During our research, the six apps in this review proved to be the best payroll services available with their user-friendly interfaces, employee self-service functions and automated features. You can use Rippling payroll on its own, but to get the most out of Rippling, you’ll want its comprehensive employee management platform. You get thorough benefits management, time and attendance tracking, and app consolidation for employees.

Key Features

Most providers calculate wages, offer direct deposit, and pay taxes. However, you should consider your budget limitations and business needs. Small companies can benefit from features such as automated tax payments, year-end report filing, and unlimited payroll runs. Basic HR tools like employee data management, PTO and time tracking, and new hire onboarding are essential as these help small businesses streamline day-to-day HR tasks. Having access to benefits plans and benefits administration tools is also important. These allow you to manage workers comp, health insurance, and other employee benefits through your payroll software.

• It’s an all-in-one platform that uses the employee schedule and time tracking to inform payroll, so you never have to upload or sync timesheets again.
• Multilocation business owners might find Gusto a bit pricey because they’ll have to upgrade to at least its Plus plan to unlock multiple state pay runs.
• I had to first set up people groups within the platform, including their permission levels and other specifications.
• Paying your employees the right amount—and withholding the right amount in payroll taxes and other wage deductions—is a big, complicated issue.
• QuickBooks Payroll doesn’t have the job posting and hiring tools that Rippling, Gusto, Homebase, Paychex Flex, and ADP Run offer.

Paycom’s Beti: Best for Guided Employee-run Payroll

In contrast, ADP, which outsources its insurance integrations, charges an extra fee on top of the premium. Ditto Paychex, which does have an in-house insurance team but still charges extra for insurance add-ons. Its partnership with Infinity Capital Funding also helps you get financing assistance so that you can always run payroll even when cash flow is thin—something that no other provider on this list offers. For more small business tools, see our coverage of the best small business accounting software and the best CRM software. We wouldn’t recommend Square Payroll alone for companies that have dozens or even a handful of employees. Reviewing and managing payroll was a familiar process because of its intuitive grid or spreadsheet-like layout.

The Best Payroll Services for 2024

OnPay offers an easy-to-use, affordable online payroll solution that’s ideal for small businesses. There are no hidden fees, which is important for a small business on a budget. The full-service payroll automates calculations and files your federal, state, and local payroll taxes. TriNet is a benefits management platform that may be a good match for mid-sized businesses. Online payroll services are web-based tools that process your organization’s payroll and distribute the correct amount of money to employees every payday. They calculate and submit payroll taxes and filings and track other withholdings, such as for health insurance and retirement plans.

Payroll4Free.com offers this free plan by displaying small ads inside the software, so users view them as they use the included tools. You can have Payroll4Free.com deposit and file your payroll taxes for you https://www.bookstime.com/ via its Payroll Tax Services. You can also pay them to use its bank to process payments via direct deposit instead of your own account. Small businesses need reliable payroll software to save time and money.

Get more in-depth guidance by reading our article on how to find payroll software that meets your needs. That starting base price looks high, but the cheapest plan’s per-employee fee is just $5 per payee per month. Thanks to that lower fee, Intuit QuickBooks Payroll actually has one of the lowest payroll starting prices on our list, as long as you have more than one employee. We gave you our top recommendations above, but the payroll software market is a crowded one.

Best payroll apps in 2024

OnPay is best suited for businesses needing a full suite of payroll features that includes HR tools. While not an app in the traditional sense, where you have to download an application to your smartphone, best payroll app OnPay’s payroll app is mobile responsive. This means that whether you use an iPhone, Android or another type of smartphone, the OnPay payroll app will adjust to fit your screen size.

Paychex: Best for Solopreneurs & Growing Businesses

Paychex Flex