Payroll software helps you manage all employee payments. It tracks working hours, calculates pay and deductions, runs payroll, and files taxes. By doing all this automatically, payroll software reduces mistakes and saves you time. This means you can spend less time on paperwork and more time growing your business.
In this guide, we compare the best payroll services. We explain the price, how easy they are to use, their features, support, and HR tools. This will help you pick the right payroll service with confidence.
7 Best Payroll Service for Small Businesses :Our top picks
Paychex
Starting from: Custom, Call for a Quote
FREE for 3 months
- Award-Winning SMB Solution
- Over 45 years of excellence
- Easy to pay and manage employees
Gusto
Starting from: $49/mo
Get 1 month free
- Used by over 400,000 SMBs globally
- Automated payroll with tax filing included
- Direct deposit and contractor payments fast
Onpay
Starting from: $40/mo
First three months free*
- Advanced features included
- Flexible and customized packages
- Tax filing & payroll automation
Paycor
Starting from: $99/mo
6 Months at 50% OFF + 14-Day Free Trial
- All-in-one HR solution for success
- Used by 2.5M users & 40K+ businesses
- Vast partner network
BambooHR
Starting from: $19/mo /employee
7-Day Free Trial
- Award-winning service with 130+ integrations
- Designed for SMBs
- 24/7 customer support for all your needs
SurePayroll
Starting from: $20/mo + $4/user
Get 6 months free*
- Payroll made easy for as little as $1 per day
- Automated payroll for business efficiency
- US-based customer support
Paylocity
Starting from: Custom/mo
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- Award-winning customer service
- Seamless international support
- Dedicated tax support
What Is Payroll Software?
Payroll software is a tool that helps businesses pay their employees. It calculates salaries, taxes, and other deductions automatically. This software saves time, reduces mistakes, and makes sure workers get paid on time while following labor laws.
Main Features of Payroll Software
✔️ Automatic Salary Calculation – Calculates employee pay, taxes, and deductions.
✔️ Tax Compliance – Makes sure taxes are filed correctly and on time.
✔️ Direct Deposit – Sends payments directly to employee bank accounts.
✔️ Benefits & Deduction Management – Handles insurance, retirement plans, and other benefits.
✔️ Employee Self-Service – Employees can see their pay stubs, tax forms, and payroll info anytime.
How Does a Payroll Service Work?
A payroll service makes payroll easy by doing most tasks automatically. Here’s how it works:
Add Employee Info – Business adds employee details like name, tax info, and bank account.
Track Working Hours – Hours are tracked automatically or entered manually.
Calculate Pay – Software calculates total pay, taxes, and benefits.
Deduct & File Taxes – Taxes are deducted and filed with the government automatically.
Send Payments – Employees get paid by direct deposit, check, or payroll card.
Reports & Compliance – Creates payroll reports and helps follow tax laws.
Payroll Service Reviews
1:Paychex
Paychex gives strong payroll tools. It provides 24/7 U.S-based support, time tracking, PTO tracking, and a mobile app for both employers and employees. You can run payroll easily and keep employee payments accurate.
The system has powerful automation. It can calculate salaries automatically, send direct deposits, stay updated with tax rules, and update employee information without manual work. This saves time and reduces mistakes.
Paychex also helps with HR tasks. You can track attendance, manage employee benefits, create an organization chart, and keep all employee profiles in one place. This makes managing staff much easier.
Tax work is simple with Paychex. It calculates taxes, files tax forms, and sends tax payments for you. It supports important forms like W-2, W-4, 940, and 941, so your business stays tax-compliant without stress.
The platform connects with popular accounting software, HR tools, time-tracking apps, and banking systems. These integrations help your business run smoothly because all your data stays connected in one system.
Paychex is very easy to use. Signing up is simple, and setup takes about 30 minutes. You need to enter your bank details, tax ID, and employee information. If you want the free 6-month trial, you need to talk to the sales team first.
This service is highly trusted by banks and business lenders. In the U.S., Paychex handles payroll for 1 out of every 12 private-sector employees, which shows how reliable and popular it is among businesses.
✅ Pros & Cons
| Pros (5) | Cons (3) |
|---|---|
| Easy to use for beginners | Pricing not shown — must contact sales |
| 24/7 customer support | Can be more expensive than others |
| Strong tax filing tools | Sometimes upsell calls from sales team |
| Mobile app for employees & admins | |
| Many HR & payroll features in one system |
Conclusion
Paychex is a powerful payroll and HR platform designed for growing businesses. It offers strong automation, tax support, and a helpful mobile app. Setup is simple, and support is available 24/7. Although pricing is not public and may cost more than competitors, Paychex is a great choice for companies wanting a complete and reliable payroll solution.
2:Gusto
Gusto offers helpful payroll tools that make paying employees simple. It runs payroll automatically, sends money through direct deposit, files payroll taxes, and creates pay stubs and reports. It also supports employees in different states, offers a mobile app, and connects with other business software using integrations.
Gusto automates salary calculations, tax filing, and compliance. It also tracks hours and overtime and updates employee information in real time. This saves time and reduces mistakes for business owners.
For HR needs, Gusto includes an employee database, benefits management, goal tracking, and onboarding tools for new hires. You can also view an organization chart to understand team structure easily.
Gusto Global lets U.S. companies hire and pay employees in other countries without opening an office abroad. This service helps businesses build international teams while staying compliant with local laws.
Gusto handles tax tasks automatically, including filing important forms like W-2 and 1099. It also sends reminders to help businesses stay compliant with tax rules.
The platform connects with more than 200 apps like Asana, Trello, and accounting tools. This makes it easy to manage payroll, projects, and business finances in one place.
Gusto performs fast and reliably, offering smooth payroll processing and strong automation features. Its cloud system keeps everything running securely and without interruptions.
The setup is quick and only takes a few minutes. The dashboard is clean and easy to use, and employees can log in to see their pay stubs, tax forms, and benefits by themselves.
Gusto stands out because it combines payroll, HR, and benefits in one simple system. Its smart automation and compliance support help business owners run their team smoothly and stress-free.
✅ Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Easy-to-use dashboard and tools | Higher price than some competitors |
| Automatic payroll & tax filing | Limited features for global teams |
| Employee self-service portal | Reports are not very advanced |
| Great onboarding and HR tools | — |
| Works with many apps like QuickBooks & Xero | — |
Conclusion
Gusto is a simple and powerful payroll tool made for small and growing businesses. It handles payroll, taxes, onboarding, and employee benefits in one easy system. With automated features, clean design, and strong HR tools, it saves time and reduces stress. Although it costs more than some options, Gusto’s convenience and reliability make it a smart choice for long-term business growth.
3:Onpay
OnPay comes with strong payroll tools to help you manage payments easily. You can log in with one click, and accountants get a special dashboard to manage everything. There are six permission levels, so you decide who can see what. You can create custom reports, and the system supports multiple states and countries. It also lets you track 401(k) and FMLA, and gives pay stubs and reports. OnPay connects with other software through API, but there is no mobile app for employees.
It also has great automation to save time. New employees can complete onboarding online, sign documents electronically, and submit I-9 and W-4 forms digitally. The system reports new hires to the state, creates custom checklists, calculates salary automatically, sends direct deposit, and tracks overtime without manual work.
For HR, OnPay stores employee documents safely and keeps full employee profiles. Workers can log in to update their own information anytime. The platform tracks vacation and sick leave, creates an organization chart, and handles benefits without extra tools.
OnPay also handles taxes automatically. It pays taxes for you and files all major forms like W-2, W-3, W-4, 940, 941, 944, and 1099-MISC. It also supports ACA forms like 1094-B, 1095-B, 1094-C, and 1095-C, so your business stays fully tax-compliant.
You can connect OnPay with popular business apps to simplify your workflow. It works with QuickBooks Online and Desktop, Xero, QuickBooks Time, Deputy, When I Work, Mineral, and PosterElite, making it easy to sync payroll, time tracking, and HR data across systems.
✅ Pros & Cons
| ✅ Pros | ❌ Cons |
|---|---|
| Simple and clear pricing | No dedicated mobile app for employees |
| Free setup and quick onboarding | Limited global payroll support |
| Great customer support | Could offer more advanced HR tools |
| Works well with many software tools | — |
| Easy to use, even for beginners | — |
Conclusion
OnPay is a simple, reliable, and budget-friendly payroll and HR system for small and mid-sized businesses. It saves time with automatic tax filing, fast payroll runs, and easy employee self-service. With strong support and flexible integrations, it’s a great choice for growing companies that want professional payroll features without learning complicated software or paying high prices.
4:Paycor
Paycor gives real-time payroll updates so businesses always see the latest information. It supports employees in multiple states and even other countries. The system offers 24/7 technical support in the United States. You can track employee time, time off, and create pay stubs and reports easily. Employees and managers can also use the mobile app to track time and get paid smoothly.
Paycor also automates many tasks. It calculates salaries, sends direct deposit payments, and handles tax rules and filing automatically. It tracks work hours and overtime, and helps with onboarding new staff and managing employee benefits. All employee information updates instantly in the system.
For HR work, Paycor includes tools for tracking employee attendance and giving staff access to update their own information. It lets managers track vacation and time-off requests, handle benefits, review performance, and view an organization chart to see team structure.
Paycor makes tax work simple. It automatically files and pays taxes and supports forms like W-2, W-4, and 1099. The system also has more than 200 experts who watch changes in tax laws to keep businesses compliant.
Paycor connects with other business tools easily. It works with time-tracking systems, HR platforms, accounting software like QuickBooks, direct-deposit services, and other apps through API support, making business operations smoother and more organized.
✅ Pros & ❌ Cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Easy to use dashboard | Customer support hours are limited |
| Strong automation for payroll & HR | Interface can feel busy at first |
| Good mobile app for employees and managers | Reports are not very advanced |
| Tax filing included | |
| Works with many business softwares |
Conclusion
Paycor is a great payroll and HR tool for small and medium businesses that want to save time and manage employee tasks in one system. It handles pay, taxes, time tracking, and hiring tools in a simple way. The mobile app is useful for both employers and employees. While support hours and reporting could be better, Paycor offers strong features and good value overall.
5:BambooHR
BambooHR Payroll makes paying employees fast and simple. The system can calculate salaries, bonuses, overtime, and deductions automatically, so you don’t need to do the math manually. It works for full-time, part-time, and contract workers. Everything is connected, so time tracking and employee details sync automatically — helping avoid mistakes.
The software also connects with many business tools. You can link accounting software, HR tools, and time-tracking apps easily. Their app marketplace has over 1,300 tools you can connect to, making BambooHR work smoothly with your business setup.
BambooHR Payroll also has strong automation. It handles direct deposits, tax calculations, and benefits automatically. Employee data updates in real time, so all information stays accurate without extra work from your team.
The HR features make it easy to manage employees in one place. Staff can check their own information, request time off, and view pay info. HR teams can also track attendance, manage benefits, and create employee profiles easily.
For taxes, the system takes care of federal, state, and local tax rules. It can prepare and file forms like W-2, 1099, 940, and 941. This saves time and helps companies stay compliant with tax laws.
The platform is very easy to use. The dashboard is clean and simple to explore. The setup process is quick — only a few minutes. Running payroll takes just a few steps, making it beginner-friendly even for new users.
✅ Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Very easy to use | Payroll is paid add-on |
| Great customer support | Demo does not include payroll |
| Strong automation | Can get expensive as you add employees |
| Good reporting & analytics | |
| Works with 1,300+ apps |
Conclusion
BambooHR Payroll is a simple and powerful tool for small and mid-sized businesses. It saves time, reduces errors, and handles taxes, payments, and employee data smoothly. The platform is easy to learn and has great support. However, payroll costs extra. If you want an all-in-one HR and payroll system that is easy to use, BambooHR is a strong choice.
6:SurePayroll
SurePayroll offers helpful payroll tools for small businesses. You can pay full-time, part-time, and contract workers easily. It supports different pay rates, custom pay schedules, and off-cycle payments. You also get 401(k) tracking, pay stubs, reports, multi-state support, and a mobile app for quick access.
The system also has automation and time-tracking support. It works with tools like Stratustime, Homebase, OnTheClock, Redcort, and Time Wolf. Employees can clock in and hours go directly to payroll, saving time and reducing mistakes.
SurePayroll includes simple HR tools. You can add new employees, remove employees, and manage vacation and sick leave. Employees can update their information by themselves, and you can manage benefits easily.
Tax support is also strong. The Full Service plan supports multi-state and local tax filing. It handles W-2, 1099, 940, 941, and 944 forms. Taxes are paid automatically, and it supports more than 6,000 U.S. tax rules to keep your business safe and compliant.
SurePayroll connects with other business tools to make work smoother. It integrates with accounting software, time-tracking systems, HR platforms, and supports direct deposit for fast and secure employee payments.
Pros & Cons
| Pros ✅ | Cons ❌ |
|---|---|
| Easy to use for small businesses | No 24/7 customer support |
| Good mobile app for employees | Must share info to get full pricing |
| Supports tax filing in many states | Pricing can increase as business grows |
| Works with time-tracking tools | |
| Helpful onboarding and setup support |
Conclusion
SurePayroll is a simple and affordable payroll service made for small businesses. It helps you run payroll, file taxes, and manage employees without stress. With easy tools and strong support, it saves time and reduces mistakes. While it does not offer 24/7 service and pricing can rise as you grow, it is still a great choice for small business owners.
7:Paylocity
Paylocity gives helpful payroll tools that make paying employees very simple. It can calculate salaries automatically, track 401k and leave programs like FMLA, and create clear reports and pay slips. It also supports payroll for many states and countries and connects with other systems using API. Employees can also use a mobile app to see their payroll info easily.
The software has strong automation features. It can run payroll automatically, send money by direct deposit, file taxes, and track overtime and hours worked. It also updates employee information in real time so everything stays correct without extra work.
Paylocity includes many HR tools too. It helps store employee information, manage benefits, show an organization chart, and track vacation and leave. It also supports hiring with ATS and gives a mobile app so staff can check details from anywhere.
For taxes, Paylocity calculates and files them automatically. It supports all important tax forms like W-2, W-3, 1099, 940, 941, and 944, so businesses don’t need to worry about compliance or mistakes.
It can connect with other systems such as accounting software, time-tracking tools, and HR and benefits platforms. This makes work smoother and saves time by keeping all systems linked together.
Paylocity performs very fast because it is cloud-based. You see real-time data and get quick processing, which makes payroll and HR management easy and accurate.
✅ Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Easy to use dashboard | Pricing not shown online |
| Strong automation tools | Must contact sales for demo |
| Great HR & payroll features | Support only in business hours |
| Works with many software tools | — |
| Mobile app for staff and managers | — |
Conclusion
Paylocity is a powerful payroll and HR tool made for medium to large businesses. It makes payroll easy, automates tax tasks, and offers strong HR and time-tracking features. The software is very user-friendly and great for growing teams. Pricing is custom and support hours are limited, but overall, it is a reliable and modern payroll solution.
How to Choose the Best Payroll Service for Small Businesses
The best payroll service for your small business is the one that helps you pay employees correctly, quickly, and without stress — while staying in your budget. When choosing a payroll service, focus on things like:
Correct tax filing
Fast and simple payroll runs
On-time payments to employees and contractors
Helpful reports and data
Safe and easy access for managers and employees
Must-Have Payroll Features for Small Businesses
Here are the most important features your payroll service should include:
✅ Automation
Automation means the system does a lot of work for you. This saves time and reduces mistakes.
Example: Rippling uses special automatic tools to handle pay changes and off-cycle payroll without manual work.
✅ Built-In Tax Compliance
A good payroll service should file and pay taxes for you automatically. This helps you avoid tax penalties.
Example: TriNet calculates, files, and pays payroll taxes and follows labor laws like the FLSA.
✅ Direct Deposit
Employees need to get paid on time. Good payroll services offer fast direct deposit.
Examples: QuickBooks Payroll, Square Payroll, and Gusto offer next-day deposits.
QuickBooks can even send same-day pay if payroll is run by 7 a.m. PT.
✅ Employee Self-Service Portal
Employees should be able to see their pay stubs, tax forms, and personal info online or in a mobile app.
Example: Paycor’s app even lets workers get up to 50% of earned pay early.
✅ Reports & Analytics
Good payroll services give clear reports on taxes, benefits, deductions, and more.
Example: ADP RUN offers detailed reports like quarterly local tax and garnishment summaries.
✅ Roles & Permissions
Only the right people should access payroll data.
Example: Justworks lets you control who can view or edit payroll information.
Rippling gives role-based access automatically based on job position.
Conclusion
Every payroll service is good in different ways. Choose one based on your business needs:
✔️ Want a low-cost option? — OnPay
✔️ Need HR tools with payroll? — BambooHR or Paycor
✔️ Growing your business fast? — Paychex or ADP
✔️ Want everything automated? — Rippling
✔️ Have a big team? — Paylocity
Choosing the right payroll software is important. It helps your business work faster, stay legal with payroll rules, and pay employees correctly on time. With so many choices, pick the one that matches your business size, needs, and budget.
Good payroll software saves time, handles taxes, manages benefits, and reduces stress. It also keeps your business safe from mistakes and problems with payroll laws.
As your business grows, your payroll needs will grow too. So pick a system that is strong, reliable, and ready for the future. The right payroll software will help your business run smoothly and grow successfully.
Choose wisely—and let your payroll system support your success! ✅