Merit Payroll vs. UKG Ready

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Merit Payroll
Score 0.0 out of 10
N/A
N/A
$5,995
one-time fee
UKG Ready
Score 7.6 out of 10
N/A
The UKG Ready® software suite is a centralized HCM solution designed for small to mid-sized businesses. It automates and streamlines HR, payroll, benefits, time, talent, and scheduling processes. UKG Ready's suite of tools offer actionable insights while helping to ensure compliance. Using AI, it draws on work, people, and culture data to boost efficiency and productivity. For example, UKG Ready streamlines core HR functions by centralizing…N/A
Pricing
Merit PayrollUKG Ready
Editions & Modules
Basic
$5,995
one-time fee
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Merit PayrollUKG Ready
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoYes
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeRequired
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Merit PayrollUKG Ready
Features
Merit PayrollUKG Ready
Human Resource Management
Comparison of Human Resource Management features of Product A and Product B
Merit Payroll
-
Ratings
UKG Ready
7.8
263 Ratings
4% below category average
Employee demographic data00 Ratings8.7234 Ratings
Employment history00 Ratings8.2225 Ratings
Job profiles and administration00 Ratings7.8229 Ratings
Workflow for transfers, promotions, pay raises, etc.00 Ratings7.5212 Ratings
Organizational charting00 Ratings6.1174 Ratings
Organization and location management00 Ratings7.5200 Ratings
Compliance data (COBRA, OSHA, etc.)00 Ratings8.6172 Ratings
Payroll Management
Comparison of Payroll Management features of Product A and Product B
Merit Payroll
-
Ratings
UKG Ready
8.0
255 Ratings
2% below category average
Pay calculation00 Ratings8.8235 Ratings
Support for external payroll vendors00 Ratings6.7143 Ratings
Off-cycle/On-Demand payment00 Ratings7.9128 Ratings
Benefit plan administration00 Ratings7.6189 Ratings
Direct deposit files00 Ratings8.7198 Ratings
Salary revision and increment management00 Ratings8.2178 Ratings
Reimbursement management00 Ratings8.46 Ratings
Leave and Attendance Management
Comparison of Leave and Attendance Management features of Product A and Product B
Merit Payroll
-
Ratings
UKG Ready
8.1
230 Ratings
1% below category average
Approval workflow00 Ratings8.0212 Ratings
Balance details00 Ratings7.5220 Ratings
Annual carry-forward and encashment00 Ratings8.7189 Ratings
Employee Self Service
Comparison of Employee Self Service features of Product A and Product B
Merit Payroll
-
Ratings
UKG Ready
7.7
243 Ratings
6% below category average
View and generate pay and benefit information00 Ratings8.1224 Ratings
Update personal information00 Ratings7.9231 Ratings
View company policy documentation00 Ratings7.6191 Ratings
Employee recognition00 Ratings7.37 Ratings
View job history00 Ratings7.5198 Ratings
Asset Management
Comparison of Asset Management features of Product A and Product B
Merit Payroll
-
Ratings
UKG Ready
8.9
92 Ratings
10% above category average
Tracking of all physical assets00 Ratings8.992 Ratings
HR Reporting
Comparison of HR Reporting features of Product A and Product B
Merit Payroll
-
Ratings
UKG Ready
8.0
244 Ratings
6% above category average
Report builder00 Ratings7.7239 Ratings
Pre-built reports00 Ratings7.9239 Ratings
Ability to combine HR data with external data00 Ratings8.412 Ratings
Onboarding
Comparison of Onboarding features of Product A and Product B
Merit Payroll
-
Ratings
UKG Ready
7.3
172 Ratings
9% below category average
New hire portal00 Ratings7.5171 Ratings
Manager tracking tools00 Ratings7.1143 Ratings
Performance and Goals
Comparison of Performance and Goals features of Product A and Product B
Merit Payroll
-
Ratings
UKG Ready
8.0
108 Ratings
1% below category average
Corporate goal setting00 Ratings8.57 Ratings
Individual goal setting00 Ratings7.5100 Ratings
Line-of sight-visibility00 Ratings8.48 Ratings
Performance tracking00 Ratings7.4106 Ratings
Performance Management
Comparison of Performance Management features of Product A and Product B
Merit Payroll
-
Ratings
UKG Ready
8.2
134 Ratings
3% above category average
Performance plans00 Ratings7.6122 Ratings
Performance improvement plans00 Ratings7.7111 Ratings
Review status tracking00 Ratings8.9119 Ratings
Review reminders00 Ratings8.9125 Ratings
Multiple review frequency00 Ratings8.0109 Ratings
Succession Planning
Comparison of Succession Planning features of Product A and Product B
Merit Payroll
-
Ratings
UKG Ready
7.4
55 Ratings
6% below category average
Create succession plans/pools00 Ratings6.847 Ratings
Candidate ranking00 Ratings7.228 Ratings
Candidate search00 Ratings7.833 Ratings
Candidate development00 Ratings7.728 Ratings
Recruiting / ATS
Comparison of Recruiting / ATS features of Product A and Product B
Merit Payroll
-
Ratings
UKG Ready
7.5
138 Ratings
4% below category average
Job Requisition Management00 Ratings7.9119 Ratings
Company Website Posting00 Ratings8.2114 Ratings
Publish to Social Media00 Ratings7.088 Ratings
Job Search Site Posting00 Ratings7.594 Ratings
Duplicate Candidate Prevention00 Ratings6.690 Ratings
Applicant Tracking00 Ratings8.1119 Ratings
Notifications and Alerts00 Ratings7.5127 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Merit PayrollUKG Ready
Small Businesses
UZIO
UZIO
Score 9.4 out of 10
UZIO
UZIO
Score 9.4 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Paypro Workforce Management
Paypro Workforce Management
Score 9.1 out of 10
Paypro Workforce Management
Paypro Workforce Management
Score 9.1 out of 10
Enterprises
Infor Human Resources
Infor Human Resources
Score 7.1 out of 10
PeopleStrong
PeopleStrong
Score 10.0 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Merit PayrollUKG Ready
Likelihood to Recommend
-
(0 ratings)
7.7
(291 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
-
(0 ratings)
8.0
(19 ratings)
Usability
-
(0 ratings)
7.9
(174 ratings)
Availability
-
(0 ratings)
5.0
(4 ratings)
Performance
-
(0 ratings)
5.0
(8 ratings)
Support Rating
-
(0 ratings)
5.0
(75 ratings)
In-Person Training
-
(0 ratings)
7.8
(2 ratings)
Online Training
-
(0 ratings)
6.0
(4 ratings)
Implementation Rating
-
(0 ratings)
5.0
(11 ratings)
Configurability
-
(0 ratings)
5.0
(5 ratings)
Ease of integration
-
(0 ratings)
5.7
(135 ratings)
Product Scalability
-
(0 ratings)
3.0
(4 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
-
(0 ratings)
5.0
(4 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
-
(0 ratings)
5.0
(4 ratings)
User Testimonials
Merit PayrollUKG Ready
Likelihood to Recommend
Merit Software
No answers on this topic
UKG
UKG is great for storing personal information and is easy to use for clocking in and out. And you can easily find the next payday at the bottom, your calendar with requested time off, and the available hrs. UKG is less user-friendly and more difficult when editing your personal information, like your phone number, and requesting time off is a little confusing to me.
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Pros
Merit Software
No answers on this topic
UKG
  • The mobile app experience is terrific. Once the employees figured out the navigation, they now prefer the app over the web version. The app mirrors the web version, although the navigation is somewhat compressed due to the mobile view. Other than that, the tools in the app work exactly as the web.
  • Reporting - there hasn't been a time when I couldn't run a report on the information I needed. And the reports dashboard is very robust - my most important reports were already built in the system. I saved so much time because I didn't have to cobble together the data from multiple reports or contact support to build the report for me.
  • Community page - I log into UKG's Community page daily. I learn so much from experienced UKG users and the UKG moderators are quick to provide answers and best practices. When I have a question about how to use a feature in UKG Ready, my first stop is the Community - I almost always find what I need without the need to submit a ticket/case or call Support. When I can't find what I need using Community, I can trust that Support will be responsive and helpful. For example, I needed help learning how our onboarding process was configured and submitted a case for assistance. The representative scheduled multiple meetings with me to help me not only navigate the onboarding setup but also to teach me how to revise the associated workflows and test the changes. I was also able to ensure our onboarding was set up correctly as well as modify it as needed.
  • Employee Self-Service - Once employees were trained to find their HR Actions tool, they quickly adapted to submitting their requests through UKG Ready rather than asking for help from an admin. Now, they readily submit change requests to update their direct deposit, address, and withholding. Sure, they still need a little help from time to time, but employees are initiating these changes without the need for payroll or HR to chase down signatures or paperwork.
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Cons
Merit Software
No answers on this topic
UKG
  • Custom reporting is not intuitive
  • Learning and training is poor and has not provided our team with a way to approach our problems in a cost-effective and meaningful way
  • Consistent glitches in some areas result in errors that persist through multiple payrolls despite a thorough review of all settings
  • Reports don't live in the same place, multiple types of reports exist in multiple places with little explanation of the difference. We often build custom reports only to have them disappear or have to spend a long time trying to find them.
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Likelihood to Renew
Merit Software
No answers on this topic
UKG
We plan to renew our support and use of UKG Ready each year unless it becomes unavailable or the district seeks another vendor. As of now, there are no plans to changes vendors. The district staff is now familiar with using UKG. Another vendor will need to meet the same expectations we have come to enjoy with using UKG
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Usability
Merit Software
No answers on this topic
UKG
We have been very happy with the product. Occasionally, there are things we run into that do not seem so clear, yet the customer service provided by UKG community and service cases is unparalleled. Their specialists have been great to take the time to walk us through how to properly set up open enrollment and we appreciate the written follow up from the service cases so we can save the instructions.
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Reliability and Availability
Merit Software
No answers on this topic
UKG
The system seems very stable. Being hosted in the cloud, we are vulnerable to internet speeds and busy times. The system has been down a couple times over the 3 months we have been live, but Kronos resolved the issues very quickly. To have access from a desktop, tablet, time clock, or phone app is one of the best features....users have almost NO REASON they can't clock in.
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Performance
Merit Software
No answers on this topic
UKG
We were always told that Kronos was the best, but there are reports that we got out of ADP and other payroll providers that we cannot get out of Kronos. One example is a report of Productive/Non-productive hours by department. We also need the dollar amount associated with the hours. This is information that is required on our cost report and we were told that that report is unavailable. It is very frustrating when I can't get what I need.
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Support Rating
Merit Software
No answers on this topic
UKG
If I was only rating support itself that would be a 10. Every support case I have entered has been addressed efficiently and with the desired result. On the implementation and transition to support there were multiple issues that those doing the implementation or transition could not answer or workflows and various settings left undone only to be discovered later. We implemented 3 different modules and the expertise we got for each one varied widely.
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In-Person Training
Merit Software
No answers on this topic
UKG
Our in-person training was a hybrid. Live online training with an instructor. They were very knowledgeable of the product & the area they were training on. I asked several specific questions and if they didn't know the answer immediately they followed up after class.
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Online Training
Merit Software
No answers on this topic
UKG
Pretty good online training, you have many how to options and can watch them several times. It can be hard at times to dig through the amount of data online but can usually find what you are looking for. Also you can download documentation for setting up the profiles and policies.
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Implementation Rating
Merit Software
No answers on this topic
UKG
Make sure the people who are doing the build have extensive knowledge on employment law and asking the right questions. I would bet that the people who helped with our builds did not read any of our employment contracts or ordinances; and when I asked questions about how other companies handled certain basic dictates from federal employment laws, they didn't have any idea what FMLA, FLSA, etc were.
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Alternatives Considered
Merit Software
No answers on this topic
UKG
UKG is much easier to use and customize for our business needs. I enjoy that the time piece is directly connected with the payroll function. This is something that we didn't see when working with Paylocity. There was a manual time data upload that we needed to process into the Payroll function to process payroll. UKG has this setup and it's just a click of a button, so simple!
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Scalability
Merit Software
No answers on this topic
UKG
Thus far we are able to add as many users as necessary, implement 3 different bargaining units, 5 different types of user groups. Very flexible.
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Return on Investment
Merit Software
No answers on this topic
UKG
  • The system has allowed us to understand what goes into background vendors and helped us transition in a troubled time.
  • The system has allows us to move forms to custom forms vs using Docusign.
  • The system has helped us cut back on paper usage and storing folders.
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ScreenShots

UKG Ready Screenshots

Screenshot of the employee mobile interface.Screenshot of trust index survey results.Screenshot of the manager dashboard.Screenshot of payroll analytics.