Namely vs. Paylocity

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Namely
Score 7.8 out of 10
N/A
Namely is an end-to-end HR, benefits, and payroll solution for mid-sized businesses. The cloud-based platform can be used to manage the entire HR process.N/A
Paylocity
Score 8.2 out of 10
N/A
Paylocity provides 24/7 access to your online payroll and human resource data management. Paylocity offers highly customizable payroll functionality, as well as HR, benefits administration, and time and talent management programs.N/A
Pricing
NamelyPaylocity
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
NamelyPaylocity
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoYes
Entry-level Setup FeeRequiredNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
NamelyPaylocity
Considered Both Products
Namely
Chose Namely
Paylocity was outdated and customer support was not helpful. The platform wasn't user friendly for administration or employees. Every small improvement was a big cost impact and the platform provided little to no flexibility in customization.
Chose Namely
I have only demoed with Paylocity (never used) but it seems superior to Namely in my opinion as far as time, HRIS, and payroll all communicating.

I demoed a couple others that I would not move away from Namely in favor of. I would say Namely is middle of the pack. They do …
Chose Namely
The reason I continued to choose Namely at multiple employers is due to the continuity of employee experience. And the features have continued to grow since I initially onboarded in 2014. Also, through the years, I have had terrific benefits teams. The customer service has been …
Chose Namely
BambooHR has eNPS, which is pretty helpful and allows us to send pulse surveys to employees to get an understanding of how they are doing. Namely doesn't have anything like that.
Chose Namely
We're currently evaluating alternatives, but there appear to be only features to gain no matter where we look.
Chose Namely
We chose Namely over these other products 2 years ago based on competitive pricing, better UX and all in one offering (Benefits, Payroll, Time, HRIS).
Chose Namely
I selected Namely because it offered the most functions and integration that I was looking for at the time (two years ago). It was not the most affordable option, but worth the extra features.
Chose Namely
Namely is a for sure improvement in capability, time commitment and ease of use over the systems I have used in the past. I would prefer not to share other systems I looked at while assessing Namely. The reasons for not choosing other platforms had to do with price or not …
Paylocity
Chose Paylocity
Paylocity is hands down a better system to use than anything Asure has to offer.
Features
NamelyPaylocity
Human Resource Management
Comparison of Human Resource Management features of Product A and Product B
Namely
9.5
144 Ratings
16% above category average
Paylocity
7.9
1477 Ratings
3% below category average
Employee demographic data8.0133 Ratings8.41407 Ratings
Employment history9.8139 Ratings8.21360 Ratings
Job profiles and administration9.831 Ratings7.91267 Ratings
Workflow for transfers, promotions, pay raises, etc.9.7133 Ratings7.71279 Ratings
Organizational charting9.7135 Ratings7.51179 Ratings
Organization and location management9.8130 Ratings8.01159 Ratings
Compliance data (COBRA, OSHA, etc.)9.983 Ratings7.5988 Ratings
Payroll Management
Comparison of Payroll Management features of Product A and Product B
Namely
9.1
128 Ratings
11% above category average
Paylocity
8.3
1415 Ratings
2% above category average
Pay calculation9.9112 Ratings8.71382 Ratings
Support for external payroll vendors10.054 Ratings7.8699 Ratings
Off-cycle/On-Demand payment9.758 Ratings8.71079 Ratings
Benefit plan administration8.0110 Ratings7.6957 Ratings
Direct deposit files9.9114 Ratings8.91376 Ratings
Salary revision and increment management9.8101 Ratings8.21113 Ratings
Reimbursement management6.657 Ratings7.8703 Ratings
Leave and Attendance Management
Comparison of Leave and Attendance Management features of Product A and Product B
Namely
9.8
125 Ratings
18% above category average
Paylocity
7.6
1197 Ratings
7% below category average
Approval workflow9.7122 Ratings7.71065 Ratings
Balance details9.8117 Ratings7.41144 Ratings
Annual carry-forward and encashment9.996 Ratings7.7914 Ratings
Employee Self Service
Comparison of Employee Self Service features of Product A and Product B
Namely
7.3
142 Ratings
12% below category average
Paylocity
8.4
1423 Ratings
2% above category average
View and generate pay and benefit information9.9130 Ratings8.61387 Ratings
Update personal information9.9141 Ratings8.71411 Ratings
View company policy documentation7.0128 Ratings8.11151 Ratings
Employee recognition2.5117 Ratings8.21047 Ratings
View job history7.1135 Ratings8.51239 Ratings
Asset Management
Comparison of Asset Management features of Product A and Product B
Namely
5.9
53 Ratings
31% below category average
Paylocity
7.4
459 Ratings
8% below category average
Tracking of all physical assets5.953 Ratings7.4459 Ratings
HR Reporting
Comparison of HR Reporting features of Product A and Product B
Namely
7.9
122 Ratings
4% above category average
Paylocity
7.3
1317 Ratings
3% below category average
Report builder8.0118 Ratings7.31264 Ratings
Pre-built reports8.0113 Ratings7.51283 Ratings
Ability to combine HR data with external data7.574 Ratings7.2841 Ratings
Onboarding
Comparison of Onboarding features of Product A and Product B
Namely
6.5
117 Ratings
20% below category average
Paylocity
8.2
1235 Ratings
3% above category average
New hire portal8.1111 Ratings8.31225 Ratings
Manager tracking tools5.086 Ratings8.1995 Ratings
Performance and Goals
Comparison of Performance and Goals features of Product A and Product B
Namely
6.2
97 Ratings
26% below category average
Paylocity
7.8
701 Ratings
3% below category average
Corporate goal setting5.087 Ratings7.6561 Ratings
Individual goal setting3.194 Ratings7.8647 Ratings
Line-of sight-visibility9.873 Ratings7.7501 Ratings
Performance tracking6.990 Ratings7.9656 Ratings
Performance Management
Comparison of Performance Management features of Product A and Product B
Namely
6.3
108 Ratings
22% below category average
Paylocity
7.6
877 Ratings
4% below category average
Performance plans5.097 Ratings7.4800 Ratings
Performance improvement plans5.069 Ratings7.4694 Ratings
Review status tracking7.096 Ratings7.7807 Ratings
Review reminders7.099 Ratings7.8814 Ratings
Multiple review frequency7.485 Ratings7.7689 Ratings
Succession Planning
Comparison of Succession Planning features of Product A and Product B
Namely
5.9
21 Ratings
28% below category average
Paylocity
7.6
471 Ratings
3% below category average
Candidate search5.921 Ratings8.0427 Ratings
Create succession plans/pools00 Ratings7.3323 Ratings
Candidate ranking00 Ratings7.5381 Ratings
Candidate development00 Ratings7.6350 Ratings
Recruiting / ATS
Comparison of Recruiting / ATS features of Product A and Product B
Namely
8.8
6 Ratings
14% above category average
Paylocity
8.0
829 Ratings
4% above category average
Job Requisition Management8.95 Ratings8.1712 Ratings
Company Website Posting8.85 Ratings8.2741 Ratings
Publish to Social Media8.85 Ratings8.0577 Ratings
Job Search Site Posting8.95 Ratings8.1709 Ratings
Duplicate Candidate Prevention8.85 Ratings7.6610 Ratings
Applicant Tracking8.95 Ratings8.2768 Ratings
Notifications and Alerts8.66 Ratings7.9766 Ratings
Best Alternatives
NamelyPaylocity
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
PeopleStrong
PeopleStrong
Score 9.9 out of 10
PeopleStrong
PeopleStrong
Score 9.9 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
NamelyPaylocity
Likelihood to Recommend
7.1
(145 ratings)
8.4
(1475 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
8.1
(10 ratings)
8.8
(166 ratings)
Usability
8.4
(71 ratings)
8.3
(281 ratings)
Availability
10.0
(1 ratings)
8.9
(35 ratings)
Performance
10.0
(1 ratings)
8.4
(34 ratings)
Support Rating
6.1
(28 ratings)
7.0
(148 ratings)
In-Person Training
-
(0 ratings)
8.1
(6 ratings)
Online Training
-
(0 ratings)
7.9
(29 ratings)
Implementation Rating
5.5
(85 ratings)
7.0
(92 ratings)
Configurability
9.0
(1 ratings)
6.9
(25 ratings)
Contract Terms and Pricing Model
-
(0 ratings)
8.3
(24 ratings)
Ease of integration
8.0
(1 ratings)
7.2
(28 ratings)
Product Scalability
8.0
(1 ratings)
8.2
(34 ratings)
Professional Services
-
(0 ratings)
8.7
(18 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
9.0
(1 ratings)
7.3
(34 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
9.0
(1 ratings)
8.4
(31 ratings)
User Testimonials
NamelyPaylocity
Likelihood to Recommend
Namely
Namely is aesthetically very pleasing and navigates like other social media platforms which can be appealing to potentially a remote workforce who interacts more online than in person. Unfortunately, it did not serve our population well as we are primarily manufacturing where people are not as interested in utilizing the HRIS for interactions when they would rather connect in person.
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Paylocity
Paylocity makes record keeping and payroll so simple. The times are able to be imported from time keeping saving tons of time and frustration. Going from manual entries to a more automated system has saved so much time. Whether a company is small or large or there are multiple companies that you take care of the system will work for you.
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Pros
Namely
  • Namely has helped with our COVID sick leave response. It has made a major difference both with the weekly payroll and the 941 tax filing
  • Keeping track of our multiple PTO plans. Thank goodness for Namely, I have shredded my old PTO spreadsheets.
  • Employees like the convenience of the cell phone app. As a payroll administrator, I like the Geo Tracking tool where I can see where some are when the clock is in or out.
  • The flexibility inside of the payroll system both as you are finalizing an employee profile and when you are processing payroll is a major advantage.
  • The reports I get out of Namely in Excel format work well for me.
Read full review
Paylocity
  • Payroll is made pretty easy. I love that we have the ability to log into payroll, we just upload the information from commissions, things like that where there are exceptions to a regular payroll run. It may make it very easy to do that, just a quick upload. Additionally, when we're in the payroll grid, it gives us the ability to just make quick changes to people's pay or their tax schedule, tax withholdings, things like that without having to go through a lot of different screens. It's just very easy to access just for the click of a button. Love that.
  • We talked about performance reviews, talked about payroll with benefits administration, it allows us to utilize EDI feeds with our benefit vendors so it creates a seamless, but we just enter the information into Paylocity and then it seamlessly provides that information to our vendors. That's been really helpful. And adjusting benefits is also very easy within Paylocity. I love the recent edition of compensation analysis information, so I'm able to go into the compensation module and look for jobs that are similar to a job title at our company. I can enter the job description, I give them what state that the person or the job is in, and it pops out compensation data. It gives me different options, so titles that might be similar. So if there's not something that's an exact fit, I'm able to find something really, really close. It's been a huge upgrade because before that I was having to use a different vendor and paying $400 per job and now it's significantly less expensive to Paylocity and I'm still getting great quality data. It's been very helpful.
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Cons
Namely
  • Limits to custom reporting
  • No direct feed for Ohio Workers Comp (now a manual process on our end)
  • No option to place an employee on Leave of Absence and exclude them from payroll while they are "inactive"
  • No option to suppress certain deductions for certain pay types (i.e. allow 401K for commissions but block remaining deductions - also now a manual process to uncheck the suppress box for 401K for each commission check)
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Paylocity
  • I'd like to see a forum in which users could discuss the platform, raise both questions and concerns. I feel that changes are done without enough input from users.
  • Improving hold time recently with customer service.
  • Accuracy of new 'graphic' payroll report - the new report is not complete when payroll is done, so it is unusable from my perspective. I rely on the preprocess payroll register. This is one of those 'improvements' that have not been positive in my experience.
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Likelihood to Renew
Namely
Administrators and employees love Namely. It is very easy to use and streamlined. Employees stay engaged with news feed updates and enjoy all the self service options. The time cards are very easy to access and clocking in and out for non-exempt employees is a breeze. Namely is part of our family.
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Paylocity
There are several technical issues we have experienced this past year with the employee onboarding process that we are still waiting to have resolved. Overall our experience with Paylocity has been positive, and we love how user-friendly and easy to navigate the system is. It has made all of our HR processes much more streamlined and efficient.
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Usability
Namely
It is very simple to use for myself, the HR team, and our employees. I find the payroll process very user-friendly. Reporting is simple to navigate and produce the required information requested. I know our employees enjoy the self-service feature and use it on a regular basis, which saves me time.
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Paylocity
I love Paylocity. As I have stated before I love the user friendliness of the system. I have used more than four different payroll systems during my career, and I have found Paylocity to be the most user friendly of all the systems I have used. I was able to catch on within two days of my training. The system has a lot of features I use on a daily basis and over the years I have not had a desire to change systems.
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Reliability and Availability
Namely
No answers on this topic
Paylocity
Over the last 3 years, we've only had one major service issue that rendered Airbase unusable for us for about 24 hours. That said, they navigated the SVB bank crisis very well and made sure funds were available during that time.
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Performance
Namely
No answers on this topic
Paylocity
We had some minor hiccups throughout the year but they have all been fixable. Paylocity integrates well with our 401k provider, Principal, and our benefits, OneDigital. It makes it simple to house everything and have it all connected. It doesn't slow anything down to have Principal integrated. It makes it more efficient
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Support Rating
Namely
Namely platform has pretty good support: knowledgeable and relatively fast response times. Namely Payroll and Namely Benefits are very much depending on the quality of the support agent or CSM: we have had knowledgeable and attentive ones, but also ones that have provided erroneous information or failed to respond to urgent asks in a timely manner
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Paylocity
It is very hard to get answers to your questions, you cannot speak to someone without days of requesting assistance or answers and then eventually can get a call back and then it is usually resolved fairly quickly. But NOT easy to get that help.
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In-Person Training
Namely
No answers on this topic
Paylocity
I didn't have in-person training, but I'm sure it was just as great as any other training/assistance Paylocity provides. Paylocity customer service is always available. You never have to be on hold and their answers are always accurate and timely. Documents in the help section are helpful as well. My in-person training was conducted y one of our employees who was involved in the initial set-up and training of all employees. She was excellent.
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Online Training
Namely
No answers on this topic
Paylocity
Our rep was very thorough and made sure we fully understood the software before turning us loose alone. Paylocity was very good to do periodic check ins to ensure we understood the features and answered any questions we had. The training reps are very well trained and are very patient with clients.
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Implementation Rating
Namely
Implementation was a bit complicated and our company had to carry most of the weight. It often felt like our implementation manager was giving us extra work that she did not want to do herself. It also took much longer than expected - I believe almost 2 months. I believe our company carried a bit too much of the weight.
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Paylocity
Implementation was a bit bumpy and Paylocity team not always available for next steps and/or questions. I feel like Paylocity could have done a better job in their fact finding as far as what we were currently doing, our payroll policies and needs, etc. so that we would have run into less issues as we moved forward.
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Alternatives Considered
Namely
The reason I continued to choose Namely at multiple employers is due to the continuity of employee experience. And the features have continued to grow since I initially onboarded in 2014. Also, through the years, I have had terrific benefits teams. The customer service has been the worst part of the experience outside of the benefits team.
Read full review
Paylocity
There is no comparison. Paylocity offers so much more to its clients. Their pricing is unbeatable and they provide a much bigger variety of features and customization. I had to use 6 different platforms to cover all necessary areas for our business, when I am now solely using Paylocity for everything.
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Contract Terms and Pricing Model
Namely
No answers on this topic
Paylocity
Everyone wants a good deal of course. We thought we did ok and felt you still made your money also
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Scalability
Namely
No answers on this topic
Paylocity
We have gone from a medium sized company to a larger company with no issues whatsoever with Paylocity being able to keep up or do what we need it to do for the size of our needs. In fact, it does more than we even use at this juncture
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Professional Services
Namely
No answers on this topic
Paylocity
Some are knowledgable others not as much and sometimes instead of helping you fix the issue will just give you some directions and expect you to try to figure it out yourself. Also, when your Account Manager needs to escliate the issue to another group, it can take a long time for them to get to your issue and there's no commuication.
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Return on Investment
Namely
  • We were able to transition to a fully digital onboarding process which saved us hours in time per new hire and made the process smoother for the new hire.
  • Namely is our first HRIS and has helped the HR department to find data and information quickly.
  • Namely helped us digitize our performance management process which the company undergoes on an annual basis.
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Paylocity
  • Paylocity has helped us with recruitment by streamlining the process and making it efficient. It is saving me time.
  • Paylocity has also helped us with compensation so we can create a fair and robust compensation plan.
  • I also like using the data insights feature, which helps me keep track of over time, payroll and benefits costs, and retention numbers. This also saves me time as it is all in one place.
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ScreenShots

Namely Screenshots

Screenshot of the Namely employee dashboard. This creates a central hub to access payroll and benefits info, share announcements, celebrate milestones, and navigate everything HR, from a desk or on the go.Screenshot of Namely Payroll, which is backed by automation and built-in compliance.Screenshot of the Onboarding interface, for new hires.Screenshot of the Applicant Tracking interface, which supports processes from job posting to onboarding with tools for hiring teams and candidates.Screenshot of the Benefits Administration interface, which supports open enrollment, plan changes, and employee elections.Screenshot of the Workforce Management interface. From here, viewers can track time, manage schedules, and handle complex workforce needs.

Paylocity Screenshots

Screenshot of a view of real-time employee data and performance metrics used to uncover and analyze trends. This creates an impactful understanding of the business, increase retention, understand labor costs, and plan for changes.Screenshot of where to automate manual processes with Paylocity's self-serve automation engine, Workflows. Users can implement routines for time-consuming manual tasks.Screenshot of where to manage and comply with employment law. Paylocity's HR Compliance solution helps users to stay on track and view important employee compliance items, from Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO), healthcare, and compensation.Screenshot of how Paylocity Recruiting can automate hiring processes. amplify outreach, showcase a company's culture, and build stronger candidate connections to swiftly fill positions.Screenshot of recognition and rewards in Paylocity.