What this guide helps you evaluate
Small-business owners and finance or HR teams comparing payroll providers and recurring payroll-service costs.
This page is designed to help you compare the moving parts, organize due diligence and ask better questions before you commit money, sign a contract or change an operating process.
Payroll pricing should be compared on the complete annual workflow, including base fees, employee charges, pay runs, tax filing, year-end forms and optional HR modules.
A lower advertised payroll price can become more expensive when multiple states, off-cycle runs, benefits, time tracking or support tiers are added.
What to compare first
- Base monthly or per-pay-run fee
- Per-employee or per-contractor charge
- Federal, state and local tax filing scope
- Multi-state and local-jurisdiction charges
- Year-end W-2, 1099 and amendment fees
- Time, benefits, HR, workers-comp and retirement integrations
- Implementation, data conversion, support and cancellation terms
Step-by-step process
- 01
Count active employees, contractors, legal entities and payroll jurisdictions.
- 02
List regular and off-cycle payroll frequency plus year-end forms and common adjustments.
- 03
Request one annualized price including tax filing, support and every required add-on.
- 04
Verify implementation responsibilities, historical data migration and the process for correcting filings or payroll errors.
- 05
Review data export, cancellation timing and ownership of records before signing.
Common mistakes and risk checks
- Comparing a base subscription while excluding employee, state or year-end fees.
- Assuming a payroll provider takes over the employer's legal responsibility for accurate information and timely obligations.
- Choosing bundled HR modules that are not needed simply to obtain a payroll discount.
- Failing to plan how payroll records and tax history will be exported when switching providers.
Documents and evidence to collect
- Employee and contractor census
- Pay-frequency calendar
- State and local jurisdiction list
- Current payroll invoices
- Tax filing and amendment history
- Benefits and timekeeping integration requirements
Questions to ask before approval
- What is the complete annual cost at the current employee count and pay frequency?
- Which federal, state and local filings are included?
- How are amendments, off-cycle payrolls and year-end forms priced?
- What data can be exported in a usable format if the company changes providers?
Primary and official references
Rules, pricing and requirements can change. Use these sources to verify the latest details that apply to your situation.