Americas Concedes Payroll Efficiency Top Spot Globally to Lead Automation Revolution

The Americas (AMER) has fallen from the global top spot in payroll efficiency, driven by a decline in the number of payroll runs approved first time. However, contrary to initial inspection, this is a sign of the region’s adoption of technology and automation capabilities. That’s according to the 2025 Payroll Efficiency Index (PEI), from CloudPay, the global leader in payroll and payments solutions. 

The PEI report is an analysis of more than one million payslips processed from over 130 countries between 1 January and 31 December 2024. According to the data, First Time Approval rates (FTAs) in AMER have fallen 3.09% from last year to 78.97%, knocking the region off the top spot for the first time since the report began in 2021. While this could be interpreted negatively, it is in fact testament to the adaptive and flexible nature of payroll requirements and indicates that organizations in the region are leading the automation revolution in payroll. 

Growing flexibility needed 

Further analysis of the data reveals the extent of the complexity and flexibility that the Americas is adapting to. While the global calendar length has risen by 12%, this has decreased from 5.8 to 5.4 in the AMER region (the lowest on record for the 2025 report), suggesting that new approaches towards monthly payroll cycles have been implemented and are now being optimized and improved. The Supplemental Impact (SI) statistics also show that AMER has the highest supplementary rate at 37.61%. 

According to the PEI report, the Americas is also the top performer globally for Data Input Issues (DII)*, with an average of 0.34 issues reported per payslip, well below the global rate of 0.81. Another year of strong performance in the issues per 1000 payslips KPI suggests proactivity in process improvements, with high levels of technology adoption leading to improved accuracy in the Americas. 

USA benefitting from continued technology adoption and improved data quality focus 

Looking specifically at the USA, the 2025 PEI report reveals that organizations are reaping the reward of widespread technological adoption, with FTA rates continuing to rise, showing a significant improvement of over 10% in the last four years. However, it is in calendar length where the USA truly leads the way. Despite a slight increase from last year’s data, the nation maintains a very short calendar length at 3.59 days, the lowest of any in this year’s study, showcasing effective streamlined workflows and integration. The USA’s Supplemental Impact rate of 16.21% stands out when compared across regions, and is higher than both APAC (13.32%) and EMEA (13.60%) averages, representing a clear opportunity for improvement in the future, given the nation’s advanced technological adoption.   

Carlos Maroto, Americas Director of Operations at CloudPay, comments: 

“Payroll teams across the Americas are contending with greater complexity and more demands for flexibility than any other global region. However, AMER is leading the way when it comes to automation and innovation in payroll processes and technology. We can see a distinct increase in diligence and process efficiencies, despite the increase in supplemental runs and growing calendar lengths. 

“What this analysis highlights is that, while the region has been knocked off its top spot for some of the core measurements of payroll efficiency, teams have adapted at speed. Payroll operations across the Americas have become increasingly sophisticated and are far more attuned to the individual needs of each organization. Clearly, AMER is leading the automation revolution in payroll.”

As the CloudPay Payroll Efficiency Index reshapes expectations for payroll standards, it shows a bigger trend around the world towards automation and operational excellence.