Brokerage Clerks vs Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks: $66K vs $58K Median Pay

Brokerage Clerks vs Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks: what changes?

Consider Brokerage Clerks if you want to perform duties related to the purchase, sale, or holding of securities. Consider Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks if you would rather compile and record employee time and payroll data. Both list high school diploma or equivalent; compare training and prior experience separately.

Try this next: Compare three local entry-level postings for Brokerage Clerks and Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks. List the duties, credentials, prior experience, and paid training each employer actually asks for. Try a supervised class or sample project from each field before choosing a program.

BLS 2025 wages and 2025–2035 projections. National medians are not starting offers. Occupation size is not a count of vacancies. View the BLS data.

Compare the practical differences

Brokerage Clerks

National median pay (2025): $65,750
Route into the job: High school diploma or equivalent; More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing
Prior related experience: No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
Training and licensing: More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.
Work to investigate: Correspond with customers and confer with coworkers to answer inquiries, discuss market fluctuations, or resolve account problems.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 3,400

Know before you choose

BLS projects employment to shrink 7.6% from 2025 to 2035. Openings can still occur when existing workers leave.

See the full Brokerage Clerks brief

Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks

National median pay (2025): $58,260
Route into the job: High school diploma or equivalent; More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing
Prior related experience: No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
Training and licensing: More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.
Work to investigate: Verify attendance, hours worked, and pay adjustments, and post information onto designated records.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 11,400

Know before you choose

BLS projects employment to shrink 15.9% from 2025 to 2035. Openings can still occur when existing workers leave.

See the full Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks brief

How the national numbers differ

Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks has the edge on annual openings

Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks is at 11,400 annual openings, compared with 3,400 annual openings for Brokerage Clerks.

Brokerage Clerks has the edge on median pay

Brokerage Clerks is at $65,750, compared with $58,260 for Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks.

Brokerage Clerks has the edge on projected growth

Brokerage Clerks is at -7.6% projected growth, compared with -15.9% projected growth for Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks.

39.5/ 100

Brokerage Clerks

41.1/ 100

Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks

Each available metric is ranked from 0 to 100 against the careers on ChooseField. The weighted average uses this profile: pay 30%, growth 25%, openings 30%, preparation level 15%. Missing values are not scored as zero; their weights are redistributed across available metrics. Occupation size has zero weight: employment is not accessible vacancies. Preparation categories do not measure admission difficulty or years without earnings. The score summarizes national measures; local opportunities and personal fit still need separate consideration.

Detailed evidence

Brokerage Clerks vs Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks

Dimension	Brokerage Clerks	Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks
Median pay (2025)	$65,750	$58,260
Pay percentile	57.7 percentile	44.2 percentile
Projected growth (2025–2035)	-7.6%	-15.9%
Annual openings (2025–2035)	3,400	11,400
2025 employment	36,900	159,600
How you qualify	High school diploma or equivalent; More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing	High school diploma or equivalent; More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing
O*NET preparation group	Job Zone 3	Job Zone 3
Related work experience	No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.	No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
On-the-job training	More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.	More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.

The table reports national benchmarks and reviewed work descriptions. It does not rate personal suitability, job security, or physical safety.

Read Brokerage Clerks brief Read Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks brief

Brokerage Clerks vs Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks: what changes?

The facts most likely to affect your decision

Brokerage Clerks

Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks

How the national numbers differ

Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks has the edge on annual openings

Brokerage Clerks has the edge on median pay

Brokerage Clerks has the edge on projected growth

Brokerage Clerks vs Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks

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