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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

    Square Invoices

    Score9.2 out of 10
    N/ASquare Invoices is a software invoicing solution from Square headquartered in San Francisco, California.N/A

    Square Payroll

    Score6.1 out of 10
    N/ASquare Payroll is a payroll solution for hourly employees, from Square headquartered in San Francisco, California.

    $29

    per month

    Pricing
    GustoSquare InvoicesSquare Payroll
    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
    Free
    $0
    per month
    Plus
    $29
    per month
    Premium
    Custom
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    GustoSquare InvoicesSquare Payroll
    Free Trial
    YesNoNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoNoYes
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    YesNoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional DetailsGusto offers three pricing plans for payroll, benefits, and HR.——
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    GustoSquare InvoicesSquare Payroll
    Considered Multiple Products
    Gusto
    Chose Gusto
    I have only used Gusto from the employee side, but have used Square Payroll from both the employer and employee side and I still think Gusto is much more user friendly, better UX, easier to find information, etc
    Incentivized
    Chose Gusto
    Almost the same price BUT Gusto actually could run the payroll I needed (in multiple states for one employee) and that was ultimately why I switched. Square also didn't make me feel confident about their customer service and I often needed to call a few times about the same …
    Incentivized
    Chose Gusto
    Gusto is better than Square, but more expensive. Worse than Rippling, which is a very advanced offering with a ton of features and customization, but it is more expensive More features than Quickbooks payroll as well and slightly cheaper
    Incentivized
    Chose Gusto
    I could not understand the logic of these platforms and found myself constantly using the help articles, which were also not that helpful. They were very confusing, and I was often not sure if the things I had been trying to do were actually completed.
    Incentivized
    Chose Gusto
    Gusto seems to be more flexible from the start. It makes adjustments to payroll easy.
    Incentivized
    Chose Gusto
    It’s the easiest to use, visually.
    Incentivized
    Chose Gusto
    I have used many other alternatives available of Gusto for my business and it is safe to say that this tool has been the best among all. It was so much easier to implement Gusto than all other competitors. Some of the software had awful customer service. Some of them had bad …
    Incentivized
    Block, Inc (Square)
    No answer on this topic
    Block, Inc (Square)
    Chose Square Payroll
    ADP is much too expensive. Gusto was great for us but we found Square Payroll to be more cost effective, though the difference is not very much.
    Incentivized
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    92%
    Would buy again
    563 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    67%
    Would buy again
    4 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    93%
    Delivers good value for the price
    464 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    80%
    Delivers good value for the price
    4 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    95%
    Happy with the feature set
    576 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    100%
    Happy with the feature set
    6 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    91%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    316 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    67%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    4 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    94%
    Implementation went as expected
    376 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    67%
    Implementation went as expected
    4 Answers
    Features
    GustoSquare InvoicesSquare Payroll
    Payroll Management
    Comparison of Payroll Management features of Gusto and Square Invoices and Square Payroll
    Feature
    Gusto
    9.1
    611 Ratings
    9% above category average
    Square Invoices
    -
    Ratings
    Square Payroll
    7.8
    6 Ratings
    6% below category average
    Pay calculation9.5587 Ratings00 Ratings8.96 Ratings
    Support for external payroll vendors8.58 Ratings00 Ratings8.65 Ratings
    Benefit plan administration8.7417 Ratings00 Ratings9.15 Ratings
    Direct deposit files9.7592 Ratings00 Ratings7.06 Ratings
    Salary revision and increment management9.0462 Ratings00 Ratings8.94 Ratings
    Reimbursement management9.0196 Ratings00 Ratings7.85 Ratings
    Off-cycle/On-Demand payment00 Ratings00 Ratings4.44 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    GustoSquare InvoicesSquare Payroll
    Small Businesses
    Patriot Payroll
    Score8.6 out of 10
    Zoho Invoice
    Score9.5 out of 10
    Patriot Payroll
    Score8.6 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    APS
    Score5.7 out of 10
    No answers on this topic
    APS
    Score5.7 out of 10
    Enterprises
    ADP Streamline Payroll
    Score6.1 out of 10
    No answers on this topic
    ADP Streamline Payroll
    Score6.1 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    GustoSquare InvoicesSquare Payroll
    Likelihood to Recommend
    9.1
    (633 ratings)
    9.1
    (7 ratings)
    4.7
    (8 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    10.0
    (14 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Usability
    9.4
    (457 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    Support Rating
    4.3
    (27 ratings)
    9.7
    (2 ratings)
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    9.1
    (3 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    GustoSquare InvoicesSquare Payroll
    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
    Block, Inc (Square)
    Square Invoices is the best service that I have found for what it does: it's easy to use, nice to look at, and never seems to go to spam or be lost by clients. Clients mention that the setup is easier than services my competitors use. You can even attach your contract to the invoice, which is wonderful in case there are questions later on. Unfortunately, not being able to have clients alter quantities or select add-ons means for half of my services, I have to use a different, inferior service.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Block, Inc (Square)
    Square is an amazing platform to have total control over the payroll of all the employees of a company or a specific sector. This platform has a very good functionality to collect exact information on how long each employee works, that is one of its most outstanding characteristics, because it monitors work schedules and overtime and generates detailed reports on the work time of each employee. Square does not allow to schedule payments, that is one of the main problems, however, I consider that it is a very good option for small and medium-sized companies that are looking for a way to have more exact administrative control over the working hours of all their employees. It is a software that works in the cloud, so all the work information that is collected will remain safe without any risk of loss.
    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
    Block, Inc (Square)
    • Adding a customer to invoice is super simple and takes minimal effort.
    • Payment collection is easy and seamless because Square Invoices allows the recipient to pay using credit/cards.
    • One of the fest features is allowing invoices to be recurring. If my contract stipulates a flat fee monthly, I can set the invoices to recur monthly for the duration of the contract.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Block, Inc (Square)
    • 1099 contractor payments are easy, and they provide you with the IRS filing as part of the service.
    • Direct deposit/debit from your already connected account to the employee.
    • Reporting and management features are simple yet inclusive.
    • Low cost compared to alternative solutions.
    Incentivized
    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
    Block, Inc (Square)
    • The reports section is not always the easiest to understand. It seems like I have to stop and think about options instead of it being 100% intuitive.
    • With the fees we pay per transaction, it would be nice to be able to add additional "limited" users for no extra cost.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Block, Inc (Square)
    • It's a bit pricey for larger companies at $5 per person paid per month.
    • Has a bit of a learning curve that seems steeper than necessary
    • reports can be confusing at first
    Incentivized
    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
    Block, Inc (Square)
    No answers on this topic
    Block, Inc (Square)
    No answers on this topic
    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
    Block, Inc (Square)
    No answers on this topic
    Block, Inc (Square)
    It could use a mobile-friendly interface. Other than that it's a simple layout and non-cluttered which allows you to get done what you need to get done. No unnecessary dodads or distractions.
    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
    Block, Inc (Square)
    The only time I had a problem was a false chargeback from a client. Square Invoices referenced our contract and ruled in my favor, and they did so in a timely manner. I sent them the contract and my email history with the client, and they quickly unfroze the amount of money.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Block, Inc (Square)
    I think they have quick and helpful customer service reps, however, I give them a 9 because I have had to wait on hold for long periods of time before.
    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
    Block, Inc (Square)
    No answers on this topic
    Block, Inc (Square)
    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
    Block, Inc (Square)
    Square Invoices is easier to use and automatically transfers your money to your bank account vs Paypal that holds your money and you have to manually transfer and it takes 3-5 days (many times more). Square Invoices looks better overall, and for the same fees as Paypal, provides a better service overall.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Block, Inc (Square)
    I liked patriot, but I found it to be more confusing than Square and took me too much time to setup. I setup Square Payroll in about an hour. I would also say the Square interface made more sense to me. I also like how Square offers more things like benefits, etc. that can be added on.
    Incentivized
    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
    Block, Inc (Square)
    • I love that I can sort my invoices in total, or by a specific time period to see how my sales are doing and comparing to prior time periods.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Block, Inc (Square)
    • Square Payroll has dramatically reduced the time it takes to process payroll.
    • We could have a faster payroll with the Square POS integration for commission, but that is not something we've implemented yet.
    Incentivized
    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