Published June 8, 2026 · Variant A · Not legal, tax, or compliance advice
Dealing with weekly certified payroll can feel like a Friday-afternoon nightmare. Many small contractors cope by exporting payroll to Excel and pasting numbers into a WH-347 workflow. That sounds manageable until the project gets more complex.
This guide explains when a WH-347 Excel template is good enough, where it tends to break, and what fields you should check before sending certified payroll to a prime contractor, agency, or compliance portal.
What is Form WH-347?
Form WH-347 is the U.S. Department of Labor's standard certified payroll form for covered federal or federally assisted construction projects under the Davis-Bacon Act and its related acts. It reports each worker's classification, hours, wage rate, gross wages, deductions, fringe information, and net pay.
The specific wage rates workers must be paid are set in the wage determination attached to your contract. Wage determinations are published on SAM.gov — check there if you don't see one in your contract packet, or ask your prime contractor.
The form also includes a Statement of Compliance. That certification matters because the signer — typically an owner, officer, or someone expressly authorized in writing — is attesting under penalty of law that the payroll is accurate and that workers were paid at least the required prevailing wage, including applicable fringe benefits. Signing when you know the payroll is wrong is a federal violation. The DOL provides WH-347 as an optional form format, but covered contractors still need to provide weekly payroll information required by the contract.
Who files: the prime contractor is responsible for submitting their own certified payroll and for collecting and retaining certified payroll from every subcontractor on the project. Subs typically submit to the prime, who forwards records to the contracting agency. If you're a sub and haven't been told how or where to submit, ask the prime before your first payroll week — late payroll can delay everyone's payment.
When to file: certified payroll must be submitted within 7 days of the close of the payroll period for the week reported. Records must be kept for 3 years after completion of the contract — agencies can and do audit after the job is long finished.
When an Excel template works
A WH-347 Excel template can work if your certified payroll is simple and stable. For a first public works job, a spreadsheet may be better than manually typing the same fields into a PDF every week.
- Single project: only one active covered contract needs weekly reporting.
- Small crew: just a few employees or subcontractor workers appear on payroll.
- One classification: each worker performs one type of covered work during the week.
- Stable rates: wage rates and fringe benefit assumptions do not change often.
- Simple overtime: overtime is rare or easy for your payroll admin to review manually.
- One owner: the same person maintains the file and understands the formulas.
In these cases, a worksheet with columns matching WH-347 fields can save time. You can record hours, calculate weekly totals, and keep a repeatable review process. The key is knowing when the spreadsheet stops being a helper and starts becoming a risk.
Where the spreadsheet breaks
Real jobs rarely stay clean. Each new classification, project, rate, or correction adds manual logic that Excel will not understand unless you build and maintain it carefully.
Multiple classifications
If one worker performs different classifications in the same week, those hours may need to be tracked separately. A basic spreadsheet might total the worker’s hours correctly while hiding the fact that the hours were not split correctly by classification.
Overtime calculations
Overtime can become messy when workers split time across projects, classifications, or worksites. Many templates treat overtime as “hours over 40” without enough detail to show where those hours belong.
Fringe benefits
Prevailing wage includes cash wages plus fringe benefits. If you contribute fringes to a plan, pay cash in lieu of fringes, or mix both, a spreadsheet needs clear fields and formulas. One overwritten formula can quietly create a bad report.
Copy-paste errors
Most spreadsheet failures are ordinary human failures: pasting into the wrong cell, copying last week’s rate, hiding a row, or changing a formula without realizing it. The report can look finished while the underlying numbers are wrong.
Corrections and versioning
When a reviewer asks for a correction, you need to know which file is the source of truth. Files named final, final2, and revised-final are not a reliable compliance workflow.
WH-347 Excel template checklist
If you use a spreadsheet, make sure it captures the fields that create the most review problems.
- Project and contractor details: project name, contract number, payroll week, prime/subcontractor information, and work location.
- Employee data: worker name, identifying number, classification, and apprentice or journeyworker status where applicable.
- Hours: daily hours and weekly totals, with straight-time and overtime separated.
- Wage rates: required prevailing wage rate from the contract's wage determination (find yours on SAM.gov if it wasn't in your contract packet), actual hourly rate paid, and classification-specific rate notes.
- Gross pay: total wages earned on the covered project for the week.
- Deductions: taxes, other withholdings, and enough detail to explain net pay.
- Fringe benefits: fringe credits, cash paid in lieu of fringes, and supporting records.
- Statement of Compliance: a final reminder to sign and submit the certification required for that week.
Signs you have outgrown Excel
A spreadsheet is not automatically bad. It is bad when it creates hidden work, hidden risk, or repeated corrections.
- You spend more than an hour each week compiling payroll.
- You maintain separate spreadsheets for separate projects.
- A prime contractor, agency, or portal has rejected a payroll report.
- You regularly split workers across classifications.
- You have overtime, changing rates, or fringe calculations that require manual review.
- Your bookkeeper is warning that the process depends too much on memory.
FAQ
Can I just use a blank WH-347 PDF?
You can, but it is slower and easier to mistype. A spreadsheet can speed up preparation, but it still needs a disciplined review process.
Is there an official WH-347 Excel template?
No. The DOL publishes WH-347 as a fillable PDF — that is the official format. There is no official Excel version. Contractors who use spreadsheets build their own. Whatever format you use, verify it captures all required fields and matches the current wage determination for your specific project before filing.
Do I need to submit certified payroll every week?
Yes. Davis-Bacon covered projects require weekly certified payroll submitted within 7 days of the close of each payroll period. This applies even for weeks with no covered work — you still need to submit a "no work" report if you are still listed on the project. Check your contract and agency instructions for any project-specific submission rules.