple, we are using the USD currency code instead of the currency symbol $.

How Much Does a Payroll Specialist Make in Puerto Rico?

A Payroll Specialist working in Puerto Rico will typically earn around 13,900 USD per year, and this can range from the lowest average salary of about 6,030 USD to the highest average salary of 21,100 USD.

These are average salaries for a Payroll Specialist in Puerto Rico and include benefits such as housing and transport. It's also possible for a Payroll Specialist to earn more or less than the average salaries shown above.

Payroll Specialist salaries will vary a lot based on your experience, location, skills, and gender. Keep reading below to research more data on each of these areas.

Distribution of Payroll Specialist Salaries in Puerto Rico

So we've looked at the average salaries a Payroll Specialist will earn in Puerto Rico. The next interesting data point is the distribution of salaries.

Salary ranges

We already know that a Payroll Specialist can earn between 6,030 USD and 21,100 USD on average in Puerto Rico. This is known as the range in statistics.

The difference between the maximum and minimum values is a good indicator of variability in salaries, and can be used by employers to figure out how much they can expect to pay, and for employees to know how much they can earn.

Median salary

The median salary for a Payroll Specialist in Puerto Rico is 15,300 USD. This is the middle value in the distribution of salaries.

What this means is that approximately 50% of the population earn less than 15,300 USD, and 50% of the population earn more than 15,300 USD.

If you are earning more than the median salary, that's a good indicator that you are being paid well.

If you're not earning more than the median salary, your objective should be to increase your earnings to be at least as high as the median salary (which you can do by asking for a pay rise, looking for a better paying job, etc).

Percentiles

Percentiles are similar to the median salary, but instead of looking at the middle value, they look at the values in the top and bottom half of the distribution.

For the average Payroll Specialist salary in Puerto Rico, 25% of the population are earning less than 9,610 USD while 75% of the population earn more than 9,610 USD.

75% of the population earn less than 17,900 USD, and 25% of the population earn more than 17,900 USD.

Like the median salary, the 25th and 75th percentile salaries can be used to determine which quartile you fall into so that you know whether you are being paid well enough compared to others in your profession and location.

Payroll Specialist Salary by Experience Level in Puerto Rico

The most important factor in determining your salary after the specific profession is the number of years experience you have. It stands to reason that more years of experience will result in a higher wage.

We have researched the average Payroll Specialist salary based on years of experience to give you an idea of how the average changes once you've worked for a certain amount of time.

• 0 - 2 Years Experience. A Payroll Specialist in Puerto Rico that has less than two years of experience can expect to earn somewhere in the region of 8,950 USD.
• 2 - 5 Years Experience. With two to five years of experience the average Payroll Specialist salary would increase to 12,300 USD.
• 5 - 10 Years Experience. From five to ten years of experience as a Payroll Specialist, the average salary would be 15,300 USD.
• 10 - 15 Years Experience. Once you have more than ten years of experience the average salary reaches around 19,100 USD.
• 15 - 20 Years Experience. A Payroll Specialist with 15 to 20 years of experience can earn an average of 20,300 USD.
• 20+ Years Experience. For a Payroll Specialist with more than 20 years, the expected average salary increases to 21,100 USD.

Average Salary by Experience Chart

Payroll Specialist Salary by Education Level in Puerto Rico

As well as experience in a job, your education plays a big role in how much you can earn. A lot of higher paying positions require a high level of education, but how much can a degree increase your salary?

In our research we have compared the salaries of employees in the same job and career level with different levels of education to see how much more you can earn at each education level.

The salary you can earn based on your education is very specific to both your location and the career path you choose.

In our research, we looked at the average salary for a Payroll Specialist in Puerto Rico based on the education level of the employees in order to find out whether a better education level would increase your salary.

• High School. A Payroll Specialist in Puerto Rico with a high school education can earn an average salary of 10,500 USD.
• Certificate or Diploma. A Payroll Specialist in Puerto Rico with a certificate or diploma education can earn an average salary of 10,800 USD.
• Bachelor's Degree. A Payroll Specialist in Puerto Rico with a bachelor's degree education can earn an average salary of 16,800 USD.
• Master's Degree. A Payroll Specialist in Puerto Rico with a master's degree education can earn an average salary of 20,400 USD.

Average Salary by Education Chart

Payroll Specialist Salary Compared by Gender

In the modern age, we know that there should never be a pay gap between men and women. Unfortunately, in many professions, there is still a significant difference between the salaries earned by men when compared to the salary of women in the same job.

In Puerto Rico, a male payroll specialist will earn an average of 14,200 USD, while a female payroll specialist will earn around 13,900 USD.

This means that a male payroll specialist earns approximately 2% more than a female payroll specialist for performing the same job.

Average Salary by Gender Chart in Puerto Rico

Payroll Specialist Average Pay Raise in Puerto Rico

In many countries, an annual pay raise is often given to employees to reward their service with a salary increase.

From our research, we can see that the average pay raise for a Payroll Specialist in Puerto Rico is around 7% every 28 months.

The national average pay raise across all professions and industries in Puerto Rico is around 4% every 29 months.

In this case, we can see that the number of months between the average pay raise is higher than the typical 12 months.

To make the data more meaningful, we can calculate what the approximate annual pay raise would be using a simple formula:

Annual Increase = ( Increase Rate ÷ Months ) × 12

So for this example, it would be:

Annual Increase = ( 7 ÷ 28 ) × 12  = 3%

What this means is that a Payroll Specialist in Puerto Rico can expect to receive an average pay raise of around 3% every 12 months.

Annual Pay Raise by Industry in Puerto Rico for 2026

In the chart below, you can see the average annual pay raise percentages for each of the major industries in Puerto Rico.

You will see that companies in bigger and more lucrative industries tend to have the higher annual pay raises.

Payroll Specialist Bonus and Incentive Rates in Puerto Rico

Another part of your overall compensation in a job is how much bonus you receive. Some job roles will be more likely to pay a bonus than others and also more likely to have higher bonus rates.

Generally speaking, jobs that are more involved with direct revenue generation will receive higher bonuses based on the performance towards revenue goals.

A Payroll Specialist is a low bonus based job, with 39% of employees reporting at least one bonus in the last 12 months.

61% reported that they had not received any bonuses in the previous 12 months.

For the employees that did receive a bonus in the previous 12 months, the reported bonuses ranged from 3% to 6%.

Government vs Private Sector Salaries

Another commonly asked question is whether you get paid a higher salary working in the public (government) sector or the private sector.

Public sector employees in Puerto Rico earn approximately 23% more than private sector employees in the same role.

Salaries for Jobs Similar to a Payroll Specialist

In the table below, we have salary information for jobs that are similar to a Payroll Specialist in Puerto Rico.