Gusto vs. UZIO

Gusto is well-suited for small businesses looking for a one-stop platform for payroll, tax-related tasks, and onboarding. It has many automated features that make tasks related to running a business/running an S-Corp simpler. I have not tried any other similar platforms, so I am unsure how it compares, but the pricing Gusto offers feels reasonable compared to other providers.

Incentivized

UZIO is one of the best HRIS systems I have used over my career. What sets them apart, in my opinion, is the ability to quickly fix or add things because they have actual engineers. Other HRIS systems are just duplicates of other systems that require a lengthy process to correct anything and are much more cumbersome. UZIO is use-friendly.

Incentivized

• 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

• Tech support is consistent and reliable.
• User interface is easy for employees tracking time and managers approving time.
• High degree of confidence in the tech.

Incentivized

• 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

• We have a shift that crosses midnight and the system resets OT calculation when it becomes a new day, but in CA OT is calculated on hours worked and doesn’t split a shift at midnight for OT purposes. So far they have been unable to address this as it's not an issue in other states.
• Holiday Pay has been an issue because of our policy - too many changing variables to create a process. Unfortunately, you cannot adjust holiday pay on the employee's timesheet. That would be the simplest solution but so far that hasn't happened.
• Non-US Citizen beneficiary. This is not an option when electing benefits. Not a big deal unless you have employees with families abroad. We had one and we created a work around.
• Everything has to be downloaded. You cannot click on an employee's pay stub (for example) and view it within UZIO. It must be downloaded to your computer. Not a big deal - just takes more time and more files to delete on your computer.

Incentivized

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.

Wonderful overall usability – especially for the new business owner. The user interface is clean and intuitive, so it's easy to find what you're looking for. They also have great explanation pages ingrained into the process, so if you get stuck knowing what to do next, there's a link right there to walk you through the process!

Incentivized

Has some blips that have been stated throughout this review that can be fixed, I do not want to fully repeat myself however a more intuitive interface, interface that does not lag, and then glitches with service would be ideal. That's about all I can say on the matter, pertaining to what I have access to in my org.

Incentivized

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

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

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.

Incentivized

UZIO has a much smoother/easier workflow for benefits setup and management. The system is extremely user friendly and the platform is clean and easy to read. UZIO listens to client feedback and uses that information to improve the system and make it work better for users.

Incentivized

• I am not involved enough to know well, but I would say that Gusto has saved me about 1-2 hours in my onboarding process with my new company compared to my past experiences trying to onboard with ADP. I have also finished the process and am not frustrated like usual.

Incentivized

• UZIO has had a positive impact on the time it takes to onboard/offboard or complete payroll.
• UZIO is much more affordable that some of the other HRIS systems.
• The only negative is that they do not have a performance mgmt system.

Incentivized