Announcing the Top Rated Payroll Software for 2019

TrustRadius Top Rated

Today, we awarded the 2019 TrustRadius Top Rated badges for Payroll Software. The TrustRadius Top Rated awards are the most trusted in the industry because they are an unbiased reflection of customer sentiment, based solely on user feedback and satisfaction scores. Top Rated awards are the voice of the market and are not influenced by analyst opinion, the vendor’s company size, popularity, or status as a TrustRadius customer.

Payroll Software

Payroll software helps businesses process payment for employees, submit accurate tax reports, and provide employee benefits. Benefits administrators and payroll teams use it to calculate payments, deduct withholdings from paychecks, track payment history, make direct deposits, and adjust salaries and benefit plans. Payroll software is often both offered as a standalone product and included with comprehensive HR Management and HCM suites. Accounting software sometimes includes payroll features as well. A handful of the Top Rated payroll products below are either HR or Accounting software that also offer payroll capabilities.

Buyers of payroll software should consider their combined accounting and HR needs when evaluating their choices. A standalone payroll solution can often meet the needs of a small business with low HR overhead. Midsize companies and enterprises might need the additional financial and HR features provided by larger product suites, such as company-provided asset tracking, job transfer management, budgeting tools, and financial reports. Reviews can help you unpack which solution is right for your company.

Here are the winners:

Gusto

Gusto is a cloud-based HR platform with payroll functionality. Gusto’s payroll system supports tax filing, wage garnishments, tipped jobs, PTO policies and tracking, and payroll reporting. Employees can use Gusto to set their own withholdings, submit direct deposit information, enroll in health benefits, track hours, request time off, and access paystubs and tax forms (even after leaving the company). Users from small businesses make up a wide majority (75%) of Gusto users on TrustRadius. Reviewers are consistently impressed with Gusto’s intuitive setup and “set it and forget it” style reliability.

“For me, having only one employee and trying to keep track of what to withhold, when to pay taxes and how to offer benefits was something I was not ready for. Gusto made this easy and simple without error or hassle. Taxes were paid on time, withholdings were done automatically and all necessary paperwork was filed quarterly.”

– Lou Gallo | Director of Engineering | Computer Software Company

[easy-tweet tweet=”Gusto: Easy and simple without error or hassle.” user=”trustradius” template=”qlite”]

UltiPro

UltiPro is an HR Management suite solution that offers companies payroll processing capabilities. It offers essential payroll features like pay calculation, direct deposit, salary management, overtime calculation, time tracking, and payroll auditing. UltiPro’s employee self-service portal provides each employee with tax records and paystubs, time off requests, and company policy documentation. Businesses can also purchase UtilPro’s managed payroll service to hand off their payroll functions to the vendor. About half of UltiPro users (51%) on TrustRadius work at enterprise size companies. UltiPro’s reviewers highlight its friendly UX, data entry automation, and commitment to customer service.

“We had a coding issue last year that caused a number of our employees to have incorrect W2’s. We were not very familiar with how to solve the situation, so we created a case for assistance to have this solved. Our representative that helped me through the process was very knowledgeable. He followed up with us even after everything was over. I couldn’t thank him enough – he made a difficult situation much easier!”

– Angela Rafine | HR Coordinator | Hospital & Health Care Company

[easy-tweet tweet=”UltiPro: Our representative that helped me through the process was very knowledgeable.” user=”trustradius” template=”qlite”]

Workday HCM

Workday is a full-service HCM platform. Its payroll module features support for workers and businesses in the U.S., Canada, the UK, and France. For other regions, Workday offers integration with third-party payroll solutions. Workday’s payroll system is directly connected to its other HCM features, automating the flow of information from its HR, benefits, compensation, and time tracking systems. It also offers constant auditing, automatable payroll adjustments, and detailed reporting features. Workday’s users on TrustRadius are mostly (72%) from enterprise-level companies. Reviewers value Workday for its robust automation capabilities and the “all-in-one” nature of the platform.

“The ability to automate a lot of administrative tasks and the ability for employees and managers to self-service definitely creates a lot of opportunity for HR to spend time and effort elsewhere. A lot of the automation that can be leveraged in Workday also allows for eliminating third party vendors as well as the cost of their maintenance and integrations.”

– Monika Ganeva | Manager in Human Resources | Job Search Company

[easy-tweet tweet=”Workday HCM: Definitely creates a lot of opportunity for HR to spend time and effort elsewhere” user=”trustradius” template=”qlite”]

Ceridian Dayforce HCM

Ceridian Dayforce is a cloud-based HCM suite with payroll functionality. Dayforce continuously updates pay calculations, allowing payroll administrators to review and audit pay data during a pay period. It provides essential payroll features such as tax management, an employee self-service portal, pay adjustment, and high-level administrative dashboards. Dayforce delivers periodic updates to its compliance and tax management systems, keeping them in line with policy changes. A large portion (48%) of Ceridian Dayforce users on TrustRadius are from enterprises. Ceridian Dayforce reviewers mention its electronic schedule delivery feature, frequent compliance updates, and efficient handling of complex pay structures.

“We have six different payrolls, each with varying pay period end dates and pay frequencies. Dayforce is able to handle the variety without any issues…manual payroll entries have been reduced by 67% and off-cycle paychecks to correct payroll errors has been reduced by 50%.”

– Bethann DuBois | Payroll Manager | Pharmaceuticals Company

[easy-tweet tweet=”Ceridian Dayforce HCM: Manual payroll entries have been reduced by 67% ” user=”trustradius” template=”qlite”]

TriNet

TriNet is an online HR and payroll and benefits services for small and growing companies. Their payroll service includes automatic expense reporting and reimbursement tools. TriNet also handles essential payroll functions, like direct deposit, W-2 preparation, tax calculation and withholding, and time tracking tools. Customizable reporting, analytics, and data dashboards help administrators understand how well their HR department, including payroll, is functioning. A significant majority (72%) of TriNet users on TrustRadius are from small businesses. Reviewers appreciate that TriNet efficiently handles their payroll needs, serves as a single point of contact for employee questions, and provides responsive and knowledgeable customer support.

“We have a dedicated rep, who is very responsive to our requests and questions…With the combination of big-company benefits, and administration of multi-state payroll and taxes, Trinet’s reputation stood above the others we considered.”

– Jana Cotta | Office Manager in Accounting | Financial Services Company

[easy-tweet tweet=”Trinet’s reputation stood above the others we considered.” user=”trustradius” template=”qlite”]

QuickBooks Enterprise

QuickBooks Enterprise is an accounting platform with optional payroll features, including payroll tax calculations and reminders, W-2 and 1099 support, direct deposit, state and federal tax forms, and e-filing for tax documents. These features are integrated with the accounting system, keeping data consistent and reducing manual entry. Quickbooks Enterprise also offers payroll setup assistance and tax filing and payment services. For users switching from another payroll system, Quickbooks Enterprise can import existing payroll data. A majority (59%) of QuickBooks Enterprise users on TrustRadius are from small businesses. Reviewers appreciate Quickbooks Enterprise for its flexible reporting tools, guided 1099 processing, and strong community support.

“We use [Quickbooks Enterprise] to track and reimburse employee expenses, handle payroll, charge our customers, and produce reports for upper management to make more informed decisions…It is a perfect if you’re a small to medium-sized company.”

– Verified User | Professional in Finance and Accounting | Computer Software Company

[easy-tweet tweet=”We use Quickbooks Enterprise to handle payroll, charge customers, and produce reports.” user=”trustradius” template=”qlite”]

ADP RUN

ADP RUN is a full-service online payroll and HR solution. This product handles payroll calculation, direct deposit and check delivery, compliance management, and wage garnishment. ADP RUN also includes complete tax preparation, filing, and follow-up services, including a guarantee to pay any fines or penalties caused by filing errors. RUN customers can access payroll data, run reports, and export ledger entries online or through a mobile app. A large majority (85%) of RUN users on TrustRadius are from small businesses. Reviewers value ADP RUN’s detailed reporting options, easy addition of new employees, and overall time savings.

“I dreaded doing payroll altogether, not to mention the tax implications if I messed something up. Now with RUN, a few simple clicks and both my companies’ payrolls are run, money is withdrawn from our account in a timely manner and direct deposits are always made on time or early. We absolutely love the system.”

– Laura Virtue | Owner/Agent | Insurance Company

[easy-tweet tweet=”Now with RUN, a few simple clicks and both my companies’ payrolls are run.” user=”trustradius” template=”qlite”]

Kronos Workforce Ready

Kronos Workforce Ready (WFR) is a cloud-based HR Management platform that offers comprehensive HCM capabilities, including payroll. Kronos offers standard payroll tools, including data importing, reporting, timesheets, salary adjustment, direct deposits, and auditing. It also includes an employee self-service portal accessible both online and as a mobile application. In addition to the standard tools, Kronos offers payroll services such as tax and compliance management, automatic garnishment payouts, and document distribution. Mid-sized company employees make up the majority (62%) of Kronos WFR users on TrustRadius. Reviewers comment that Workforce Ready is efficient, eases the administrative burden with its self-service portal, and flexibly integrates with data import systems.

“[The] user-facing portal is simple to use and lets everyone keep up to date on their usage and accruals…Kronos definitely beats out the competition in terms of user-friendly features and simple ‘it works’ functionality.”

– Clinton Verley | Senior Analyst, Operations | Hospital & Health Care Institution

[easy-tweet tweet=”Kronos: user-facing portal is simple to use and lets everyone keep up to date on their usage.” user=”trustradius” template=”qlite”]

Congratulations to the winners of the Top Rated Payroll Software Award!

Top Rated Criteria

Products included in the 2019 Top Rated Payroll Software list must have been in the top tier of their category TrustMap as of February 13th, 2019. To qualify for the Payroll Software Top Rated Award, products must have at least 10 reviews written within the past year, a TRScore of at least 7.5 out of 10, and must receive at least 1.5% of the traffic in their category.  Every reviewer is verified and every review is vetted before publication. Products are plotted on the TrustMap based on end-user data, including users’ likelihood to recommend scores as well as buyer research patterns. To learn more about TrustMaps and Top Rated methodology, check out this page.