Dayforce Powerpay vs. QuickBooks Desktop for Mac

We are a small business - and even though we are small and don't make near use of all of the options in the program, I love it because all my remitting is done for me, all the calculating, all the vacation pay, holiday pay, overtime, everything is kept track of really well and I don't have to worry about missing information if I was to do this myself. I also love the direct deposit options and my employees love it and the paystubs and the ability to put messages on their paystubs! I honestly can't think of a scenario where Dayforce Powerpay wouldn't be suitable!! I wouldn't change companies, even if it saved me money as I love all the functions, the information and the ease of ROE and T4's.

Incentivized

If you're a freelancer or running a very small business where you do your own bookkeeping I think this is a great option, especially if you're familiar with accounting and bookkeeping in general. If you're not so familiar with bookkeeping, I would say that the learning curve is too steep and you might want to look elsewhere for a more intuitive solution

Incentivized

• Ceridian Powerpay simplifies the payroll process, very little manual work involved during each payroll run.
• Ceridian Powerpay is mostly an intuitive interface with easy to understand workflows to allow for multiple users to be able to use the system if required.

Incentivized

• The program is very easy to learn, the interface is incredibly user-friendly and there are tons of free resources and tutorials available
• It makes managing payroll really easy for the employee and accountant on staff. No more lost time sheets or late paychecks!
• Managing bills and paying them has become streamlined and it's great having everything in one place so we don't lose track of things.

Incentivized

• Adjustment - Reversal sometimes gives an error
• Emergency Contact Comments field - would be nice if it would accept more characters in this field
• A warning that 'no ROE will be created' popup when EI or other related fields are marked Exempt
• Rate history on an employee's page would be nice

Incentivized

• The #1 complaint is that setting it up right is a challenge. People waste time trying to figure it out only to realize that they don't know accounting so of course they don't know how an accounting program should be set up. Like any time you are in over your head, reach out to your network and find someone who can log onto your computer and walk you through it.
• If you need to track the cost of wages to jobs you can't do it with the online payroll, but check for yourself because it's a function that landscaping companies and construction businesses usually need, so maybe they have added it by now. That would really help!
• It's premise-based software and that means you take on the role of hardware admin, and it's a lot of work for what is increasingly becoming a smaller gap in the functionality between QuickBooks for Mac and QuickBooks Online.
• QuickBooks for Mac 2015 has been updated consistently over the last 3 years and continues to provide for the bookkeeping needs of small companies using Macs in their offices. However, it has limited job costing functionality. It is similar in functionality to the 2010 version of QuickBooksPro which runs on Windows.

Incentivized

Powerpay exceeds my expectations: it's easy to use and does not 'eat' my time by wondering what the end result will be. I can see what each employee's pay statement will look like before I submit the payroll for processing. Monthly processing fees are not exorbitant and the service from support it top notch, quick and awesome when you need it! What's not to like? It's a terrific company to have on your side!

Incentivized

I haven't spent that much time with the newer versions of QuickBooks for Mac, but I think I'm seeing it make the much-needed improvements. For example, something as simple as undoing the previous reconciliation was a terrible chore, and I'm glad that feature has been included in the newer versions of QuickBooks for Mac

Incentivized

Dayforce is easy to use and intuitive. When things are less familiar, the chat support is speedy and friendly, so I never have to worry or struggle to figure something out. Once support shows me how to do something, it is easy to remember and not need help next time.

Incentivized

The Mac version is OK overall. I find the Windows versions to be much more robust but Mac is quite good for Mac users. Though I think die hard Mac users should consider QuickBooks Online instead as there is a new QB for Mac app that makes using QBO much better!

Incentivized

I have never experienced application errors or unplanned outages. I do know that I could phone Dayforce Powerpay and give them hours and other deductions and they would do the payroll and I could either have them deliver the completed payroll by courier (there are small extra charges for this) or I could download the completed payroll on pay day. I have also been able to complete payroll our payroll at home instead of at the office. Dayforce is very accessible by phone or online.

Incentivized

I've been using the QuickBooks online version for a little over 6 months now (upgraded from Mac desktop) and I haven't had any access issues. There have been times when it was down for service/upgrade however there is always plenty of notification time given by the Quick Books Online Support team. These upgrade maintenance time frames are always over night hours and on the weekends so everything can be worked around very easily.

Pages online load in seconds. Click and it's instantly there! I have never had pages not loading properly or taking time to load. Payroll reports also downloads quickly. We do not interface Dayforce Powerpay with anything else

Incentivized

Regardless the issue, the Customer Support team is offering outstanding services! When I am calling, the wait time is reasonable, and the team members will ensure you receive the right support in a timely manner, with politeness and kindness. If you reach out the team that it's a guarantee that your issue will be solved!

Incentivized

Fortunately, I haven't had to reach out much for support.

Incentivized

I have used Powerpay before (at a previous employer) but a few years had elapsed. I had a quick online training session (less that 30 minutes) to recover basic knowledge and I was away. I still from time to time have to do something that i am not quite sure of and pick up the phone! Every one that works at Ceridian - now Dayforce - have been able to answer my question and tell me where to go in the program, click on what and do what I need to do. The support is out-of-this-world good!

Incentivized

I initiated the implementation. I answered all the questions I was asked, prepared the documentation and sent it off and it was done! Quickly, efficiently and done well!

Incentivized

Being able to remit payroll directly to CRA reduces the number of steps in payroll processing. It also means that there is no way for us to forget a remittance. This is important to us because it's all-in-one software. I did like that QB would have the entry directly there so that I don't need to record it.

Incentivized

I love using Quickbooks compared to other software we've tried. QuickBooks Online and TSheets interface. Customer service and problem resolution are generally excellent, with well-trained and proficient agents taking calls or on chat. Ease of use and accessibility via the mobile app. Great courses were available to help with learning the basics and some advanced accounting background. I love learning! Online accessibility - it can work anywhere with an internet connection. Linking to bank and credit card accounts is handy.

Pretty standard contract terms. Unit pricing is about 30% less than the previous provider - service is about 150% better with Dayforce Powerpay that with the previous provider! We are billed twice per month as we do payroll twice per month.

Incentivized

We have a small staff of less than 20 employees. We moved our payroll from a previous provided because of terrible and expensive service. Dayforce is much, much easier to use and costs about 30% less than the previous provider. Dayforce Powerpay also seem to have people that speaks clearly and are efficient in everything they do so that less time is wasted by phone calls that has you on hold for 3 hours!

Incentivized

They are all professional, knowledgeable, very pleasant to interact with and extremely helpful. They consistently take customer services to a higher level. Great people to deal with!

Incentivized

• The return on investment has been substantial for our company. Having a payroll system that calculates everything for you, processes important documents, and only takes minimal time and effort allows us to focus more time on running the business and generating revenue.
• Instead of having a user spend half a day (or potentially a full day) processing payroll, it only takes a couple hours (obviously depending on how many employees need to be processed).

Incentivized

• It has allowed us to offer multiple bookkeeping softwares for clients that do not want to change from what they have been using.
• Payroll filing has given us ease of mind because we can physically make the filings rather than waiting on payroll software to make them for us.

Incentivized