ADP SmartCompliance vs. Payroll by Wave

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
ADP SmartCompliance
Score 8.2 out of 10
N/A
ADP SmartCompliance is a tax and regulatory compliance platform for midsize or larger companies using an ERP or non-ADP platform for HR and HRMS services.N/A
Payroll by Wave
Score 9.0 out of 10
N/A
Wave Accounting headquartered in Toronto now offers Payroll by Wave, a payroll app for small businesses.N/A
Pricing
ADP SmartCompliancePayroll by Wave
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
ADP SmartCompliancePayroll by Wave
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
YesNo
Entry-level Setup FeeRequiredNo setup fee
Additional DetailsPricing varies based upon modules deployed and features enabled.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
ADP SmartCompliancePayroll by Wave
Top Pros
Top Cons
Features
ADP SmartCompliancePayroll by Wave
Type of tax
Comparison of Type of tax features of Product A and Product B
ADP SmartCompliance
8.9
9 Ratings
5% above category average
Payroll by Wave
-
Ratings
Sales and Use Taxes9.53 Ratings00 Ratings
Cross-border Taxes8.07 Ratings00 Ratings
VAT / GST Taxes9.11 Ratings00 Ratings
Energy and Fuel Taxes9.11 Ratings00 Ratings
Tax Reporting & Compliance
Comparison of Tax Reporting & Compliance features of Product A and Product B
ADP SmartCompliance
7.7
40 Ratings
8% below category average
Payroll by Wave
-
Ratings
Geolocation for Tax Assessment7.111 Ratings00 Ratings
3rd-Party Software Integrations8.121 Ratings00 Ratings
Tax Data Reporting7.939 Ratings00 Ratings
Compliance Administration Management7.332 Ratings00 Ratings
Tax Exemption Processing8.015 Ratings00 Ratings
Tax Document Management7.432 Ratings00 Ratings
Complex Tax Scenario Management8.124 Ratings00 Ratings
Payroll Management
Comparison of Payroll Management features of Product A and Product B
ADP SmartCompliance
-
Ratings
Payroll by Wave
9.4
3 Ratings
13% above category average
Pay calculation00 Ratings10.03 Ratings
Support for external payroll vendors00 Ratings9.02 Ratings
Off-cycle/On-Demand payment00 Ratings9.02 Ratings
Benefit plan administration00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Direct deposit files00 Ratings10.03 Ratings
Salary revision and increment management00 Ratings9.03 Ratings
Reimbursement management00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Best Alternatives
ADP SmartCompliancePayroll by Wave
Small Businesses
Canopy
Canopy
Score 9.5 out of 10
Patriot Software
Patriot Software
Score 9.0 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
LOVAT
LOVAT
Score 10.0 out of 10
Paypro Workforce Management
Paypro Workforce Management
Score 9.5 out of 10
Enterprises
Vertex
Vertex
Score 8.4 out of 10
Infor Human Resources
Infor Human Resources
Score 7.3 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
ADP SmartCompliancePayroll by Wave
Likelihood to Recommend
8.4
(134 ratings)
10.0
(4 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
7.8
(29 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Usability
7.8
(37 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Availability
8.9
(12 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Performance
8.5
(12 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
5.6
(37 ratings)
8.9
(2 ratings)
In-Person Training
4.6
(4 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Online Training
8.3
(9 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Implementation Rating
4.8
(22 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Configurability
7.9
(10 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Ease of integration
6.9
(9 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Product Scalability
8.7
(11 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
5.5
(9 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
6.4
(8 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
ADP SmartCompliancePayroll by Wave
Likelihood to Recommend
ADP
There has been much end user improvement on this site over the 3 years that I have been using it. I really appreciate the focus and attention ADP has place on making this a user friendly site so that their customers can better navigate their payroll tax issues. I look forward to the additional features that will be added in another three years time. I really am able to be quite efficient within my role because of the ease of use of this site.
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Wave
Great for small business payroll needs. Reports and taxes are taken care of, everything is automated and once you're set up it's literally just a matter of minutes to run payroll each time. You also get email reminders which is helpful. There are premium features available for companies with larger/more robust needs, and I would definitely recommend looking into this software if you are searching for a user friendly payroll solution
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Pros
ADP
  • It helps us identify our employees who entered their account information incorrectly and get the payment reissued to them as quickly as possible.
  • It helps us quickly and securely issue payment to employees who terminate.
  • We efficiently get our garnishments processed to remain compliant.
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Wave
  • An intuitive, clear UI helps you know where everything is, what options are at your disposal. Calendars and timelines show that Wave really thought out how to provide you with useful tool.
  • Pay day can be automated and straightforward.
  • Wave onboarding provides guidance at what information to input next until you are all set up.
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Cons
ADP
  • ADP should have their SC employees better trained to give consistent answers about how to handle certain tax issues relating to the states. I seem to get a different answer multiple times.
  • It's difficult to distinguish between which cases/letters goes through ADP Workforce Now Service Connect and which cases go through SmartCompliance. I have been told differently on many occasions and will find a case in both places.
  • While many of the agency notices of tax rate changes, etc. are a very quick process and ADP "resolves" the case, I find other notices get lost in the shuffle when it doesn't fit exactly into the rate change bucket or the past due bill that says "Just Pay It". Some letters aren't that straightforward.
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Wave
  • Additional filings such as WorkSafe, etc.
  • More flexibility when it comes to paying a director.
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Likelihood to Renew
ADP
There is no other option on the table for us at the moment to go with a different vendor. We also have had very little issues processing with ADP that would make us want to look for a new vendor.
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Wave
No answers on this topic
Usability
ADP
For the most part, one can get in and learn how to navigate the system by just clicking on one of the suject areas. If you have a good clientrepresentative, they will inform you of new features/functionality and give you a quick demo. This is helpful for one to go back in and navigate to learn how it works and usefulness.
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Wave
No answers on this topic
Reliability and Availability
ADP
We have never experienced unavailability with ADP. They communicate promptly when there is a holiday or if the system is down for maintenance. The maintenance schedule is during times when it is least used
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Wave
No answers on this topic
Performance
ADP
If ADP is having issues, they communicate the problem within the solution once you log in. They also communicate that the issue will be fixed promptly. Reports run efficiently and in a reasonable amount of time. Also, the reports allow for various reporting types to be produced like a PDF or a Microsoft Excel file.
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Wave
No answers on this topic
Support Rating
ADP
As mentioned in the last comment, everyone and everything has been great. However sometimes you get one person that I feel can bring a score down and the current dedicated tax representative I have I do not feel is very supportive.
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Wave
Quick response times, personalized service. They offer in-depth videos and guides for helping to get set up. Any time I have a question about taxes or reporting, they answer quickly and give comprehensive answers. Members of the team with whom I've interacted have been courteous, friendly, and helpful. Overall, great support.
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In-Person Training
ADP
I haven't participated in in-person training yet.
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Wave
No answers on this topic
Online Training
ADP
They have annual training for Smart Compliance, which is very helpful. We learn the most up to laws for various subject matters, like garnishments, payroll law, child support, state unemployment laws by states. We also earn credit toward certifications. The training is user friendly, and highly recommended. It can be done live or listened to at your own convenience.
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Wave
No answers on this topic
Implementation Rating
ADP
Currently all electronic copies of our returns have to be downloaded one at a time. There should be a way to download all returns for a quarter in a zip file or single download.
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Wave
No answers on this topic
Alternatives Considered
ADP
ADP SmartCompliance was easily integrated with WFN and all of our employee data was in one place. We saw this as an advantage instead of having to log into multiple platforms, everything was quickly accessible to respond to a VOE or claim.
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Wave
We moved away from Wave as most of our contractors are time-based, and Wave flat out refuses to provide time tracking features. We tried integrations, but the pricing/complexity goes up and reliability goes down when integrating systems which were not intended to communicate. We since moved to Avaza and sacrificed Payroll for more robust time tracking, project management, and a very open feature development process
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Scalability
ADP
ADP has the ability to scale across departments. This was found to be true when we rolled out the wage payment solution. ADP users are able to view their pay stubs on their phones and/or computers. This wage payment portal offers W2 storage and paystub storage for access at any time by an employee.
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Wave
No answers on this topic
Return on Investment
ADP
  • The customer service phone service for the ADP Wisely service is very bad. No understanding or a language barrier is a very difficult service to deal with. Also working with them to correct a situation was impossible. It is basically non existent.
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Wave
  • Ensuring that I am compliant with my payroll obligations.
  • Less time spent on managing employee payroll.
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ScreenShots

ADP SmartCompliance Screenshots

Screenshot of