What does an accounts receivable employee cost in Utah?
If overdue invoices are piling up, hiring another accounts receivable employee can feel like the obvious answer. Sometimes it is. But first separate the accounting work from the customer follow-up work so you know what capacity you are actually paying for.
By Robb Seal, founder of Get Paid Utah. Published August 20, 2026. Compensation benchmarks checked August 20, 2026.
Start with current base pay, then add the rest of the employer cost.
Public compensation data gives you a useful starting point, but the hourly rate or salary is not the full cost of adding a person.
| Benchmark | Low | Mid / average | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Indeed · Utah Accounts Receivable Clerk | $16.44/hour | $22.18/hour | $29.92/hour |
| Indeed · Salt Lake City Accounts Receivable Clerk | $17.31/hour | $23.76/hour | $32.61/hour |
| Robert Half · Salt Lake City Accounts Receivable Clerk | $47,520/year | $55,620/year | $62,640/year |
| Robert Half · Salt Lake City Accounts Receivable Specialist | $59,130/year | $65,070/year | $71,010/year |
| Robert Half · Salt Lake City Credit and Collections Specialist | $51,840/year | $61,560/year | $74,250/year |
Sources: Indeed Utah Accounts Receivable Clerk salary, Indeed Salt Lake City Accounts Receivable Clerk salary, and Robert Half Salt Lake City accounts receivable salary benchmarks. Indeed reported its Utah figure from 180 salary/job-posting inputs updated July 31, 2026 and its Salt Lake City figure from 60 inputs updated July 25, 2026. Robert Half reports low, mid, and high starting compensation levels.
A new hire costs more than the number in the job posting.
Your actual employer cost depends on your own payroll and benefits structure, so there is no honest single percentage that applies to every Utah business.
Payroll and benefits
Employer payroll taxes, health or other benefits, paid time off, and any retirement contribution are part of the real cost.
Recruiting and onboarding
Job ads, interviews, background checks, training, setup, and the time it takes before the person is fully productive all count.
Tools and management
Computer, phone, software, workspace, supervision, review, and coverage during absences add operating cost.
Turnover risk
If the person leaves, the business absorbs another hiring cycle while the receivables work still has to get done.
Use your real numbers.
Do not compare an outside service with salary alone. At the same time, do not pretend an outside receivables service replaces payroll, bookkeeping, reconciliations, reporting, or every duty an accounting employee may own. Compare the actual work you need handled.
Do you need another accounting employee, or do you need the follow-up after the invoice goes out?
Those can be two different problems.
| If the missing work is mainly... | The better answer may be... |
|---|---|
| Bookkeeping, reconciliations, payroll, accounts payable, month-end close, reporting, customer setup, billing administration | An internal accounting or bookkeeping hire. Those are broader accounting responsibilities and may justify dedicated employee capacity. |
| Calling and emailing past-due customers, finding payment blockers, tracking promises, following missed commitments, documenting next actions | Focused receivables follow-up. You may not need another full-time accounting seat just to make sure overdue invoices keep moving. |
| A real mix of both | Split the scope deliberately. Keep accounting work where it belongs and decide whether the receivables follow-up should stay internal or be handled separately. |
Measure the workload before you commit to headcount.
- How many hours of real accounting work exist each week?Separate bookkeeping, billing, reconciliation, payroll, reporting, and other accounting duties from customer follow-up.
- How many hours are really spent chasing payment?Count calls, emails, promise tracking, dispute follow-up, missing documents, rebilling, and escalation.
- Is the problem capacity or lack of process?Another person will not automatically fix scattered account history, unclear ownership, vague payment promises, or missing next actions.
- Who will manage the function?An employee still needs priorities, training, review, coverage, and clear authority when an account gets complicated.
It is not a substitute for every accounting role.
Get Paid Utah is designed for the operating work around past-due business invoices. QuickBooks remains the accounting source of truth. Your company keeps control of accounting accuracy, credits, write-offs, customer policy, and legal decisions.
Get Paid Utah focuses on
Past-due priorities, customer follow-up, payment blockers, specific commitments, missed promises, next actions, expected cash, and organized escalation history.
Your accounting team still owns
Books, reconciliations, payroll, taxes, financial statements, transaction accuracy, accounting policy, and other duties outside the agreed receivables scope.
Use the least expensive operating answer that will actually solve the bottleneck.
Get Paid Utah currently publishes self-serve, guided platform, and managed receivables options. Those prices are not an apples-to-apples replacement for an employee who performs broader accounting duties. They are alternatives when the missing work is narrower.
Before you finish the hire, make sure you are solving the right problem.
Review a few overdue invoices with Robb for free. He will explain what he would do next and help you see whether the service fits. No accounting-system access, no customer contact during the review, and no obligation to buy.