10 Best Payroll Software for Small Business of 2026

Gusto ranks first because its entry plan already covers what a small employer with a mixed team needs. Simple, at $49 a month plus $6 per person, includes unlimited payroll runs, direct deposit or printed checks, federal and state tax filings and payments, payroll approvals, Payroll on AutoPilot and domestic contractor payments with expense reimbursements. A team of three employees and two contractors pays about $79 a month. Employees get the Gusto app for pay stubs, and owners get an employer app. The main limit is that Simple runs payroll in one state, so a remote hire elsewhere pushes you to Plus at $80 plus $12 per person, which adds multi-state payroll, time tracking, scheduling and unlimited next-day pay. Same-day and instant pay sit on Premium. Benefits, 401(k), workers' comp and state tax registration are available inside the same account, which keeps a growing company from switching systems.

OnPay is the closest rival to Gusto and the better value for many small teams because its single plan covers the payroll basics without tiers to decode. At $49 a month plus $6 per worker, it includes federal, state and local tax filings and payments, direct deposit, checks or debit cards, multiple pay schedules and custom pay rates, plus automated W-2 and 1099 processing. Setup and migration of employee data are free, which matters if you are leaving another provider mid-year. OnPay also offers pay-as-you-go workers' comp that syncs with payroll, so you avoid a lump-sum premium and an audit at renewal. Onboarding workflows, employee self-service and customizable reports round out the product. The tradeoff is that time tracking and the broader HR toolset cost extra, and the pricing page does not advertise same-day pay. For a small business with steady staff and a few contractors, it covers payroll well for the money.

Square Payroll is the natural choice when your staff already clock in on Square POS. Hours and direct tips flow from the POS or the Square Team App into payroll, where overtime is calculated and labor costs are reported alongside wages and tips. Full-service payroll costs $35 a month plus $6 per person paid and includes unlimited pay runs, auto payroll, off-cycle payments, multistate payroll, next-day direct deposit, and automated federal and state tax filings. Staff can choose to be paid into a bank account or Cash App. For businesses that only pay contractors, a separate plan charges $6 per person paid with no base fee, though it drops tax filings and auto payroll. Square also lets seasonal businesses go inactive without paying. Outside the Square ecosystem the advantages shrink: scheduling is basic and HR tools are thin compared with Gusto or OnPay, so it fits counter-service businesses better than offices.

Justworks is best known as a PEO, but its standalone Payroll plan is a solid option for small employers. It costs a $50 monthly base fee plus $8 per employee and includes multi-state payroll, contractor payments, off-cycle payments, tips processing, multiple pay rates, custom payroll periods, employer tax filings and W-2 and 1099 filings. HR basics such as online onboarding, PTO management, basic timecards, a document center and an employee mobile app are part of the plan. US contractors are billed at $8 each per month paid, and international contractors at $39 each, so a contractor-heavy team pays more here than with Gusto. The appeal is the upgrade path: when you want group health insurance, 401(k) and 24/7 support, PEO Basic at $79 and PEO Plus at $124 per employee run on the same platform. A team of four employees and one US contractor pays about $90 a month on the Payroll plan.

QuickBooks Payroll is the obvious pick for owners whose accounting already lives in QuickBooks Online, because pay runs land in the books without an extra sync. Intuit sells three payroll-only plans, Workforce Payroll, Workforce Premium and Workforce Elite, and also bundles them with QuickBooks Online plans. Every tier includes full-service payroll with federal and state tax filing and payment, auto payroll, an employee portal and unlimited 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC e-filing, with copies sent to contractors automatically. The entry plan pays employees the next business day if you run payroll by 5 PM, and Premium moves that to same-day deposits along with time tracking, scheduling, onboarding and time off management. Elite adds tax penalty protection up to $25,000 a year and a personal HR advisor. The entry list price we saw was $50 a month plus $7 per employee before a 50 percent promotion, but the pricing page blocks requests from our location, so we mark it as pending.

SurePayroll, owned by Paychex, keeps the monthly bill low for very small employers. Full Service starts at $29 a month plus $7 per employee, although the pricing page we checked also showed a $39 base in another offer block, so confirm the rate at signup. It includes federal and state tax filing and deposits, unlimited payroll runs, free 2-day direct deposit, scheduled automatic payroll, multiple pay rates and bonuses, new hire reporting and a mobile app. It pays both W-2 employees and 1099 contractors. Owners comfortable filing taxes themselves can drop to the No Tax Filing plan from $20 plus $4 per employee. Watch the extras: year-end W-2 and 1099-NEC forms are billed once a year at a $50 base fee plus $5 per form, multi-state payroll adds $9.99 a month and local tax areas carry a separate fee. For a two-person business in one state, it remains one of the cheapest full-service options.

Roll is ADP's app-first payroll product for owners who would rather type a message than fill in a form. It has one plan at $59 a month plus $7 per employee, and that plan includes unlimited payroll, tax calculation and payment, W-2 and 1099 workers, payroll in all 50 states with multi-state staff, worker hour tracking, tipped wage support and same-day or next-day direct deposit. Real-time, AI-driven error checks review each run, and employees use the same app for pay stubs, tax statements and payday alerts. A QuickBooks Online integration sends payroll to your books. ADP was advertising three months free when we checked. The base fee is the highest among the published prices on this list, so Roll costs more than Gusto Simple or OnPay for a small team in one state. It earns its place when you have staff in several states or want ADP's tax handling without a sales call.

RUN is ADP's main small business platform and, by ADP's count, is used by over 900,000 small businesses. It handles federal, state and local tax deductions and filings, creates and e-files W-2 and 1099 forms, and can put recurring payroll on autopilot through RUN & DONE. ADP Assist flags common payroll mistakes before you submit, and the mobile app lets owners run payroll away from a desk. Contractor payments sit alongside bill pay and invoicing in the same platform. The four packages climb from Essential Payroll to Enhanced Payroll, which adds ZipRecruiter and State Unemployment Insurance services, then Complete Payroll & HR+ with basic HR support and HR Pro with deeper HR help. The drawback for a small business is pricing: ADP shows no prices and asks you to request a quote, so you cannot compare it with Gusto or OnPay without a sales conversation. ADP was advertising up to six months of free payroll when we checked.

Paychex Flex is a full payroll and HR platform that starts with Paychex Basic for essential payroll and HR needs and climbs through Foundations and Advanced to Complete, which adds workforce and talent management. On every tier, Paychex calculates, withholds and files federal, state and local taxes and produces W-2s and 1099s. Payroll can be run in as few as two clicks, and AI automations flag missing time punches, verify employee data and handle timesheet entries before payday. Employees get a 24/7 portal with pay stubs, W-2s and chat support, plus discounts and financial wellness tools. The strength for a growing company is that benefits, time tracking and HR services can be added later without moving data. For a business paying a handful of people, though, the four-package structure and quote-only pricing make it harder to judge cost than flat-rate tools such as OnPay or Square Payroll. SurePayroll, also owned by Paychex, is the simpler choice at that size.

Wave Payroll makes sense mainly for businesses already keeping their books in Wave. Each pay run records wage and tax entries in the accounting software, so you get payroll expense reports by employee and expense type without a separate sync. The price is $40 a month plus $6 per active employee and $6 per independent contractor paid, with a 30-day free trial. Wave's tax service now covers all 50 US states and pays and files state and federal payroll taxes automatically, though it excludes 1099 filings, so you still file contractor forms yourself after Wave generates them. Employees get a portal for pay stubs, W-2s and vacation leave, and direct deposits are unlimited and free. Compared with Gusto or OnPay, the feature list is short: there is no benefits marketplace, scheduling or advanced HR. A team of two employees and two contractors pays about $64 a month, which is fair for Wave users and less compelling for anyone else.