Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Gusto
Score 8.9 out of 10
N/A
Gusto offers payroll, benefits and compliance capabilities. Gusto is scaled for small to mid-sized businesses, and emphasizes an easy to use interface.
$49
per month
Paycom
Score 8.5 out of 10
N/A
Paycom supports HR and payroll with automated, employee-first technology that supports every stage of employment. Its single database enables seamless data management, to reduce errors, endless data entry and time-consuming administrative tasks.N/A
Pricing
GustoPaycom
Editions & Modules
Simple: A streamlined set of automatic payroll features and benefits integrations
$49/month + $6/mo per person
per month
Plus: Comprehensive payroll, benefits, and HR tools for employers building a great place to work
$80/month + $12/mo per person
per month
Premium: Scalable payroll and benefits, expert HR, and dedicated support for the complex needs of growing teams
$180/month + $22/mo per person
per month
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
GustoPaycom
Free Trial
YesNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
YesNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional DetailsGusto offers three pricing plans for payroll, benefits, and HR.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
GustoPaycom
Considered Both Products
Gusto
Chose Gusto
Gusto is better for our company's size right now and easier for our HR/payroll folks to use. It makes HR fun and humanizing instead of a pain.

The quick editing on the tax forms are key. Welcome emails for the team and payroll emails are fun. The time off segment is easy to …
Chose Gusto
Paycom is really ugly, and the interface is not easy to navigate. I think it's often buggy, and I can't see it being something really friendly and workable. When I look at the different options like Workday as well, I feel similar. Gusto feels much more friendly compared to its …
Chose Gusto
Homebase is extremely crude and the only thing I find useful is their scheduling tool. I wish Gusto would take a note about this one facet of their business from them. Paycom is extremely comprehensive and offers lots of tools that I have no use for. As a result, their software …
Chose Gusto
I chose Gusto over Paycom for its superior user-friendliness and seamless integration of hour tracking with external insurance options, making it more efficient and convenient for my needs as a self-contractor.
Chose Gusto
Gusto is 100000% better than ADP. ADP is confusing, misleading, overly complicated, and not clear at all. Gusto just makes the whole process smooth as butter. Paycom is good, but Gusto seems much better. Paycom seems to have a lot of its own internal lingo and just doesn't make …
Chose Gusto
I will say i do prefer Paycom in comparison to Gusto because there are more perks when it comes managing employee timecards, getting help from a rep and all of the HR/Benefit modules they had. Gusto is universes better and easier to manage than ADP.
Chose Gusto
Paycom is a much more difficult interface than Gusto. It’s harder to access for employees and more difficult to find what you are looking for initially. Gusto has all of its options laid out on the main page to allow for easy access and understanding to use it. I would never …
Chose Gusto
ADP is cumbersome, complex, and hard as ever to find anything on the site. The ADP program is focused on Payroll only and does not offer the all-in-one feature that Gusto does. Gusto gives ease of use and practicality, while other programs, such as ADP that boast this, but end …
Chose Gusto
N/A - I am an employee and did not choose our company's HR software.
Chose Gusto
Gusto is the easiest to use out of all the payroll programs that I have tried out at various companies. Manually entering time is less complicated and requires less time on gusto than on the others.
Chose Gusto
I used this payroll service at a previous employer, and it was very irritating to have to use your fingerprint every time you clocked in or out. Sometimes it wouldn't read, and the system was constantly going down.
Chose Gusto
I like Gusto. It's user-friendly. Plus, I like that piggy bank that they use as a loading cursor.
Chose Gusto
Gusto is so easy and very user friendly. Navigating through the other sites is difficult and confusing. I have never had an easier time selecting benefits or splitting paychecks. Gusto gives me confidence that I have control over my paychecks and benefits.
Chose Gusto
Neither Gusto nor QB Payroll offer dedicated support. The cost of each is comparable with Gusto being a little higher on average. QB is glitchy from all of their recent updates (2020-2021). Tech phone support can take a minimum of an hour per issue. Gusto used to be very …
Chose Gusto
Gusto is much more simple that the 3 companies that I've used in the past. It pulls over less information but also leaves a lot of flexibility for custom payroll settings. I also appreciate the one way communication with our HRIS platform, making changes in Gusto will not …
Paycom
Chose Paycom
Paycom allows more flexibility. The cloud-based integration is great and flexible, it also has a lower learning curve, allowing for an easy transfer to new team members if needed. We use almost all functionalities managing hundreds of accounts with personal data and archives, …
Features
GustoPaycom
Payroll Management
Comparison of Payroll Management features of Product A and Product B
Gusto
9.0
575 Ratings
9% above category average
Paycom
8.3
454 Ratings
2% above category average
Pay calculation9.5552 Ratings8.8441 Ratings
Support for external payroll vendors8.58 Ratings6.447 Ratings
Benefit plan administration8.8395 Ratings8.2382 Ratings
Direct deposit files9.4556 Ratings9.3441 Ratings
Salary revision and increment management9.1430 Ratings8.2367 Ratings
Reimbursement management9.1170 Ratings8.4250 Ratings
Off-cycle/On-Demand payment00 Ratings8.713 Ratings
Human Resource Management
Comparison of Human Resource Management features of Product A and Product B
Gusto
-
Ratings
Paycom
7.9
446 Ratings
2% below category average
Employee demographic data00 Ratings8.9403 Ratings
Employment history00 Ratings7.8387 Ratings
Job profiles and administration00 Ratings8.0390 Ratings
Workflow for transfers, promotions, pay raises, etc.00 Ratings7.5390 Ratings
Organizational charting00 Ratings7.4303 Ratings
Organization and location management00 Ratings7.7341 Ratings
Compliance data (COBRA, OSHA, etc.)00 Ratings8.2325 Ratings
Leave and Attendance Management
Comparison of Leave and Attendance Management features of Product A and Product B
Gusto
-
Ratings
Paycom
8.4
400 Ratings
3% above category average
Approval workflow00 Ratings8.6381 Ratings
Balance details00 Ratings8.2380 Ratings
Annual carry-forward and encashment00 Ratings8.4316 Ratings
Employee Self Service
Comparison of Employee Self Service features of Product A and Product B
Gusto
-
Ratings
Paycom
8.5
455 Ratings
4% above category average
View and generate pay and benefit information00 Ratings9.0446 Ratings
Update personal information00 Ratings8.9451 Ratings
View company policy documentation00 Ratings8.0400 Ratings
Employee recognition00 Ratings8.6218 Ratings
View job history00 Ratings7.9361 Ratings
Asset Management
Comparison of Asset Management features of Product A and Product B
Gusto
-
Ratings
Paycom
4.9
26 Ratings
48% below category average
Tracking of all physical assets00 Ratings4.926 Ratings
HR Reporting
Comparison of HR Reporting features of Product A and Product B
Gusto
-
Ratings
Paycom
7.1
393 Ratings
6% below category average
Report builder00 Ratings7.8386 Ratings
Pre-built reports00 Ratings7.7383 Ratings
Ability to combine HR data with external data00 Ratings5.855 Ratings
Onboarding
Comparison of Onboarding features of Product A and Product B
Gusto
-
Ratings
Paycom
8.1
390 Ratings
1% above category average
New hire portal00 Ratings8.1387 Ratings
Manager tracking tools00 Ratings8.1335 Ratings
Performance and Goals
Comparison of Performance and Goals features of Product A and Product B
Gusto
-
Ratings
Paycom
6.1
227 Ratings
27% below category average
Corporate goal setting00 Ratings4.236 Ratings
Individual goal setting00 Ratings7.7210 Ratings
Line-of sight-visibility00 Ratings4.835 Ratings
Performance tracking00 Ratings7.6222 Ratings
Performance Management
Comparison of Performance Management features of Product A and Product B
Gusto
-
Ratings
Paycom
7.6
283 Ratings
4% below category average
Performance plans00 Ratings7.7262 Ratings
Performance improvement plans00 Ratings7.4247 Ratings
Review status tracking00 Ratings7.8255 Ratings
Review reminders00 Ratings7.8260 Ratings
Multiple review frequency00 Ratings7.3233 Ratings
Succession Planning
Comparison of Succession Planning features of Product A and Product B
Gusto
-
Ratings
Paycom
8.1
45 Ratings
4% above category average
Create succession plans/pools00 Ratings9.124 Ratings
Candidate ranking00 Ratings6.830 Ratings
Candidate search00 Ratings8.343 Ratings
Candidate development00 Ratings8.140 Ratings
Recruiting / ATS
Comparison of Recruiting / ATS features of Product A and Product B
Gusto
-
Ratings
Paycom
7.0
282 Ratings
9% below category average
Job Requisition Management00 Ratings7.2251 Ratings
Company Website Posting00 Ratings7.0247 Ratings
Publish to Social Media00 Ratings6.3194 Ratings
Job Search Site Posting00 Ratings6.9229 Ratings
Duplicate Candidate Prevention00 Ratings6.8215 Ratings
Applicant Tracking00 Ratings7.0256 Ratings
Notifications and Alerts00 Ratings7.9265 Ratings
Best Alternatives
GustoPaycom
Small Businesses
Dayforce Powerpay
Dayforce Powerpay
Score 9.4 out of 10
Dayforce Powerpay
Dayforce Powerpay
Score 9.4 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Paypro Workforce Management
Paypro Workforce Management
Score 9.2 out of 10
Paypro Workforce Management
Paypro Workforce Management
Score 9.2 out of 10
Enterprises
Infor Human Resources
Infor Human Resources
Score 7.1 out of 10
PeopleStrong
PeopleStrong
Score 9.9 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
GustoPaycom
Likelihood to Recommend
9.1
(590 ratings)
8.7
(563 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
10.0
(12 ratings)
7.3
(24 ratings)
Usability
9.5
(414 ratings)
9.0
(86 ratings)
Availability
-
(0 ratings)
9.1
(2 ratings)
Performance
-
(0 ratings)
9.1
(2 ratings)
Support Rating
1.5
(26 ratings)
9.1
(52 ratings)
In-Person Training
-
(0 ratings)
6.4
(1 ratings)
Online Training
-
(0 ratings)
4.5
(3 ratings)
Implementation Rating
9.1
(2 ratings)
8.2
(7 ratings)
Configurability
-
(0 ratings)
9.1
(2 ratings)
Ease of integration
-
(0 ratings)
5.5
(1 ratings)
Product Scalability
-
(0 ratings)
9.1
(2 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(4 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(4 ratings)
User Testimonials
GustoPaycom
Likelihood to Recommend
Gusto
Gusto is a great fit for small teams and startups that want a simple, reliable way to run payroll, manage tax filings, and give CPAs access without constant micromanagement. It’s especially useful for founders who need something that “just works.” The human support has been excellent—especially when forwarding confusing IRS mail.
That said, it’s a bit less intuitive when it comes to benefits and compliance for fully remote companies. For example, labor law poster distribution isn’t streamlined for digital teams, and setting up benefits felt more complex than it needed to be. Still, I’d recommend Gusto to any startup looking to get payroll right from day one.
Read full review
Paycom
It's very mobile friendly, especially for people that aren't tech savvy. We have an aged workforce where we were really concerned about how they would adapt, going from the comfort of using paper to a mobile and online application. But the training was really easy and the adaptation has been simple for us as a company.
Read full review
Pros
Gusto
  • Gusto really kills it on the simplicity. The app and website are very clear and straightforward.
  • Gusto also does a great job at being easy to navigate, visually pleasing, and logically posed.
  • Gusto communicates very clearly and provides just the right amount of communication.
  • Gusto makes the onboarding process very easy. I recently started at a new company and the process of filling out the necessary documents, filling out forms, and getting my benefit information input was soooooo easy!
Read full review
Paycom
  • I would say the communication post-implementation is amazing. Allie is our representative. She's amazing. Caitlin is amazing. I just met Travis last week at the office. Amazing. The communication is great and helpful, so if one of the team members don't have the answer, they can just jump in. For instance, I was on a call with Caitlin yesterday and she was like, "I'm not really sure about this answer. Let me see if I can go run it byTravis." I know he's on another call and instead of him saying blah, blah, he came over and looked at the screen and was like, do this, do this. It's a little different. So I would say the customer service is the best.
Read full review
Cons
Gusto
  • Adding in previous time manually could be more accessible.
  • Notifications for when employees manually change hours.
  • We should allow 1099 users to use the mobile app instead of restricting them to the website, especially since they can just log into the full website on their mobile device.
Read full review
Paycom
  • I think that when we do need a response back, which is very unlikely from the contact about something that's happening or going on, it can take a little long to get back to us. Longer than we would like because obviously it's an emergency to us, but we understand they have tons of emergencies they have to solve. But I think that's the only aspect.
  • I know from a payroll standpoint, which I'm not really privy to because I don't work on the payroll side, there have been some little hiccups that about certain formulas used, certain credits being issued that we've already filed for tax credits that we filed for. So I know that my CFO's already on top of it and pay comes on top of it as well and it's getting resolved, but obviously that's a big issue that needs some work there.
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Likelihood to Renew
Gusto
Unless they break it, I'm never leaving. It's just too easy. Gusto is also really affordable, and for what I pay, it's worth having the historical record within the system. I like that I can go back and pull up W2's for year's past. This sort of easy access reporting, has been helpful especially when getting reports for PPP loans.
Read full review
Paycom
Because it has everything that we need and as we grow, we are learning how robust Paycom can actually be but we need to be willing to spend the money. It's not expensive but we, as a company, are not used to spending that much on a system for HR and payroll.
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Usability
Gusto
The overall platform and its speed of response are amazing. I would recommend this to any other business owner for ease of use and reliability. Email reminders are great if I’m super busy and have forgotten a few tasks. The price point compared to local payroll service is hands down a huge win.
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Paycom
The interface is very intuitive, you can navigate it pretty well. Everything's pretty much spelled out and the features just flow really well. They make it easy for you to go back and forth with the UX/UI type of interface. So I think it was built pretty well.
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Reliability and Availability
Gusto
No answers on this topic
Paycom
They are very dependable and I have never experience any outages
Read full review
Performance
Gusto
No answers on this topic
Paycom
Yes, Paycom's performance is excellent, no issues.
Read full review
Support Rating
Gusto
Gusto's customer service has really deteriorated lately and they seem to have really changed their focus. It used to be when you called you were routed to an individual who knew about payroll, benefits, reporting, etc. but now you get someone who seems to have not received the correct training. My last call about a dismissal payroll took me over an hour of my time and the person still could not help me and finally transferred me to someone else.
Read full review
Paycom
Our TSR has been wonderful to work with. Every step of the
way he was quick to respond and answer any questions we had. I knew I could
reach him at any time (day or night) and he would be available to assist.
Implementing a new HRIS system is obviously a huge task and I contribute all
our success to our rep Kurt! Of course, with any implementation, there were
bumps along the way and issues. But I always knew we would work as a team to
get those issues figured out. Working in the Paycom system has been smooth and
easy to learn and I enjoy the employee self-service interface. Our managers
have had positive things to say and are all excited about the changes we have
been able to make to our organization due to Paycom being implemented.
Read full review
In-Person Training
Gusto
No answers on this topic
Paycom
They were a sales person and not really a good trainer.
Read full review
Online Training
Gusto
No answers on this topic
Paycom
All the online training modules were short and straight to the point. Every module teach you how to use the system. If there is one thing they know how to do is training. We did implementation during the pandemic so all had to be done online or via zoom meetings.
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Implementation Rating
Gusto
Reach out to support immediately if you are having trouble setting up Gusto. Rather than being confused and trying to figure it out yourself, it's much better to talk to someone who knows what they are doing. Save yourself time and frustration and reach out to support
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Paycom
Not at all satisfied it was a nightmare we spent over 8 months with the implementation team having issues after issues all related to the Puerto Rico regulations (half my employees are in Puerto Rico) and at the end we were moved over from the implementation team to the production team without all the issues being resolved
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Alternatives Considered
Gusto
It's been a while since I used QuickBooks for payroll, but it doesn't even come close to it. Gusto is infinitely easier, allowing for employee time tracking, handling calculations and payments of payroll and payroll taxes, managing regulatory compliance in the background, and more. I had a lot of moments using QuickBooks Payroll where I thought, "Am I even doing this right?" — it felt like you had to have additional knowledge of HR regulations in your state to do everything correctly. Gusto has it ALL handled so you can focus your time on higher-impact tasks in your business.
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Paycom
We really only had Paychecks and that was our biggest problem is that with several different companies, it was very hard If you had a salary employee and didn't terminate them in the prior company, they get paid twice, so this has really been definitely a big help for us.
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Scalability
Gusto
No answers on this topic
Paycom
They are not able to meet our current needs
Read full review
Return on Investment
Gusto
  • For me, it is hard to quantify payroll software as having an ROI. It does save quite a bit of time per pay period, so perhaps we could assign a theoretical number to an employee taking that time. I'd say, at the least, it saves 30-60 minutes a pay period compared to a more difficult-to-use payroll software.
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Paycom
  • I think our fiscal team who handles the ROI would say that it has had a negative impact just because a lot of stuff is a la carte and we weren't aware of that before we went into a business relationship with Paycom. So I think it's had a negative impact.
Read full review
ScreenShots

Gusto Screenshots

Screenshot of Gusto's automated payrollScreenshot of the time-off tracking interfaceScreenshot of the source of truth for HR data

Paycom Screenshots

Screenshot of a new study that reveals that for a composite organization representative of interviewed clients, unifying HR and payroll in a single-database software with automation and streamlined workflows achieved a three-year 362% ROI and resulted in: $1.4M net present value*; over 45% total time saved by HR; 80% time saved on compliance work.Screenshot of IWant, which is a command-driven AI engine in a single database, for instant access to employee data.Screenshot of Direct Data Exchange®, which takes a detailed pulse of how employees interact with Paycom. It automatically assigns a dollar value of savings based on Ernst & Young research.