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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Gusto

    Score8.9 out of 10
    N/AGusto 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

    Sparkrock

    Score9 out of 10
    Mid-Size Companies (51-1,000 employees)
    Sparkrock’s cloud-enabled solution helps organizations manage their finance and accounting, human resources and payroll, human services case management, and donor and fundraising activities. According to the vendor, key benefits and features include: Finance Management with capabilities to help organizations increase transparency and reduce risk. Workforce Management to help front-line employees deliver services to clients, with tools that help them to be…N/A
    Pricing
    GustoSparkrock
    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
    GustoSparkrock
    Free Trial
    YesNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    YesNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup fee$50,000 per installation
    Additional DetailsGusto offers three pricing plans for payroll, benefits, and HR.—
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    GustoSparkrock
    Considered Both Products
    Gusto
    No answer on this topic
    Sparkrock
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    92%
    Would buy again
    563 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Delivers good value for the price
    93%
    Delivers good value for the price
    464 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Happy with the feature set
    95%
    Happy with the feature set
    576 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    91%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    316 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation went as expected
    94%
    Implementation went as expected
    376 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Features
    GustoSparkrock
    Payroll Management
    Comparison of Payroll Management features of Gusto and Sparkrock
    Feature
    Gusto
    9.1
    611 Ratings
    9% above category average
    Sparkrock
    9.4
    3 Ratings
    22% above category average
    Pay calculation9.5587 Ratings9.03 Ratings
    Support for external payroll vendors8.58 Ratings00 Ratings
    Benefit plan administration8.7417 Ratings9.02 Ratings
    Direct deposit files9.7592 Ratings10.03 Ratings
    Salary revision and increment management9.0462 Ratings00 Ratings
    Reimbursement management9.0196 Ratings00 Ratings
    Customization
    Comparison of Customization features of Gusto and Sparkrock
    Feature
    Gusto
    -
    Ratings
    Sparkrock
    10.0
    2 Ratings
    28% above category average
    API for custom integration00 Ratings10.02 Ratings
    Plug-ins00 Ratings10.02 Ratings
    Security
    Comparison of Security features of Gusto and Sparkrock
    Feature
    Gusto
    -
    Ratings
    Sparkrock
    9.5
    5 Ratings
    12% above category average
    Single sign-on capability00 Ratings10.04 Ratings
    Role-based user permissions00 Ratings9.05 Ratings
    Reporting & Analytics
    Comparison of Reporting & Analytics features of Gusto and Sparkrock
    Feature
    Gusto
    -
    Ratings
    Sparkrock
    9.0
    4 Ratings
    18% above category average
    Dashboards00 Ratings9.03 Ratings
    Standard reports00 Ratings9.04 Ratings
    Custom reports00 Ratings9.03 Ratings
    General Ledger and Configurable Accounting
    Comparison of General Ledger and Configurable Accounting features of Gusto and Sparkrock
    Feature
    Gusto
    -
    Ratings
    Sparkrock
    8.8
    5 Ratings
    13% above category average
    Accounts payable00 Ratings10.05 Ratings
    Accounts receivable00 Ratings9.05 Ratings
    Global Financial Support00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Primary and Secondary Ledgers00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Journals and Reconciliations00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Configurable Accounting00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Standardized Processes00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Inventory Management
    Comparison of Inventory Management features of Gusto and Sparkrock
    Feature
    Gusto
    -
    Ratings
    Sparkrock
    9.3
    2 Ratings
    15% above category average
    Inventory tracking00 Ratings9.02 Ratings
    Automatic reordering00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Location management00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Subledger and Financial Process
    Comparison of Subledger and Financial Process features of Gusto and Sparkrock
    Feature
    Gusto
    -
    Ratings
    Sparkrock
    9.6
    1 Ratings
    24% above category average
    Billing Management00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Cash and Asset Management00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Travel & Expense Management00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Budgetary Control & Encumbrance Accounting00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Period Close00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Project Financial Management
    Comparison of Project Financial Management features of Gusto and Sparkrock
    Feature
    Gusto
    -
    Ratings
    Sparkrock
    9.4
    1 Ratings
    21% above category average
    Budgeting and Forecasting00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Project Costing00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Cost Capture00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Capital Project Management00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Customer Contract Compliance00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Project Revenue Recognition00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Grants Management
    Comparison of Grants Management features of Gusto and Sparkrock
    Feature
    Gusto
    -
    Ratings
    Sparkrock
    9.3
    1 Ratings
    22% above category average
    Award Lifecycle Management00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Procurement
    Comparison of Procurement features of Gusto and Sparkrock
    Feature
    Gusto
    -
    Ratings
    Sparkrock
    9.6
    1 Ratings
    30% above category average
    Bids Analyzed and Compared00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Contract Authoring00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Contract Repository00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Requisitions-to-Purchase Orders Integrated00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Supplier Management00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Supply Chain
    Comparison of Supply Chain features of Gusto and Sparkrock
    Feature
    Gusto
    -
    Ratings
    Sparkrock
    9.3
    1 Ratings
    23% above category average
    Forecasting00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Inventory Planning00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Performance Monitoring00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    GustoSparkrock
    Small Businesses
    Patriot Payroll
    Score8.6 out of 10
    Zoho One
    Score9.2 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    APS
    Score5.7 out of 10
    Zoho One
    Score9.2 out of 10
    Enterprises
    ADP Streamline Payroll
    Score6.1 out of 10
    Microsoft Dynamics AX (discontinued)
    Score4.8 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    GustoSparkrock
    Likelihood to Recommend
    9.1
    (633 ratings)
    9.0
    (9 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    10.0
    (14 ratings)
    9.1
    (1 ratings)
    Usability
    9.4
    (457 ratings)
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    Support Rating
    4.3
    (27 ratings)
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    9.1
    (3 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    GustoSparkrock
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Gusto
    I think Gusto is well-suited for any business, big or small, to use for accounting purposes. It makes it easy to keep track of many things, such as pay stubs, benefits, paid time off, and much more. Where I could see it being less useful is maybe for enterprise businesses with way more employees.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sparkrock
    For all companies that want to improve the performance of their employees and increase productivity, this software helps all daily business tasks to be executed on time efficiently and smoothly. A very useful program that's why we don't stop using it.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Gusto
    • New employee/contractor onboarding - all the documents are stored and easily accessible (the same goes for off-boarding).
    • A one-click option for syncing hours worked with payroll.
    • The option to run payroll on auto-pilot.
    • Ensuring I'm tax compliant with the states we have employees in.
    • Always having digital records of payroll runs.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sparkrock
    • Data collection - the system is robust and we can tailor it to collect the information we need.
    • Easily configurable - the system is easy to configure to meet our specific business needs.
    • Reporting and data extraction - the system allows for easy access to information that helps inform business decisions.
    Read full review
    Cons
    Gusto
    • Digital compliance tools for remote teams
    • Gusto upsold us labor law posters, but I later found them available for free online. Since we’re a fully remote team, I had to manually download and distribute them digitally. It would be much more efficient if Gusto offered free, auto-distributed digital posters tailored to remote compliance.
    • Benefits setup is unintuitive for startups
    • While our rep was helpful, navigating the benefits system felt complex and not tailored to early-stage companies. More guided flows or simplified options for small, remote startups would be a big help.
    • Limited dashboard customization for remote workflows
    • As a fully online company, we’d benefit from dashboard options that highlight relevant tools for remote operations—like compliance tracking, digital communications, or onboarding checklists.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sparkrock
    • Many of the improvements are being met with each upgrade. Altus Dynamics has an idea portal that customers can add ideas to and vote on other customer ideas. This means that most issues that come up are resolved with each new upgrade.
    Read full review
    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
    Sparkrock
    We are already scheduled for our upgrade to NAV 2016 beginning in May 2016.
    Read full review
    Usability
    Gusto
    Gusto is pretty user-friendly, and the website is easy to navigate overall. They also offer good, responsive customer support and have helpful articles available when needed. So far, I have not had any major issues with the platform and am overall very happy with it.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sparkrock
    Complete workflow management to keep up to date and orderly the daily activities of employees. Allows for seamless cash flow, invoicing, general ledger, payroll, and inventory.
    Incentivized
    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.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sparkrock
    Complete tracking of employee performance, hours worked, attendance and absences, vacations, and overtime.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    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
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sparkrock
    No answers on this topic
    Alternatives Considered
    Gusto
    While I never actually got to the point of trying out ADP, I had several conversations with an ADP representative, and it seemed that they would be able to provide the same (if not less) level of service for a significantly higher price
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sparkrock
    • Real-time data that is available at our fingertips
    • Flexibility of the system to address changing needs over time
    • Elimination of the huge administrative burdens that we were experiencing as a result of the previous system due to lack of integration
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    Gusto
    • Time tracking + payroll calculations me 30-60 minutes every time I run payroll.
    • Integrated workers' comp, so I didn't have to find an outside carrier and get quotes—it's all taken care of in the same platform.
    • Improved employee experience with onboarding.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sparkrock
    • As a technician it's hard for me to say what effect the ROI has had on our organization, however our finance team seems satisfied on it. We look forward to deploying the staff dashboards for better financial tracking throughout our whole organization.
    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

    Sparkrock Screenshots

    Product screenshotProduct screenshotProduct screenshotProduct screenshotProduct screenshotProduct screenshot